đđ«đ€ Christâs peace be with you. Happy Time of PreparationâŠWhat? Yeah, that doesnât roll off the tongue as easily as Happy Advent. Okay, well then letâs try Happy New Year! Yes, the beginning of Advent is also the beginning of the new Liturgical year. Get excited! Celebrate! You are at the beginning of a year filled with greatnessâŠbut will you be ready? Will you take the time now to prepare? Will you go through the challenges now and build those spiritual muscles? God has some incredibly Awesome gifts picked out just for you! Will you prepare to meet Him to accept your incredibly Awesome gifts? My dad pointed out something to Brian and I this past weekend. He essentially brought to light how outside influences and situations âseemingly out of our controlâ tend to, I donât wonât to say force us, but give us a hard push into a different life direction, which has patched this broken road journey of ours together. Itâs kind of like âexpect the unexpectedâ, but if you knew what to expect, it wouldnât be unexpected and you could properly prepare for the âunexpectedâ. What God is inviting us to do is not to expect the unexpected. In my mind, that has a very negative feel about it. What God is really inviting us to do is prepare our hearts and minds in a posture of peace and openness. God is inviting us to be wise with our finances and giving in a spirit of gratitude. God is inviting us to walk with Him in faith, because it is by faith that we can clearly see Him in the midst of the fog and clouds that try to settle down upon our lives. In the heat of our daily lives itâs not easy to see how that dayâs path will guide you to the next. When I was an aircraft mechanic in the Air Force, my crew chief would often say to me, âStep back and get the full effect.â Thatâs a lot easier when youâre looking back at how God managed to weave those crazy, often unbelievable, choices we make into something so beautiful. Sometimes wouldnât you like to get even a small glimpse of what He is inviting you to next? You know you can. Really??? Yes, you can. How are you at putting puzzles together? I very much like jigsaw puzzles. They just make sense to me. You can step back, look at the box and get the full effect of what you have before you. Donât worry about putting the pieces together right away. To get started, flip all the pieces over so that you see the color and beauty of each piece. Get familiar with what youâre working with and also separate all the edge pieces. Depending on your puzzle, you can also separate like colors into piles. This time of preparation may seem like a waste of time and unproductive, but itâs really much more important than putting those final few pieces together. This preparation time allows you to focus and center yourself on the journey ahead. If you know what youâre working with, you will more quickly recognize when that particular piece will bridge the gap and connect those different seasons in life. Sometimes it may seem like youâve been searching for years to find the right piece and others youâll put five of them together in a matter of seconds. But it all comes down to the preparation. Also, you may want to be on the look out for lost pieces. You could simply walk by your puzzle and your clothing knock a piece to the floor without you realizing it. Or, you may have some furry distractions in your home that seem to think those pieces are their play toys. Yes, we all have people in our lives that, whether on purpose or not, steal our peace. Itâs very important that you donât let your peace leave you for long. Find your peace as quickly as possible so that you can continue to build onto your puzzle. Consider your options on how you will prepare and approach this new season as you walk this journey with your Friend and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is preparing to meet you. Bless others and be bless.
#JoshTurner â Me and God
