God is ___________________ long before you see Him ___________________.

[Isaiah 40:3-5 NIV] A voice of one calling: "In the wilderness prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. [4] Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. [5] And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

[Matthew 3:1-2] In those days John the Baptist came to the Judean wilderness and began preaching. His message was, [2] "Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near."

God uses the ______________________ to prepare you.

[Luke 3:15] Everyone was expecting the Messiah to come soon, and they were eager to know whether John might be the Messiah.

Repentance is turning away from _________________ and towards what God is ___________________ to do.

[John 1:5-7, 9] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. [6] God sent a man, John the Baptist, [7] to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. [9] The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

Preparation is living with ___________________ even before you see it.

The preparation always comes before the ______________.

[Hebrews 11:8] It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.

The Lord never asked for a ___________________ heart, He asked for a ___________________ one.

[Psalm 130:5 NIV] I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.