Gift 2: Being Prepared

Matthew

25:

1-10 'And

while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.'

Read all 10 verses of the parable Jesus tells about the virgins who were waiting on the bridegroom. Five of them were prepared and considered wise as they pre-planned and had their lamps ready as they weren't sure when he was coming. Not everyone is a pre-planner, right? Has there ever been a time where something caught you by surprise and you just weren't ready for it? What was it?

Some things are out of our control. There have been a few times I may have missed service because when we went outside, the car decided it wasn't going to start, etc something that was not in our control. But a lot of times, I would get on my kids nerves because I'd wake them on Sunday morning and if they claimed they weren't 'ready' when it was time to go, I'd always tell them, 'I know it's new for you, but for me, Sunday has always come after Saturday, and on Sunday, in this house we worship!' and sometimes I'd leave them, and sometimes made them come as they were! There are enough surprises in our life, so for the things we can, let's be prepared for. In teaching, at least know the scripture and be prepared to have talking points about it. Be prepared to ask questions, or take questions down that you may not know and prepare to research them and let them know you will get back to them when you get more knowledge on the subject, etc.

Can the Lord count on you for having the Spirit of Preparedness and 'Be ye also ready' as indicated in Matthew 24:44?

Matthew 25: 11-12 '11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

Punctuality:

Continuing with the parable of the 10 virgins, we see above that they had a 'reason' for them missing the bridegroom. They didn't know when to go get oil, so they had to go get it and they did it as soon as they heard he was on his way, so that was the reason for them returning late, correct? What do you think? Write your thoughts below:

We already noted, there are things that are out of our control that may cause delay. In the scenario above, we are talking about a choice that the 5 virgins made to not be prepared, to sleep until they heard 'the bridegroom cometh' thus causing them to be late. Preparedness would have assisted in this instance and may have eliminated the somber outcome of being turned away!

Can the Lord count on you for giving the Spirit of Punctuality?

John 14: 15-16 - If ye love me, keep my commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

Spending Time with the Holy Spirit:

In the scripture above, we see Jesus is explaining a few things to the disciples. One, he explains the unity/the One-ness of he and God the Father, how he is the Way to the Father and that when you'd seen one, you had seen the other. Jesus lets them know, he has to leave, but will not leave them without a Comforter whom we know is the Holy Spirit. Jesus explains the Comforter will abide with them forever. Have any of you ever lived with someone you loveYour spouse, your children, your parents, a roommate?

We understand the word abide means to 'live with/in' so when he notes the Comforter will live with you FOREVER and he opens that up with 'if you love me, keep my commandments and I will send another comforter'. Anyone you love and live with, you are going to spend quality time with. Any relationship that you have that you don't put effort into, to give some quality attention to, is going begin to die. Jesus didn't say you'd be barely knowing each other/passers by roommates to see each other when time permits, and schedules allow, and etc... he said abide WITH, and it wasn't for a short time; he said forever!

Can the Lord count on you for having the Spirit of Spending quality time with the Holy Spirit?

Being Prayed/Armored Up:

Some of us are familiar with the verses above outlining the Whole Armor of God. I pray that we all understand the seriousness of its necessity to us the believer. Verse 11 sums up the 'why' in explaining that we need to be able to stand against the wiles(cunning/sneaky/enticing ways) of the devil who will stop at nothing to carry out his plan to 'Steal, Kill and Destroy!' Name something(s) important to you:

Those things you listed are your weak points, your Achilles heel, your vulnerable spot. So, if something was important to you, what would you do to keep that protected? Everything in your power, correct? Well, the same goes for your spirit, and the best way to protect it is by staying in the Word, staying in Prayer, putting on the Whole Armor of God so that evil one can't get to it!

Can the Lord count on you for being Prayed/Armored Up?