How do you know that you are ready to be baptised?

How do you know that you are "saved"?

Is being baptised and being "saved" the same thing?

If you are determined to put God, His Word and His work first in your life; been reconciled with and also forgiven anyone to whom you have any animosity; have asked for forgiveness and repented of your sins, then I would say that you are ready to be baptized.

Being saved is a matter of your faith in that fact, and through the saving Grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Being baptized and being saved are not the same thing then.

Those are my opinions anyway, based upon what I know, understand and believe about baptism for those who are old enough to reason and also desire to be baptized.

I'm sure that there are others who can explain it much better than I can concerning being baptized and answering according to how you have worded your questions.

When you have a deep desire to live for God and to forsake all the wordly pleasures forever, I would say then you are ready to be baptized. Being saved is a different, you'll have to lay your foundation to build a living tabernacle for God to dwell in. Faith is that foundation, for without faith it is impossible serve God, then add virtue to your faith, then knowledge, not wordly knowledge but knowledge to judge right from wrong,next is holy temperance, that means how to control your tongue and temper, not to fly off when anybody speak cross to you but to answer in kindness. Fourthly patience, if ynu have faith, it worketh patience you have to got patience with God , sometimes God tries our patience. After you got all these virtues add godliness, means to be like God, be ye perfect. Lets add brotherly kindness and lastly charity which is the cap stone.When you surrender your complete being , the Holy Spirit just pours through you inu these virtues

What would you wait for?

... Peter told the crowds, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:38), and when Paul was baptized he was told, "And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name" (Acts 22:16). And so Peter later wrote, "Baptism . . . now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" (1 Pet. 3:21).

The above is a quote from this article (http://www.catholic.com/library/Forgiveness_of_Sins.asp).

As you seem to be searching out the faith, I recommend the articles in the upper left of that same link.