A voice cries out:
"In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway
for our God."
Over the years, I have heard this Bible verse many times. I have always
visualized a paved road, not unlike our highways of today. I’m sure it was quite
different in the days of Jesus’ ministry on earth. There was no pavement, but still
the roadway fulfilled its purpose of allowing people to travel.
As a person with a degree in civil engineering, I am fascinated by
highways, bridges and all the things we use for transportation. Advances in travel have
been amazing, especially since the development of the airplane. We can now jet anywhere in
the world in a short period of time. Yet it takes many people a long time to build new
highways and bridges and airplanes, to carefully prepare them so they are useful to other
people.
We are constantly preparing for something. We prepare out homes for
guests by cleaning and cooking and taking out the trash. We prepare ourselves for the
day’s activities by combing our hair and finding clean clothes. We prepare for
meetings and vacations and the IRS. Preparation for daily life takes a lot of time.
It’s hard work.
Do we work as hard to prepare the way for our Lord? Do we prepare our
hearts for him? And after we say he is in our hearts, do our lives show his presence
through worship, prayer, and service to others? Are we becoming the people God wants us to
be?
Today’s Bible verse calls us to be "prepared" for Jesus
when he comes into our hearts, we are to recognize him and imitate him. We follow his lead
and further his mission here on earth. Just like a highway project, it takes a lot of time
and effort to prepare a way for the Lord. And, like our paved freeways, our preparation
for God is not a one-time project, but one of on-going maintenance. During this Lenten
season, let’s think about the "preparation" we do in our lives and make
sure we are preparing for the right things, the things that will matter to us eternally.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, your Son walked as a servant through the dust
of the untamed wilderness. Send your Holy Spirit to us now, we pray. Build a royal highway
in the desert of our hearts, so that Christ may walk as King among us. Amen.
