At St. Andrew’s we host the Cobourg area Girl Guides. The Girl Guides along with the Scouting movement share a motto. This motto is composed of two words, yet it carries with it a heavy burden: Be Prepared.
That is the motto of these movements which have assisted thousands of young women and men over the years.
Be Prepared.
Let those words sink in. Consider the full weight of what they imply.
Be Prepared.
These are two words which we should not approach lightly. In our society we do take many things lightly. On the subject of being prepared you can read the following books: The Zombie Survival Guide, How to Survive a Sharknado and other Unnatural Disasters, The Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook and the list goes on.
Today society takes the concept of Be Prepared lightly and we should be worried about that.
Jesus did not take the idea of Be Prepared lightly. In our text for this Sunday in Matthew’s Gospel Jesus warns us about remaining aware and vigilant. We read about ten women, five are wise and five are foolish. Five have extra oil and five do not.
Five are prepared and five are not. The passage is not about who is in and who is out. Rather it speaks to how we have prepared ourselves. Our challenge is to consider in light of this passage what it means to be prepared.
Text: Matthew 25: 1-13
Questions to Consider for Sunday:
- What are the different things we should be keeping watch for?
- What does the oil represent?
- How are you going about the task of being prepared?
A Prayer for Sunday:
Heavenly Father, I come before you with an open heart and mind. I desire to sit at your feet and learn more of you. In you I learn so much, I see how you are at work in my life. Allow your Spirit to dwell richly in me. May I know and appreciate the great bounty and feast you have prepared for me. Allow your word to remain with me this week, may it sustain me and renew me. I ask this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.