The Fragrance of a Life Made Ready for the Bridegroom
The Missing Key to Encountering God
“Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself.”
— Revelation 19:7 (NLT)
We live in a world where preparation is normal. We prepare for job interviews. We prepare for exams. We prepare for weddings. We prepare for vacations, for careers, for guests in our homes. We prepare our appearance before important meetings.
But here’s the question we rarely ask: How are we preparing ourselves for God?
Revelation 19 gives us the picture of the Bride of Christ who “made herself ready.” The Greek word for ready is hetoimazō — it means to prepare, to put in order, to make fit, to equip. This is not casual or accidental. Readiness is intentional. It is the work of a bride who longs for her Bridegroom.
Esther’s Year of Preparation
Think of Esther. Before she could stand in the presence of King Xerxes, she went through twelve months of preparation:
Six months with oil of myrrh – Myrrh, used in embalming, is a symbol of death to self. A season of stripping and cleansing.
Six months with perfumes and spices – These fragrances made her delightful to the king, pointing us to the fragrance of Christ upon our lives (2 Corinthians 2:15).
Royal instruction – Esther had to learn palace protocol: how to walk, speak, and carry herself before royalty. Spiritually, this speaks to discipleship—being trained in the ways of God’s Kingdom.
Esther’s preparation wasn’t wasted time. It was transformation. And it positioned her for favor and authority that would one day save her people.
The same is true for us. God uses preparation seasons to cleanse us, shape us, and fit us to stand before Him and carry His purposes.
Personal Preparation for God’s Presence
At salvation, God gave us a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26–27). But that heart can become hardened if we neglect it (Hebrews 3:13; 2:3). Rehoboam “did evil because he prepared not his heart to seek the Lord” (2 Chronicles 12:14).
We don’t stumble into readiness—we make room for Jesus.
Personal preparation looks like:
Repenting daily, keeping our hearts soft.
Staying in the Word, aligning our minds with truth.
Praying and worshiping, tuning our hearts to heaven.
Walking in accountability, encouraging one another daily.
Preparing for Our Collective Encounter with God
God doesn’t just meet us individually—He shows up when His people gather. But here’s the key: the Bride prepares herself not only personally but collectively.
If You’re Serving in Ministry…
Preparation is both practical and spiritual:
Know your responsibility. Whether you’re preaching, greeting, leading worship, running sound, or serving on the prayer team, be dependable and prepared.
Prepare practically—study, rehearse, review, show up ready.
Prepare spiritually—pray, seek God, and minister out of overflow. When people encounter you, let it be clear you’ve been with Jesus.
If You’re Not Serving Officially…
You’re still part of the Bride’s preparation. How? By prayer and expectation.
Pray during the week for God to move powerfully.
Pray for the right people to come and for their hearts to be open.
Pray for leaders and teams to be strengthened.
Pray for unity and freedom from distraction.
Pray for encounters—that no one would leave unchanged.
When every believer prepares—those serving on stage and those sitting in the pew—the gathering becomes more than a service. It becomes a holy meeting place where heaven touches earth.
Reflection Questions
Where in my life do I need to “put things in order” (hetoimazō) before God?
If I serve, am I both practically and spiritually ready?
If I don’t serve, am I still preparing the way through prayer?
What would change if I treated every gathering as an appointment with the King?
Prayer
Lord, prepare me—heart, mind, and spirit. Make me ready, both in life and in service. As we gather, let us come with expectancy, unity, and hunger. May it be said of us: The Bride has made herself ready. Amen.
Final Thought:
Preparation is an act of love. Esther prepared because she longed for her king. The Bride prepares because she longs for her Bridegroom. And one day soon, the cry will ring out: “Here comes the Bridegroom! Come out to meet Him!”
The question is—will we be ready?
🎥 Watch my recent teaching on How to Approach a King
See the video below to dive deeper into what it means to come before the King with reverence and readiness.
Great article; I'm in midst of teaching the Biblical Truths concerning the 'Bride' as revealed in Revelation 21-22. There are so many distracting voices and false doctrines concerning these vital Truths, especially in the season we traverse ONCE AGAIN with worldwide dispersion within the Evangelical and Pentecostal streams espousing Belief systems that began in the middle 1600's. The NT Ekklesia never taught nor believed these doctrines. I am very much aware of the fruit and deception of these Teachings, as I was raised to believe, teach, and propagate them as well. Thankfully, Holy Spirit revealed the Truths of SCRIPTURE and with my repentance, I was delivered from Religious spirits and began preaching and teaching the BIBLICAL Eschatology! What a great JOY to experience the Fruits of Holy Spirit in my life and countless lives of those I've poured into for 55+ years! Thanks again Glenn, for your apostolic 'witness' in a day of great delusion and deception in the 'Church', due to the blindness of multitudes of leaders who are carriers!