Ever feel like you are in the “preparation” stages for something big in your life? I’ve had that feeling quite a bit lately.  In the last week of 2011, I woke up in the middle of the night and felt the Lord nudging me to go out to the living room…get on my knees…and pray. So, naturally I ignored the nudge.

Finally, after realizing that God wasn’t going to let me go back to sleep until I listened to the nudge, I got my lazy butt up and left my comfy bed. For the next hour, I heard the Lord telling me over and over to get ready. He was prompting me with different action steps, different thoughts, different dreams… all of which had one thing in common: Preparation.

I have some ideas of what He may be preparing me for, but it could be anything. All I know is that 2012 is a year of preparation for me. I’m doing everything I can to get spiritually, physically, emotionally, mentally, and relationally healthy… fit for a tall task from the Most High.

Got me thinking about King David. Surely he didn’t just wake up one morning as King and miraculously have all the leadership qualities that were necessary to be a good King. No way. He had learned lessons all throughout his life…. through being a Shepherd, through being a brother, through being a son…heck, he learned lessons simply being alive. He didn’t just wake up and start exhibiting the qualities that made him a good King. The groundwork was there.

Now, before David was King David, he didn’t have the authority/necessity/responsibility to be “kingly”. He didn’t have to order around a nation. He didn’t have to command an army. He didn’t have to make big, important, decisions. He was just a shepherd, leading a bunch of stinking sheep around. In order to be a good King though, his character had to be built beforehand. You don’t wake up one morning and become a King.

Whatever God is doing in your life right now, you can help lay the groundwork in advance to prepare for something BIG. You know what makes a good leader. You know what makes a world changer. You have to be steeped in the Word of God. You have to be so intensely in love with listening to and obeying your Heavenly Father through prayer. You have to deal with your current circumstances (however small/insignificant they may be) with the utmost holiness, boldness, and spiritual maturity. You have to be yourself. You have to be secure in your identity that is found in Christ Jesus. These are just a few of the normal characteristics we see in world-changing people that God uses. You can start doing these things right now!

Stop waiting for the responsibilities of a King before you start acting like someone who can even be a King! Most of us are stuck out in the fields, tending to our own seemingly insignificant chores. But the way you handle yourself your current circumstances will determine whether or not you ever make it out of the field of sheep! The groundwork that God is wanting to lay in your soul right now will be what carries you through the next BIG thing that God is going to ask of you. The question is whether or not you are willing to do the hard stuff. Are you willing to lay the groundwork that it takes to be a world-changer?

Wake up. Get ready.

Are you tired? Are you defeated? Are you deflated? Does it seem like the passion that was once there for _____________ has packed up its bags and taken the first flight outta town? Don’t forget the times where God gives you extreme clarity and passion for something specific in your life. Because trust me, that passion and clarity will be gone in a heartbeat if you don’t fight for it; if you don’t battle for it.

Let me encourage you with two things that I believe are near and dear to the heart of your Creator. One is a verse from the Holy Scriptures, the other is a great quote.

Galatians 6:9

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

In context, this is talking about living by the Spirit and WALKING by the Spirit. Whatever it is in your life that you feel like God had put inside you that ignited your soul, remember that its there for a reason. This post is sort of piggy backing off of my last post on Dreams. Don’t grow weary of doing what the Spirit of the Lord has put inside you. Don’t let the choices of others, the lack of vision in others, the haters, the critics, the ones who can’t/won’t dream, take away what the Holy Spirit wants to do in your life and with your life.

Take these practical steps to battle:

-Surround yourself with people who ENCOURAGE you

-Keep a journal, keep thinking actively and daily about what the Lord wants from you

-Don’t stop pushing the envelope. Challenge the process.

-Actively pursue opportunities that will help keep your passionate pursuits alive

The last thing I wanted to share with you is a quote that just came through my twitter feed. I think it perfectly sums up what I want to leave you with:

“When you talk about HOPE, you have to be a long distance runner”

Don’t give up. Your hope is being attacked. Battle back my friend. Battle back.