Preparing for the Water: Matthew 3:11 Devotional | jacobsimham.com

Preparing for the Water: Clearing the Wilderness Within

“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire.” — Matthew 3:11 (KJV)

On this Saturday, January 10, the global Church stands on the eve of the Baptism of the Lord. In the liturgical calendar and the spiritual rhythm of the faithful, today is a day of profound anticipation. It is a day of “Preparing for the Water.”

Whether you are waking up in the sprawling suburbs of Houston, a quiet village in the Cotswolds, a bustling apartment in Berlin, or a coastal home in Perth, the call remains the same: Prepare the way.

The Modern Wilderness: Clutter of the Soul

In the first century, John the Baptist preached in the literal wilderness—a place of stripping away, heat, and silence. In the modern Western world, our “wilderness” looks very different. Our wilderness is not an absence of things, but an overwhelming surplus of them.

In the United States and Canada, our wilderness is often the “clustered life.” We are surrounded by digital noise, consumerist pressure, and the relentless pursuit of “more.” In the UK and Europe, the wilderness can be one of secular exhaustion—a landscape where the spiritual voice is often muffled by historical weight or modern skepticism. In Australia, it can be the wilderness of the “comfortable life,” where the need for God is hidden behind the veneer of prosperity and leisure.

Before we can receive the “fire” of the Holy Ghost mentioned in Matthew 3:11, we must address the “clutter” that fills our internal space. You cannot pour fresh water into a cup already filled with sand.

Clearing the Path: The Act of Repentance

John’s baptism was one of repentance. In the King James Version, we see the phrase “unto repentance.” This implies a direction—a movement toward a new state of being. In our modern Western vernacular, we often misunderstand repentance as merely feeling guilty. But the biblical heart of repentance is a total “U-turn” of the soul.

For the readers of jacobsimham.com across the globe, clearing the path today involves three specific actions:

1. Confession of the “Digital Heart”

In London, New York, and Paris, we spend an average of six to seven hours a day on screens. Our hearts are cluttered with the opinions of strangers, the envy of “curated” lives, and the anxiety of the 24-hour news cycle. Today, preparing for the water means confessing how much we have allowed the world to “programme” us more than the Word.

2. Identifying the “Idols of Security”

In Australia and Canada, where economic stability and the “great Australian dream” of homeownership are primary focuses, it is easy to let financial security become our “lord.” We prepare for the Holy Ghost by confessing our tendency to trust in our superannuation, our 401ks, or our healthcare systems more than the Great Physician.

3. Stripping Away the “Religious Performance”

Saturday is often the day we prepare our “Sunday best.” But God isn’t looking for a polished exterior. John the Baptist wore camel’s hair and ate locusts; he was the antithesis of “performance.” Clearing the clutter means dropping the mask and admitting to God exactly where we are struggling.

Why the Fire Follows the Water

Matthew 3:11 makes a vital distinction: John provides the water (the cleansing), but Jesus provides the Holy Ghost and fire.

Fire does more than clean; it transforms. It consumes the dross and leaves only the pure gold. However, fire is dangerous to anything that shouldn’t be there. If our hearts are full of the “chaff” of bitterness, pride, and unconfessed sin, the fire of the Holy Ghost feels convicting rather than comforting.

When we clear the path through confession on Saturday, we are essentially removing the “fuel” for the wrong kind of fire—the fires of stress and worldly passion—so that we are ready for the holy fire that empowers us for service in our local churches tomorrow.

Action: A Global Call to Confession

Today, as we prepare for church services tomorrow—from the ancient cathedrals of Europe to the vibrant plant-churches in Sydney and the community chapels of America—let us engage in a deliberate act of soul-cleansing.

• The Spiritual Inventory: Take a moment of silence. Identify three things that have occupied more of your thoughts this week than the Lord. This is your “clutter.”
• The Prayer of the U-Turn: Verbally say, “Lord, I repent of these distractions and I turn my face toward Thee.”
• Creating the Void: Leave a physical space in your day—perhaps a walk through a local park without your phone—to simply tell God, “I am ready for Thy water.”

A Prayer for the Eve of Baptism

O Lord, I hear the voice crying in the wilderness of my own heart. I recognize the clutter—the noise, the pride, and the distractions—that have blocked my view of Thee. Today, I bring these things to the water of repentance. Wash me clean. Prepare me for the fire of Thy Spirit tomorrow. May my heart, and the hearts of Thy people across the world, be vessels ready for Thy move. In Jesus’ name, Amen.