Preparations

Captain's Log: Table Time ~ Monday, September 4th, 2025 ~ Vespers

I wasn’t sure how much reflection we would get out of the passage tonight… Little did I know. I mentioned to the children that chapter 6 was about the building of the temple, and chapter 5 (tonight’s) was about the preparations for building. “Why do you think God gave us the preparation chapter? Isn’t that the boring bit?” Everyone knew the preparations were important. Some comments about things becoming messy or falling apart if undertaken without preparation. This is what I was going for. 

We read the passage and noticed the scale of the project, ran over the numbers a few times. Solomon’s temple was a very large project. ‘What might have happened if he had tried to build without making preparations?’ Disaster. There’s a lesson in wisdom here about doing the necessary preparation before beginning a work. And we turned to Proverbs for Solomon again. Handy.

²⁷ Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.

I asked the children what they can be preparing for now, before it’s time to do the thing? Lewis immediately called out, “marriage!” Lewis just turned seven. “Good, son. Marriage is a very good one. How can you prepare for marriage now?” “Lydia, how can you prepare to be a good wife now?” Not a lot of thoughts. Lydia did submit: “Copy Mama.” “Yes, that’s a very good one.” “Even when she shouts at you?” “No, not that. You can learn from that, but it’s not for copying.” Smirks all round. “What do husbands and wives need to be good at?” 

‘The best way to prepare for being a father and husband is to be the best son you can be. Then the best youth. Then the best young adult.

I rattled off a few. ‘Lydia you’ll need to be good at gentleness, and not only when it’s easy, but also when it’s difficult. Lewis you’ll need to be strong. And not just in here [bicep], and here [head], but in here [heart].’ Mama pointed out what I was doing at that moment, ‘Teaching the Bible!” they called out. I landed the plane with this: ‘The best way to prepare for being a father and husband is to be the best son you can be. Then the best youth. Then the best young adult. You understand?’ Nodding. 

The work of the Christ was not begun in haste or without the proper preparation. God had been preparing the world for the Son since the garden.

I turned the conversation to God and wondered what preparation was going on in our time. And it dawned on me. Jesus. “The time is fulfilled… (Mark 1:15). “At the right time Christ died…” (Rom 5:6). “When the fullness of time had come…” (Gal 4:4).  The work of the Christ was not begun in haste or without the proper preparation. God had been preparing the world for the Son since the garden. What a thought. What divine wisdom. He persevered with his people down the generations, preparing them for what was to come, until one cried in the wilderness, to prepare the way of the Lord. 

And this preparation work still goes on. “What is God preparing now?” “New creation!” Someone answered. We reflected on this for a while. “How is God making preparations for the new creation now?” We eventually landed on: ‘He is saving those who will enjoy Him in the new creation forever. He is preparing His bride…’ (Rev 21:2). 

What seemed a tedious inclusion in the narrative of Kings turned out to be rich with meaning and richly connected to the wider story of redemption. Solomon prepared to build God’s dwelling among His people. But God had been preparing His people for His presence since the first sin (Gen 3:15). Jesus began preparations that are ongoing for God’s dwelling. Now, in the living temple of the Spirit (Eph 2:22). Later, on a renewed earth, in the light of the Lamb and the Lord our God (Rev 21:23).