Internationally known evangelist Myles Munroe and his wife died in a plane crash last Sunday as their plane was about to land in the Bahamas. They were traveling there for a conference they had coordinated. After decades of building man and advancing the kingdom through books, sermons, speeches and conferences, Munroe’s death certainly affected many people in many ways. For me it was an in-my-face reminder that the Bible says always be ready. (Matthew 24:44 and Luke 12:40).

That scripture warns us to be ready for the coming of Jesus, to be ready for judgment and to be ready for our time to depart from this place and enter into the eternal presence of God. That warning, spoken by Jesus and illustrated by Munroe’s tragic death, advises us to not hold on to grudges and resentment, to say “I love you” and “I’m sorry” and “I forgive you” as frequently and as promptly as we can before the opportunity no longer exists.

But more than in death, the charge to always be ready requires that in life we always be prepared for opportunities. In Wednesday Bible Fellowship we’ve been studying Nehemiah. He was prepared before God gave him the opportunity he had been praying for – to rebuild the wall. We don’t know when opportunities to build God’s kingdom here or the time to meet God in eternity will arrive. What we do know is we always need to be ready for both of those opportunities. Let’s stay prayed up and focused so that we are always ready. I’m praying for your readiness this week.