Prepared Before the Moment

Some experiences with God never become ordinary.

I’ve learned to recognize the Lord’s leading, but I don’t think I’ll ever become accustomed to the feeling that comes with it. Every time He leads, there is still that quiet realization that He is orchestrating something I cannot yet see.

For nearly a month, the Lord kept bringing me back to Galatians chapter 3.

It wasn’t because I couldn’t read another passage. I read throughout Scripture every day. But every time I tried to move on, I felt compelled to return to Galatians 3. I even tried to continue into the next chapter more than once, but I never had peace about leaving.

So I stayed.

For weeks.

As I remained there, one truth kept settling deeper into my heart.

Paul asks,

“Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by hearing with faith?”

Then he asks,

“Does He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by the works of the law, or by hearing with faith?”

The lesson became clear.

The miraculous is not produced by human effort.

It is received by hearing with faith.

Then, early on the morning of June 4, somewhere around five or six o’clock, I sensed the Lord release me from Galatians 3 and direct me to Luke chapter 9.

As I began reading, something immediately caught my attention.

Luke 9 begins with the word then.

I found myself wondering, What happened before this?

So I turned back to Luke 8.

Suddenly I wasn’t just reading stories.

I was watching Jesus prepare His disciples before sending them out.

He calmed the storm and asked,

“Where is your faith?”

He told Jairus,

“Do not fear. Only believe.”

As I continued reading, I noticed something I had never really stopped to consider before.

Jairus’ daughter was twelve years old.

The woman with the issue of blood had suffered for twelve years.

I didn’t know why that stood out to me.

I simply noticed it.

Then my mind went to Matthew 17. After the disciples asked Jesus why they could not cast the demon out, His answer was simple.

“Because of your unbelief.”

Faith.

Not fear.

Believe.

Not unbelief.

At the time, I thought the Lord was simply teaching me.

I didn’t realize He was preparing me.

Later that morning, I went on my usual walk around the neighborhood.

Months earlier, I believed the Lord had placed a young man in my neighborhood on my heart. I sensed that one day He wanted me to spend time with him, disciple him, and become a consistent godly influence in his life, but I had never sensed it was time.

About a month before, I had briefly spoken with him while he was outside.

I asked him how old he was.

“Twelve,” he said.

I told him I was hoping to do something with a group of young men that summer and that I might include him.

That was the end of our conversation.

I never asked his name.

On the morning of June 4, as I passed his house during my first lap, I sensed the Lord say,

“Stop today.”

I remember thinking,

“Okay, Lord. I will. I’m going to stop after I finish my walk.”

As I continued walking, I passed the house a second time.

Again, I sensed,

“Stop today.”

It wasn’t a rebuke.

It was a reminder.

By the third lap, everything was in place.

His mother was sitting on the front porch.

In all the time I had lived in that neighborhood, I had never seen her sitting outside.

I remember thinking,

“This is really happening.”

My friend Rod Pickens was on the phone with me and heard everything unfold in real time.

I walked over, introduced myself, and shared what I believed the Lord had placed on my heart months earlier. I told her I believed her son needed a consistent, godly male influence.

She immediately agreed.

She shared that his father was not consistently involved in his life and asked what I hoped to teach him.

I told her I wanted to teach him faith.

Character.

Responsibility.

How to think.

How to play chess.

How to take initiative.

How to become a young man who honors God.

Then the conversation took a turn I never expected.

She told me she had cancer.

Immediately, everything I had read that morning came rushing back into my heart.

Luke 9.

Jesus sending His disciples.

Luke 8.

“Do not fear. Only believe.”

Matthew 17.

“Because of your unbelief.”

Without hesitation, I prayed for her. I spoke against the cancer in the name of Jesus and prayed for healing, strength, and peace over her body.

When we finished talking, I asked one final question.

“By the way…what’s your son’s name?”

She answered,

“Luke.”

I just stood there.

For weeks, the Lord had kept me in Galatians 3.

That morning, He released me into the Gospel of Luke.

Only hours later, I was standing in front of a woman whose twelve year old son was named Luke.

The Gospel of Luke had prepared my heart before I ever knew Luke’s name.

That evening, I had the opportunity to speak with Luke on the phone.

Then, a week or two later, we spent time together.

We shot basketball.

We laughed.

We talked about life.

We talked about responsibility, doing chores without having to be asked, and what it means to become a young man who honors God.

Before I left, we even created our own handshake.

As I walked away, I couldn’t help but thank the Lord.

What I thought was simply a divine appointment had become the beginning of a relationship.

Today, we continue to stand in faith believing the Lord has healed Luke’s mother. We are grateful for the opportunity to continue investing in Luke’s life and trust that the Lord will complete the work He has begun.

What the Lord Taught Me

Looking back, I don’t believe the greatest miracle that day was simply the timing.

It was God’s preparation.

Weeks before I knew Luke’s name…

Weeks before I stood on his front porch…

Weeks before I prayed for his mother…

God was preparing my heart.

Sometimes the Lord prepares us for a moment.

Sometimes He prepares us for a person.

Either way, His preparation is never wasted.