Prepare a Place

PREPARE A PLACE FOR THE LORD
"Wherever two or three are gathered together in My Name, there I am in the midst of them (Matthew 18:20)."
When we take everything the Scriptures say relating to Bethany we have an idea of what it means to prepare a place for the Lord. To summarize, Bethany is the place where:
- The Lord is welcomed and received;
- The Word of the Lord is heard while we sit at His feet;
- Christ has the preeminence as the One Thing among many things;
- The exceeding preciousness and worth of the Lord Jesus is recognized;
- Resurrection Life is manifest as we are decreased and He is increased;
- The Lord Himself is celebrated as we "waste" ourselves upon Him;
- An ascendant spirit and a heavenly testimony is evident.
Perhaps you are saying, "Oh, that I could find a place where believers gather together towards this end! How I wish I could find such fellowship! I am out here in the desert with no place to go." Brother or sister, my challenge to you is this: stop looking for such a place, and be such a place.
Perhaps you are in a lonely place because the Lord desires to use you to establish a place in the wilderness for Him. If the Lord has impressed His Need for such a place on your heart, then declare your heart a "Bethany" place and take this up between yourself and the Lord. Give the Lord some ground to build upon. Give Him His place. Do not look for multitudes of people. It is better to have one, two, or three gathered together as the Lord's Bethany than to have hundreds or thousands of people gathered together as something other than Bethany.
Is there anyone in all the world who can truly meet for the purpose of ministering to the Lord and "waste" themselves in worship, giving no thought to their own need, but laying down their lives wholly for the Lord's satisfaction? I pray something is stirring within someone to seriously consider this before the Lord. Many are called, but few are chosen. May He quicken this word to our hearts, and whosoever will, let them hear.
~Chip Brogden