The Daily Walk | 10.01.2026 | Dan Stephens | Matthew 24:42

Good morning.

This is Dan.

Last week I mentioned the verse 2 Timothy 4.2, which talks about being prepared in season and out of season, especially when it comes to preaching the word or sharing the gospel.

And this morning I'd like to share a similar verse on being prepared from Matthew 24 42, which says to keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.

If you were here last Sunday, you might remember Pastor Aaron reading the verse about conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ at all times, whether Paul was present or not in the Philippian congregation.

Now, to be honest, being prepared to the extent these verses talk about doesn't come easy to me.

I hope I'm not alone here.

Do any of my listeners ever have a hard time practicing some things over and over until you can almost do the things in your sleep?

A driver gets a flat tire on the way to church, uses her spare, and makes it on time.

She then forgets to fix the spare tire.

Five days later, another flat tire happens, but this time there is no spare left.

The lesson is to fix broken things right away instead of waiting until an emergency strikes.

On the other hand, Noah built a huge ark way before the flood waters came.

It wasn't raining when he started building, but his preparation saved his family because he listened to the warnings God had given him and acted early.

I mentioned how important it is to practice.

Readiness involves repetition.

Several years ago, I conducted the Starlight Symphony Orchestra for their inaugural season.

They're still active to this day and have played several concerts here at FBC Wemberley, but those first concerts didn't just come together magically.

They represented hours of group and individual rehearsals over several weeks.

The result was that I, along with the players, were confident the orchestra was ready when we stepped onto the stage.

Let's pray we can all take the time to be prepared for the important things in life, such as telling others about Jesus.

I appreciate you joining me today.