Advent: Are You Getting Ready?

Photo by Paula Muehlendorf 2012

Luke 1:67-79  (The Message)
(copied and pasted from www.studylight.org)

⁶⁷Then Zachariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied,

⁶⁸Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he came and set his people free.

⁶⁹He set the power of salvation in the center of our lives,
and in the very house of David his servant,

⁷⁰Just as he promised long ago
through the preaching of his holy prophets:

⁷¹Deliverance from our enemies
and every hateful hand;

⁷²Mercy to our fathers,
as he remembers to do what he said he'd do,

⁷³What he swore to our father Abraham--

⁷⁴a clean rescue from the enemy camp,
So we can worship him without a care in the world,

⁷⁵made holy before him as long as we live.

⁷⁶And you, my child, "Prophet of the Highest,"
will go ahead of the Master to prepare his ways,

⁷⁷Present the offer of salvation to his people,
the forgiveness of their sins.

⁷⁸Through the heartfelt mercies of our God,
God's Sunrise will break in upon us,

⁷⁹Shining on those in the darkness,
those sitting in the shadow of death,
Then showing us the way, one foot at a time,
down the path of peace.

For the last nine months, Zachariah had been struck deaf and dumb.  There is no doubt in my mind, that as a priest of God's people, he spent the silent days on his face before God and scouring the holy scriptures.  I can imagine the electricity that must have shot through Zachariah as he read the prophecy in Malachi 3:1, and realized that which the angel Gabriel had told him about his son, was the fulfillment of that ancient prophecy!

Behold, I am sending My messenger, and He will clear the way before Me. And the Lord whom you are seeking shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Angel of the Covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He comes, says Jehovah of Hosts.  (Green's Literal Translation)

The world was getting ready to change forever! And his son was the forerunner!  I am getting Holy Ghost goose bumps and it wasn't even my kid!

My inspiration from this text today, is to bury myself in the Word and declare this prophecy over myself and my family and the Church! I want to have God's heartfelt mercy towards those who are still in darkness! I want to be one who prepares the way of salvation for those who do not know our blessed Savior, Jesus!  In the Greek the word for prepare is hetoimazo. This is the definition given in the Strong's version at studylight.org:

1. to make ready, prepare
   1. to make the necessary preparations, get everything ready
2. metaph.
   1. drawn from the oriental custom of sending on before kings on their journeys persons to level the roads and make them passable
   2. to prepare the minds of men to give the Messiah a fit reception and secure his blessings

I especially want to prepare the path, remove obstacles and help to ignite a desire in others to know our King! I want His leading, one foot at a time down that path of peace!

Pray with me: Father help to have the focus that Zachariah must have had during his time of chastening  I want to burn with a passion that draws those in darkness to You.  Teach me to worship with all my heart and soul and mind and strength.  Glory to You as the time of Your Son's appearing draws near!! In Jesus' name, amen!