In Pulpit Resource by William Willimon, he reflects on the parable of the ten maidens in Matthew.
Question: Have we stopped journeying, ceased searching? Are we so content with present arrangements in our lives that we...have no expectation of conversion, of meeting, of being swept up in the great purposes of God? Perhaps those five maidens who neglected to acquire oil for their lamps simply stopped imaging that the promised party would ever begin.
Don't stop imaging the party! Yes, it is an absurd vision onto which we are called to hold in our hearts, but it is the beginning of possibilities for the life the we never would give ourselves when we count only on what we can see and touch. Being convince...trusting that the party will begin at any moment...even now...shapes us for the living of the day at hand. Some do not want to trust in the party...and therefore they endlessly look for something else to trust and give them life. But, alas, everything else fades and cannot sustain the winds of time. Don't stop imaging the party and your presence at the party with a reserved seat!
Connection: There are many voices in our day that do not want to acknowledge that life can come into this day as we trust in what is not yet. Too often, we live and learn to live by what we have in hand and how we conform to what is around us. Don't conform. Be ready for the party!
Lord of the Feast, inspire us with the vision of your gracious reign that is and will be the truth of our days. Praise be to you. Amen.
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