Meeting Preparation

Today at work I began learning one of the things that will be my responsibility. On Thursdays and Fridays I will go through the process of preparing our clients’ files for meetings that Tyler and John will be having the following week. It’s certainly not rocket science – none of this job is (which is good considering my aptitude with math). However, there are a lot of steps to what I need to prepare and several different places that I have to go to get the needed information. It took up pretty much our whole day today, however I can see that it will go quicker with time as I familiarize myself with the process from week to week. But with as much time as it took, it kind of made me sigh in frustration when one of the guys told me that one client or another had called to say that they wouldn’t be able to make it for their meeting.

As I began to understand what all the reports and pages were that I was printing out, I was impressed by the detail and scope of information that we included in each meeting folder. The prep packet includes client profiles and detailed account information. I also printed a detailed history of meeting notes that included in many cases, personal notes about what is going on in each family’s life. I put myself in the client’s position for a moment and considered how it would make me feel that my financial planner remembered that, for example, my son and his wife had a baby recently. I don’t know about you, but it would make me feel pretty good and give me a sense of security that this person that is handling my finances takes the time to remember the details of my life.

On my way home, I began thinking about the idea of meeting preparation and I found myself thinking about my meeting time with God. Isn’t it amazing that the God of the universe does not need someone behind the scenes preparing our files for Him to look at prior to us meeting with Him? He doesn’t need a list of meeting notes to remind himself of what’s going on in our lives. He has perfect memory. He is always prepared. And waiting.

And then I got to thinking about some of the passages that my BSF lesson took me to today. I realized that he did do some “meeting preparation” of sorts.

• Hebrews 2:16-18 says, “For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”
• Hebrews 4:15-16 tells us, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

In sending His Son, Jesus, to earth to be fully man as He was also fully God, He enabled Jesus to fully experience the human existence. He prepared our Great High Priest to be able to sympathize and help us with all the things we experience as humans and may bring to Him in prayer: hurt, disappointment, suffering, temptation, even sin as He experienced the weight of all our sin as He hung on the cross.

And, yes, He’s always waiting. I may have been a little frustrated that all my work was wasted when those clients called to say that they couldn’t make their appointments. Can you imagine how disappointing it is to the God of the universe when we miss our time with Him? And he doesn’t even have to prepare anything.

Lord, help me to be faithful to keep my daily appointments with you. Help me to have concentrated times of worship each and every day.