“For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” 2 Corinthians 5:4-5

Preparation is key! “Being Prepared,” as the old BSA motto used to say, is key to anything in life. Thinking ahead about what could possibly happen and what I might need in the event of any event, is important. “Failing to plan is planning to fail,” is another quote I remember regularly. Whether storms or travel… preparation is key!

For the last month we’ve been planning. It’s our annual vacation time and making sure everything is taken care of BEFORE we go anywhere has been foremost in our minds. Our vocations demand that we make sure the sheep we tend are fed and kept well. Going somewhere we’ve never been hints at making sure EVERY detail is covered.

I found it fascinating this morning that when I opened my Bible, it fell on this Scripture. Admittedly I have been groaning a lot lately. I’ve had to promise Katie I would leave the grump at home! Which will not take ANY work at all on my FINAL trip home to Heaven. God is going to SEE to it that the old man in me will never be seen again… EVER!

The picture seems to defy reality. My mortal body will be literally swallowed up… with LIFE! Leaving behind any trace of fleshy, icky, mortal me! The verse says that THIS IS GOD’S WILL for me. It is WHY He made me the way He did! To become something immortal… looking like His Son. Talk about a TRIP! WOW! It’s hard to imagine

For now, I keep my eyes on Him and the walk He calls me to walk, knowing that one day the trip will end in a complete transformation of ME. “Oh How Marvelous,” says the Hymn. Are YOU looking forward to the trip that will end ALL of your ills, sufferings and troubles? Have you booked it ahead with Jesus and do you have the Spirit as a deposit?