Athletes practice, Airmen, Sailors, Soldiers, and Marines all train, Olympians take years getting ready for their Olympic moment, yet most Christians don’t do anything to get ready for their moment. Someone once said that, “you either fail to plan or plan to fail.” This can hold true in many situations whether physical or spiritual. Jesus introduced us to an amazing concept in his Garden of Gethsemane experience that most of us often overlook and that is the concept of “PREPARATION.”
If you reflect upon the scriptures, Jesus prophesied to his disciples concerning his death several times, yet he continued to work in the field (Jn 9:4). He did not stop and throw a pity party by crying woe is me like we often do. He persevered because he spent time preparing before the battle came. No General would send his troops to engage in battle without proper preparation.
For the believer, we prepare in our secret place talking to God through prayer. It is in prayer (communication with God) where the believer receives clear instruction, guidance, and is strengthened in the inner man through the person of the Holy Spirit. A believer will fall short and ultimately fail if he/she hasn’t spent time preparing before engaging.
Jesus gave us the perfect example of the power of preparation through prayer as he spent time in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Lk 22:39-44) speaking to the Father before engaging in the greatest battle of His life. So let us remember to spend time praying so that when the battle comes we can, Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord for this battle is not yours it is the Lords.
