Preparing Our Hearts - Bronte Fitch

Devotional

Day 1: Prepare hearts by clearing the way for Jesus.

John’s testimony shows that preparation is not about ceremony but about clearing the inner road for God’s arrival; like John answering the Jewish leaders, the call is to confess honestly, remove the obstacles of distraction and sentimentality, and reorient the heart toward the holy covenant that really matters this Advent — a quiet, daily reordering that makes space to meet with him. [05:46]

John 1:19–27 (ESV)
19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” 22 So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” 24 (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) 25 They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, 27 even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”

Reflection: This week identify one habitual distraction (social media scrolling, extra meetup, endless planning) you will intentionally remove for three mornings and replace with 15 minutes of prayer or scripture; which distraction will you set aside, and when will you start?

Day 2: Point others to Jesus; follow Him immediately.

When John sees Jesus he names him “the Lamb of God,” and his disciples leave him at once to follow Jesus; faithful preparation results in pointing beyond oneself so others can encounter Christ, and when a person hears the proclamation, obedience to follow should be immediate and simple. [16:28]

John 1:35–37 (ESV)
35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.

Reflection: Who in your life could you invite to a Christmas service this week? Write a one‑sentence invitation now and send it today, then pray that God would prepare that person’s heart to meet him.

Day 3: God's arrival calls for spiritual road‑clearing.

Isaiah’s image of leveling valleys and smoothing ruts calls for practical, spiritual work: Advent is a pilgrimage of heart-preparation where valleys of distraction are filled and the hills of pride are leveled so God’s glory can be seen; this is less about festive busyness and more about small, steady acts that clear the path. [08:44]

Isaiah 40:3–5 (MSG)
3–5 A voice shouts, “Clear the way through the wilderness for God;
make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God!
Fill in the valleys, level off the ridges,
smooth out the ruts, clear out the rocks.
Then God’s glory will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
The Lord’s mouth has spoken.”

Reflection: Pick one “rut” in your daily rhythm (an extra obligation, a commute filled with noise, habitual media) and replace it for the next seven days with five minutes of silence or Scripture; which rut will you clear, and when will you begin today?

Day 4: Jesus is sovereign, living, and worthy of worship.

Seeing the risen Son of Man in Revelation confronts the heart with Jesus’ dazzling authority and tender comfort — he is the first and the last, the living one who laid down life and rose again; when confronted with that glory, fear becomes worship and trust replaces frantic control. [27:03]

Revelation 1:12–18 (ESV)
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, 15 his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two‑edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength. 17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”

Reflection: When anxiety or disappointment rises this season, practice this short prayer: “Jesus, you are the First and the Last; I trust you with ______.” Fill the blank now with a current concern and say it aloud three times today.

Day 5: Christ humbled himself; we must emulate humility.

The gospel humility modeled by John and taught in Philippians means thinking of oneself less so Jesus may increase; Advent asks for small daily sacrifices — handing over expectations, choosing less of self‑centered comfort, and practising simple acts (a morning prayer with a child, swapping secular music for worship) that reorder the heart toward Christ. [11:51]

Philippians 2:5–8 (ESV)
5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Reflection: Name one Christmas expectation (a perfect meal, an extravagant gift, a flawless day) you will surrender this week and choose one concrete step to relinquish it (decline a task, simplify a dish, forgo one purchase); what step will you take today to practice “He must increase; I will step back”?

Sermon Summary

I began with the story of our whirlwind engagement and a hastily arranged pandemic wedding. What looked like a loss—no big day, no grand plans—became a gift of unseen preparation. God used those four days to strip away the fluff and center me on the covenant I was making and the God who had been faithful all my life. That hidden heart work bore more fruit than any visible detail. Advent invites us into the same: not a season of frantic tasks, but a pilgrimage of preparation to meet Jesus.

John the Baptist shows us how to prepare. He takes Isaiah’s call—make straight the way of the Lord—and applies it to a people expecting a king but cluttered with obstacles. Our biggest modern obstacle is busyness: the pace that crowds out life with God. So we practice small, daily sacrifices that reorder desire—earlier mornings, fewer obligations, quiet in the car, a simple prayer at the Advent calendar—clearing the road for the One who is already among us.

John also models gospel humility. He is not the point; Jesus is. John is so captivated by Christ’s worth that he says he’s unworthy even to untie his sandals. In a season that constantly tempts us to center the story on ourselves—perfect gifts, perfect meals, perfect moments—Advent trains us to think of ourselves less and Jesus more.

From that posture, two fruits flowed in John: prophetic clarity and self-forgetful leadership. He names Jesus “the Lamb of God,” speaking better than he knows, because intimacy with God tunes the heart to God’s voice. And when his disciples leave him for Jesus, John’s joy is complete. That is a beautiful aim for these weeks: prepare in secret, adore in simplicity, and let our lives point beyond us to the One whose face shines like the sun.

Key Takeaways

1. Prepare hearts, not just calendars Advent isn’t a countdown of errands but a pilgrimage of attention. John’s wilderness cry invites us to remove what hinders and build a clear road for the King. Hidden preparation—prayer, reflection, repentance—bears visible fruit. Make space, and you will discover the One who is already near. [08:44]
2. Resist the tyranny of busyness The problem isn’t only speed; it’s what speed squeezes out—life with God. Advent asks for small daily sacrifices that reorder desire: fewer obligations, quieter moments, unhurried prayer. Clear ten minutes and guard them like treasure; it’s not much, but it changes everything. [11:51]
3. Embrace gospel humility: He increases John’s posture before Jesus is awe, not self-importance. This humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less because Someone greater has captured your gaze. Let Advent retrain your instincts away from self as the main character toward Christ as the center. [13:00]
4. Intimacy with God births prophecy John spoke beyond his understanding because he had learned to recognize God’s voice in obscurity. Thirty years of quiet prepared him for three months of clarity. Depth with God forms language, courage, and discernment for the moment you need it. [19:04]
5. Point others beyond you to Jesus John’s greatest success was losing followers to the Lamb. Real ministry is glad to disappear if Jesus is seen. Let your words, invitations, and habits make it easy for people to transfer their trust from you to Him. [21:06]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[02:31] - A wedding in four days
[05:46] - Advent as sacred preparation
[08:44] - Isaiah 40: make straight the way
[11:51] - The obstacle of busyness
[13:00] - Gospel humility in a self-focused season
[16:28] - Christmas about the self-emptying Christ
[19:04] - Thirty years for three months
[21:06] - Joy as Jesus increases
[24:19] - Practical invitations for Advent
[25:38] - Beholding the Risen Christ
[26:27] - Do not be afraid
[27:03] - Amen and response time

Sermon Clips

None of these things are bad, but they can so easily become our gods if we don't prepare our hearts in the right way. As one scholar puts it, when we cut through the sentiment and marketing to the spiritual riches of Christmas, we recover not only a sense of who God is, but also who we are as human beings. [00:05:24] (28 seconds) #SpiritualRichesOfChristmas

``I wonder as we enter this Advent season, are you prepared to meet with him? Are you longing to experience, maybe for the first time ever, the beauty and the glory and the wonder of the Christmas story? The creator God taking on flesh and stepping into this chaotic, messy, broken world as a baby, utterly vulnerable and helpless. [00:10:07] (36 seconds) #PrepareToMeetHim

Do you want this year to be different, to not just go through the motions of it all, but to really meet with the one who loved you enough, who set aside the privileges of deity to take on the status of a slave, as Philippians 2 tells us and Adam reminded us this morning. If this is your prayer, then I ask you, in what ways do you need to clear the road for him? What ruts need smoothed out? What rocks need removed from the highway of our king? [00:10:42] (33 seconds) #ClearTheRoadForHim

Well, it means small daily acts of sacrifice and a reordering of our priorities. Maybe that means getting up a little earlier in the morning, ideally before the kids wake up, to listen to Lectio 365 in peace. Maybe it means apologetically, buying out of a couple of obligations, watching less TV, spending those minutes in the car on the way to Tesco's to pause, to breathe, to realign ourselves with him. [00:12:40] (37 seconds) #SmallDailySacrifices

Every culture recognizes certain practices that are so repulsive you would only ever do them to yourself. The culture of Jesus's day was dusty and dirty and so the daily act of removing your sandals was regarded as utterly repulsive, never mind removing the sandals of somebody else. There were actually rules in place that protected the lowest members of society so they didn't have to do it for other people. [00:13:35] (30 seconds) #HumbleActsOfService

John recognizes that Jesus is so qualitatively greater than him that he cannot even comprehend being worthy enough to perform the lowest of low tasks for Jesus. John is emphatic. Jesus must become greater. I must become less. As Tim Keller writes, this kind of gospel humility that John embodies doesn't mean thinking more of myself or thinking less of myself, but rather it is thinking of myself less. [00:14:13] (43 seconds) #HeMustIncrease

Guys, we need these four weeks of Advent to actively reject that relentless narrative that surrounds Christmas, that it is all about us. Who cares if your turkey is overcooked or your Christmas tree looks like the kids put it up even if they didn't? It doesn't matter. Christmas is not about that. Christmas is about the one, the divine son of God, who became nothing, taking on flesh, entering into our human mess in order to redeem us. [00:16:28] (44 seconds) #ChristmasNotAboutUs

By setting time aside every day throughout this Advent period, making those small daily sacrifices to spend time with the Lord slowly, we will begin to think of ourselves less as we instead look to the one, to who it's really all about. John didn't just call us to prepare our hearts for Jesus, but he also modeled the kind of life that flows from such preparation. [00:17:12] (31 seconds) #DailyAdventDiscipline

His life was simple and uncomplicated, dedicated to prayer, meditating in the scriptures, fasting, and daily obedience. The fruit of this, the prophetic flowed from him even when his mind couldn't comprehend what he was saying. The people I know who have this beautiful gift of prophecy are also the people who have the deepest intimacy with God. It is a direct consequence of cultivating closeness with him. [00:19:38] (31 seconds) #IntimacyWithGod

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