Luke 3:1-6 KJV
1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene,
2 Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.
3 And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins;
4 As it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth;
6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.

Minister job is to make a pathway for Jesus. John the Baptist was preaching but he was preparing the way for the Lord to preach and teach. Truth is John and Jesus both baptized down the river from each other, until John got in trouble with King Herod's wife that caused him to get beheaded after being imprisoned for a time. Jesus ministry to the gentiles would flourish.

Today minister by the Spirit still leads or aids people to find the smooth pathway of Christ. Do you people you meet still need Jesus, what are you speaking about your faith. What is testimony to the cross and what is your testimony after repentance. Do share how your struggle before and even now in life which can sometimes be a battle field of faith. The first person you meet today would they have or would they have not known the pathway of Jesus by the way you responded to them.

The path way of Jesus is smooth but road to get there is rocky, for man wants power and control that is not of God or the ways of God. Man must get to a place they know they need God in order to receive Christ and his word. The things that causes uneven rocky pathway is man own corruption and blindness to the need of God and his Son.

My own conversion was a desire not to sin but to live for God. The image of Disney's cartoon of good angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other and the decision being mine to choose to follow Jesus. Over the years even with salvation I found my own responses to another might not be the reaction of Christ in every circumstances. The devil without me considering my responds in all my human emotion of every situation often traps me by using another to invoke my human response to the situation or massive situation thay pile up in a mountainous load of distress. You know the flat tire that making one late for work, only after fixing the tire, now back on the road having a slow or wreckless driver slowing you down to keep you from getting to work on time, as you without thinking display your middle finger. Then to get to work and your boss chews you out for one being late and two not finishing a job need doing. Now you some how get through the day and get home to realize you forgot to get your young children, who are now crying on the way home thinking you forgot them or you were dead. You go to fix supper and you burn more then the bread. Has you clear the table you stub your toe on a chair and scream profanities as your bare toe goes from red to blue then purple. The next morning you find a bill you got to take care of. The ride to work goes smooth til you run the red light in front of a cop. You forget to pack your lunch and have no cash for lunch. The break is not long enough time to get across town to the bank and pick up lunch. Reality what else goes wrong you get a call at work your spouse has been injured and you cant leave work. What is your response. Sometimes very human. Do you need God's word and do you need Jesus?

The reality most know by thirty dont sweat you will get through those crazy days. Yet our reality is do we need God. A prayer for calmness and patience truly helps. The pray just might get me through the day. Praying Lord help me have a soft answer because I have no clue what someone else is going through that I speak with today. Let my response and inquiries lead to a better solution.

What does God do? He first sends us his word and comfort of His Spirit if we will hear and believe. God cares about even small things that one will get through if nothing else happens to rock the boat. He desires to make our way smooth in our daily life even through those rocky roads. He wants to clear the pathway that causing us to stumble. Nothing that is common to man is removed from our walking but our response, and our actions can enable us not to fall.

John was preaching repentances and need for baptism because the Kingdom of heaven was near. He preach so people could see the smooth way of the Lord. The value of knowing Jesus and following his pathway from repentance to one's eternal home in heaven. To do good even when things are not.

Following Jesus there were hungry crowds, thirsty folks and viper priest. Look out for the wolf in sheep clothing and the devil. The pathway we are to follow Jesus on one will meet all kinds of people but not all are following the straight and narrow highway of Jesus.

Dear Father help us to follow the smooth roads of Christ, ministering peace and love despite our humanity. Remind us of your Spirit of comfort and help as well as your word. In Jesus precious name, Amen.

Continual Scripture Study: Isaiah 40:3-4 KJV 3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: