Earthquake: A lesson in being prepared

Since the Japanese earthquakes earlier this year, one of my friends made a point to have a small earthquake bag prepared in case there would be an earthquake here in Eden. So I also packed a small bag. But it is not always easy to prepare and as time goes on, you forget about your bag and it gets its contents removed as it is used for something else. Because by this time you just know that there will not be an earthquake any time soon. In many ways, I assumed that could have also been the pattern of the first Century Christians who were waiting Jesus' return--they had their "bag" (metaphorically speaking) ready; but as time went on and we moved into the second, third, and now twenty-first century the urgency to be ready has somewhat faded.

God brought this to mind this week by shaking the foundation here in Eden, literally shaking it up with a 5.4 earthquake waking me up at 7:30am with windows rattling, floor moving, and the building swaying. My first thought was: I need to get dressed--I need to get ready, but like the story of the ten virgins (Mt 25), you cannot get ready while something is going on--you need to be ready beforehand. And so after our first aftershock of 4.9 I prepared my earthquake bag again and took it with me to my next meeting where I experienced a 4.8 earthquake. It was at this time that talk was starting in the city, rumors were flying, and people were beginning to ask themselves how they could be ready for what was to be a 8.0 or 10.0 earthquake later that night. Many people fled the city, others (including myself) slept at friends' house who live on the first floor, and some merely made sure that from 9pm to 11pm (the time of the rumored big earthquake to happen) that they were outside away from their apartment buildings.

God was shaking things up, and it was not in vain. Throughout the course of this week I have been able to have amazing conversations with people about what it means to be ready and God laid on my heart to talk with friends who were over at my house about how we too can be ready not only for the "next" earthquake but how we can get ready for Jesus' return--and that it is only through accepting Him, having faith (not based on our works but based on what HE did for us), and making God our first love. God used this earthquake to teach us about how we too can prepare our "bag", our hearts, for Jesus' return. So...with my earthquake bag repacked by my bed, I ask you to pray that God continues to stir up hearts (I'm ok with no more literal earthquakes for the moment) and that He teaches us how we can be ready for His return--something that will effect the whole earth.