NOVEMBER 29, 1 John 3:3

One evening, not long before her marriage was to take place, Lisa looked up from her desk and smiled at her younger sister,Tina.“I thought I’d read my Sunday school lesson and forget all about weddings for a few minutes,” said Lisa, “but guess what the lesson is about?”

“What?” asked Tina, who was sprawled on her bed. She was almost as excited about the wedding plans as her sister was. “It’s about Jesus and the Church. The Bible refers to believers as God’s Church and also as the Bride of Christ – and Jesus is referred to as the bridegroom. Someday He’ll come back for His bride,” Lisa explained. “The verses for my lesson say husbands are to love their wives as Christ loves the Church.”

“That’s a lot,” said Tina, “and I can tell you and Dan love each other a whole lot, too.” “Yes, we do,” agreed Lisa. She looked thoughtful. “You know how hard I’ve worked to make sure everything is just right for my wedding to Dan,” she added. “Now I’m wondering if I’ve been as careful in preparing to meet Jesus.”

“I know a lot of what you’ve been doing to get ready for your wedding,” said Tina, “but what are we supposed to do to be ready to meet Jesus?” “Trusting in Him to forgive our sins is the beginning, of course,” Lisa answered, “and then, according to 1 John 3:3, we should be purifying ourselves.”

“What does that mean?”Tina asked.“Well,think about it,”said Lisa. “I want Dan to always be pleased with me, so I’ve been learning to love the things he loves – and to enjoy the places he likes to go.” Grinning, Lisa added, “I’m even glad to go fishing with him!”

Tina laughed, remembering how Lisa disliked squiggly worms. “So... if we really love Jesus, we should want to do things that would please Him. And we should go to places He would approve of, right?” Lisa nodded as she put her book away and climbed into bed. “That’s right,” she agreed. “We should want to stay away from sin and live pure, clean lives for Him. Let’s both remember to work on that as well as on my wedding plans.”

Thought: If Jesus came today, would you be ready?

Prayer: Father in heaven, thank You for the reminder that I am to keep my life pure – and that my thoughts and actions must please Jesus. In His precious name I pray – Amen.