Mensa Otabil - Prepare Yourselves
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Joshua chapter 1, verses 10 and 11. Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, «Pass through the camp and command the people, saying, 'Prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you will cross over this Jordan to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess.'» It’s a very exciting moment in the life of Israel, and Joshua takes over leadership. He’s a man of action; he’s a military man, focused and determined. He knows what he wants; he has been to the Promised Land before and is ready. He has been ready for the last 40 years for this job, and what Moses couldn’t accomplish, Joshua is about to achieve in three days.
It’s amazing that sometimes God can raise someone who can do in a short time what everyone else has struggled with for a very long time. After 40 years in the wilderness and 430 years in Egypt, the wait is over; it’s time to get to the Promised Land. Joshua commands the people to get ready for action, but he tells them to prepare. This is very important because every major endeavor that God takes us on requires preparation. We need to prepare for the assignments that God has for us; we don’t just rush into them.
As eager as Joshua is and as eager as Israel is, they had to prepare. For everything we do, we must prepare. We prepare on three levels: spiritually, mentally, and materially. We prepare spiritually by dedicating our hearts to the Lord, setting our hearts in agreement with the Word of God, allowing the Word of God to dwell in us fully, and spending time waiting on the Lord and the Holy Spirit. We take time to hear from God; this is all part of spiritual preparation. You don’t do that when you are in battle; you do it before you get into the battle, so at the battleground you can put into practice all that you’ve prepared yourself for.
We prepare ourselves spiritually, but we also prepare ourselves mentally. Understand the nature of the challenge before you. Many times, the struggle we have is not at the spiritual level but at the mental level, where all kinds of doubts assail our minds or where ignorance prevails. We may not have a clear sense of what we want to do or a clear picture, and sometimes Christians rush into things because they believe spiritually they are ready, but mentally they are not prepared. They don’t fully understand the implications of what they are getting into, and when you are spiritually ready but mentally unprepared, you will have to deal with serious issues—mainly your lack of understanding and ignorance.
So, mentally prepare. If God has given you an assignment, read up on it, study it, and have a full scope of it so that your spirit is ready, your mind is ready, and then the third preparation is material preparation. Joshua said to the people, «Prepare provisions,» and provisions include weapons of war and food items because you will enter this land, and you don’t know how much there will be or whether there will be food. Get your tents ready; get everything prepared. Remember, they have been on this side of the Jordan for about 40 years; they have pitched camp there for a very long time.
Now they have to remove their tents, take out their cooking pots, and get provisions of food ready—material preparation for the job. Prepare spiritually, prepare mentally, and prepare materially. The task ahead is great; you will succeed, but you must prepare in your spirit, your mind, and with your materials. Let’s pray. Say with me, «Heavenly Father, I am ready to do what you have called me to do. Help me to prepare for your assignment. In Jesus' name, amen.» Don’t take anything for granted; prepare and overcome this challenge. I am Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.