It’s crucial to be prepared to receive the blessings God is sending your way if you want to experience those benefits to the fullest.

This lesson was brought home to me on the tennis court recently.

To play your best on court, you have to be prepared for the ball when it gets to you. You can’t just stand in place la-di-dah, wait until the ball gets to you, and then decide what to do and expect to hit the ball back effectively. You need to be in a ready position, on your toes, looking forward, watching where the ball is coming from, and calculating where it is going to land. You should split step so you can bounce to your next spot on court with ease and grace. You have to get turned and positioned correctly to swing accurately…and many other details that all contribute to keeping the ball in play and scoring points. Bottom line: You have to be ready for that ball when it gets to you!

And the same rule applies to getting the most out of life. God is constantly sending blessings our way, but if we’re not ready to receive them, we “miss the ball” so-to-speak when the blessings land in our court.

These heavenly blessings come in the form of inspired thoughts, direction, guidance, inklings, and intuitions.

There has never been a time in your life when you didn’t have the perfect solution for your problem present in your consciousness. But if thought is not ready to receive it, it doesn’t become aware of it. It’s like a tennis ball rocketing in your direction but catching you flat footed and with your racquet down. The ball came, but you weren’t ready to hit it back and keep the game going.

Jesus shared the story of the ten virgins to instruct the merits of preparation. Five were wise and five were foolish. aka, five were prepared and five were not. The five prepared virgins got to enter the bridal chamber. The five who were not prepared were turned away.
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Unfortunately, mortal mind has lulled large portions of the population of the world today into complacency toward the need to pursue spirituality with gusto. The comforts of matter have dulled the senses and felt too attractive. Many children grow up with healthy bodies in healthy environments, get established in a good paying job where life seems fine and comfortable, and the question taunts, “Who needs God? What’s the big deal about learning spiritual truth? I’m doing fine on my own.” But then someday when its least expected, the door the neglectful one expects to enter is found slammed shut.

God loves us all, but we have a role to play in receiving the blessings of Truth into the human understanding so we can find our way out of the mortal dream. We need to be prepared. We need to pray with sincerity, study the thoughts of inspired thinkers, follow Christ, apply Christian Science with earnestness, and realize that there is nothing more important than understanding how God governs the universe spiritually.

Spiritual mindedness tunes into God’s voice, hears divine direction, and knows what to do next. It is prepared.