Is there anything in this world that can prepare us for what’s coming next? Life is much like the efforts of forecast attempting to predict the weather in Florida. Today’s weather prediction in Miami is partly cloudy with a 50% chance of rain. I can either be optimistic and run out my house in shorts and a crop top, or fear the worst and carry my handy dandy, no not notebook, but Mexican PONCHO with cute cactus all over! This is life. You can plan a pretty picnic, but ya can’t predict the weather. Thanks, Outkast for that piece of wisdom. Truth be told I have no idea how to prepare for the mission field. My bible isn’t too encouraging. Chances of being persecuted are more likely than not. In a sense like a fig tree, I must be rooted far and wide in the truth, that I must invade and destroy my fears, doubts, and annoyances with the rich nutrient-filled living water found in the word. Let’s be honest I carry some of that Adam and Eve DNA through my veins and instead of prepping I hide behind fig leaves. As if God didn’t know how incapable I am of pulling off this whole shebang! Only He can cut away with those weaknesses and then can I bear greater fruit. God calls the unqualified and qualifies them, they say. Well, here I am putting on the armor. Like David against Goliath. Feeling tiny, but with the army of the Lord behind me.
I’ve always heard people phrase that famous quote “You’ll never be ready, so stop waiting” whenever someone doesn’t feel sure about going through with a plan or desire. I honestly think it’s just well-intended (but not really) wisdom. The truth is, you almost always need to have a level of preparedness. Then you step out in faith and work with what you have. C’mon you can’t climb Mount Everest if you don’t even have the proper gear for the travesty. The above-listed items are the essentials in the missionary field, as well as, in everyday life. We are all missionaries passing through this earth with our true citizenship in heaven. Not only are these things meant to serve me in a materialistic sense, but as well as in a spiritual one. They are my reminders of what preparedness looks like and how I should display each element. I will conclude this spiel with a question, are you preparing to walk into God’s calling for your life?
