Prepare To Dare

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

Trying something new can be frightening, and may even be dangerous.  That's why it's much smarter to take a calculated risk than a reckless plunge.

     A calculated risk is what Charles Lindbergh took when he decided to fly across the Atlantic, alone, in a single-engine plane.  Was Lindbergh fearful?  He certainly might have been if he had never flown before, or if he had known nothing about planes.  If he hadn't trusted the builder of his plane or his mechanics, he also would have had a good reason to be anxious.  And if he had decided to make the trip on a whim, without advance planning, he certainly would have been labeled foolish.

     But none of those factors were true in Lindbergh's case.  He was an experienced pilot and mechanic who personally spent months overseeing the construction of his plane.  He participated in the planning of every detail of his historic flight.  The end result was a safe trip, finished ahead of schedule with fuel to spare.

     To a great extent, "Lucky Lindy" made his own luck.

     Likewise, heroic spiritual moments are nearly always grounded in advance preparation.  Moses grew up in Pharaoh's court, unknowingly being prepared for the day he would demand that Pharaoh let his people leave Egypt.  Daniel was a man of prayer years before the king issued a decree banning prayer.  The violation landed Daniel in a lion's den, where his prayers of protection were answered.

     David was part of Saul's royal court and married to Saul's daughter.  This was part of his preparation for assuming the throne one day.  The years he spent in the wilderness prepared him spiritually to trust God, and God alone, to preserve him, protect him, and help him rule an empire.  Esther prepared herself for a year before she won the "contest" to be queen.  She prepared herself again before boldly coming to the king to expose the enemy of her people.

     You may not see clearly what God's purpose is for your life, but you can trust in the fact He is preparing you for it.  He will not waste a moment of your life.  So make every relationship and experience count today, knowing He is grooming you for greatness!