Cooking was not exactly my forte. Ask my daughters and they will tell you I made a mean macaroni and cheese with random ingredients added for nutritious value when they were young. As a mother with three busy little girls, the microwave was my best friend. I even perfected microwave eggs (remember, girls?). If I ever stepped out of my microwave world, I was the type of cook to follow a recipe exactly . . . no guessing and it had to be perfectly measured. The preparation was key for me. In the end, my meals were always a hit. Now I don't really follow recipes to the tee after trying something new. I have learned to be comfortable with the knowledge and confidence acquired since those early days of cooking. I know I can bring something good to the table every time. But I would never have gained the fearlessness of creating something new if I wouldn't have prepared in the past. As Christians, we must prepare ourselves for holiness on a daily basis. For when our time on earth is complete, I want Jesus to welcome me to heaven saying, "You did good, Bonnie. You prepared well."
In todays Gospel (John 13:21-33, 36-38), Jesus not only prepares Himself for the following days, He prepares His apostles:
Reclining at table with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified, “Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” The disciples looked at one another, at a loss as to whom he meant. One of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved, was reclining at Jesus’ side. So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out whom he meant. He leaned back against Jesus’ chest and said to him, “Master, who is it?” Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it.” So he dipped the morsel and took it and handed it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him. So Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” Now none of those reclining at table realized why he said this to him. Some thought that since Judas kept the money bag, Jesus had told him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or to give something to the poor. So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night.
When he had left, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and he will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little while longer. You will look for me, and as I told the Jews, ‘Where I go you cannot come,’ so now I say it to you.”
Simon Peter said to him, “Master, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, though you will follow later.” Peter said to him, “Master, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times.”
In Volume Four, Jesus the King gives a perfect analogy on the importance of preparing for His return:
"My brothers and sisters of the world must prepare their hearts to welcome their King. In past times when groups of humanity were ruled by Kings, all would prepare for the return of their ruler following his absence. Well, I have been away from your world in the physical sense for many years. Now I prepare to return. I am ready. Your world is not. What must you do to be ready? My brothers and sisters in the world must prepare their hearts. How do you want Me to find you when I come back? Would you be so immersed in the world that My return will be an unpleasant and shocking interruption to your worship of the false gods of materialism and sensuality? That will not be good for you, dear soul, because you will not understand or fully experience the joy that is rightfully yours. You must prepare to claim that joy. You must set an example of peaceful and watchful readiness. When I find you, you will want to welcome Me in all recollected holiness. Do I demand that you become a saint overnight? My little soul, of course I do not. This is not even possible for you. I do not expect it. Like a welcomed and beloved guest, I look not at how high you have reached spiritually, but how willing you are to work with Me on your soul. I am looking for a calm acceptance that you are My subject and live in My Kingdom."
Lay apostles, as Lent draws to a close, do you feel you are, at the least, a little more prepared for the day you meet Jesus Face to face? If not, it's never too late to begin.
God bless,
Bonnie
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