O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch. (Psalm 5:3, ESV)
I have written many times about how I have become a fair-weather golfer, but last weekend I broke my rule and played with the temperature gauge bouncing under 50 degrees. For this rare phenomenon to take place, I had to prepare the night before. I set out my rain gear for an extra layer of warmth, faithful cart gloves and hand-warmers, and a beanie to wear over my golf hat. I told my friend who made our noon tee time, “I can psyche myself up for it.”
My preparations did well. I didn’t need my rain pants, but my beanie, cart gloves, and hand-warmers were essential for the entire round. Without them, I would have been miserable and most likely would have stopped at nine.
Every spring I watch the plants surrounding my house turn green and sprout out of the ground. While I don’t spend a lot of time gardening, I do the required trimming and cleanup in the fall to make space for this new growth in the spring. Six months between the preparation and the reward.
Like the psalmist, once we have done all to prepare, we wait and watch.
In my golf example, I prepared in such a way that allowed me to enjoy my time on the course in less-than-ideal conditions. Even though I didn’t end up using all the items I had with me, I was ready for a variety of variables. And like the plants in our yards, after we do the proper preparations for something new and fresh to appear, we must wait and watch.
The psalms are full of words about preparation, today’s verse included. Right after the psalmist cries out for the Lord’s attention to hear his cry and prayer, he boldly states, “O LORD in the morning you hear my voice.” In this context, the psalmist expects that the Lord is listening. While the writer held the Lord’s ear, he then demonstrated how he himself needed to do something. What did he do? First thing in the morning he prepared his sacrifice.
The Complete Word Study Bible commentary defines the word prepare in this psalm as a “presentation of prayer to the Lord.” To present a prayer would require preparation: thought, time, and vulnerability. When we take time to prepare, we put in order or arrange for something to happen. We are not guaranteed that the results will be what we desire, but it is an act of participating with God. Like the psalmist, once we have done all to prepare, we wait and watch.
I am in the process of preparing for several upcoming ministry events. At times I feel overwhelmed with the details and my expectations of the results. As much as I want to believe I can control the outcome, I know all I can do is present my prayer to the Lord, be diligent in my preparations, and then watch and wait.
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Tracy Hanson
May 13, 2021
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