Daily Devotions

Posts tagged “preparation

Preparation and Provisions

Chipmunks and birds gather up provisions in preparation for the coming season, so there is built into each season an opportunity to prepare for the coming season. Part of staying the course includes preparation for the next season. The enemy of our destiny is hoping that we will become so focused on the factors that have put us in the present strain that we will not prepare for the season to come. Prov.24:27, Amplified — “Prepare your work outside And get it ready for yourself in the field; Afterward build your house and establish a home.”


Contradict the Threat Before it Takes Place

After a series of very uncomfortable events, Joseph ends up in Pharaoh’s court. National and international disaster of famine threatened on the horizon but he BarnSilo.jpgconfronted it and contradicted it with preparation. Not only was Pharaoh’s nation saved but Joseph’s as well. In this case, the threat was contradicted before it took place. Preparation and supply contradict lack. Heb.11:7, Msg — “By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn’t see, and acted on what he was told. The result? His family was saved. His act of faith drew a sharp line between the evil of the unbelieving world and the rightness of the believing world. As a result, Noah became intimate with God.”


Anticipation = Wise Preparation

We may very well need to separate ourselves in anticipation of what we do not see in this moment so that we might see it in the next. We will need to separate ourselves from what we have not seen in the past year. In order to see what we need to see in the next moment (or the next year) we must separate ourselves from the distractions, interferences and disqualifiers of the present. Joshua’s instruction for the people to “separate themselves apart from” could include separating from such practical and mundane things as (1.) cynicism (2.) unbelief (3.) opinions of others (4.) from past disappointments (5.) from past events that never culminated in the desired outcome and (6.) from people who never followed through with influence or promises. Joshua’s words that seem to really stand out in 3:5 are, “Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow.” Anticipation is not an emotion but a matter of wise adjustments and preparation.   (This is the sixth excerpt from Marty’s article “Anticipation”.)

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