Wisdom 6:12-16 / 1 Thess 4:13-18 / Matthew 25:1-13
We have heard about people who say how God speaks to them. We heard it and we wonder and ponder about it.
Some people say that they hear the voice of God telling them what to do. That is quite unique and unusual.
Others would say that they heard an inspirational talk or something profound from someone, and they kept thinking about it.
Others would say that as they read the Bible, a verse would catch their attention and they would meditate deeper about it and sense that God is speaking to them.
Oh yes, God speaks to us in many ways so as to show us how to carry out His will and His plan for us.
But what concerns us is that when we pray, we want to know how our prayer is answered.
We want to know if God has heard our prayer and what He will do about it.
But let us also believe that every prayer uttered is also every prayer answered.
If God says “Yes” then the answer is obvious. We get what we asked for and maybe even get it immediately.
If we pray and then we have to wait for our prayer to be answered, then God is telling us to be patient and to trust in Him.
If we pray and don’t get what we are praying for, then maybe God is telling us that instead of giving us what we are asking for, He has something better for us.
But the question is, what is God saying in His answer to our prayer?
In the gospel parable, we heard of 10 bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
The parable tells us that five were foolish and five were sensible. The foolish ones took the lamps but they brought no extra oil, whereas the sensible ones took their lamps as well as flasks of oil.
And there lies the lesson. The foolish bridesmaids would have seen the sensible ones bring flasks of oil. But they did nothing about it, until it was too late.
The sensible ones thought about it and prepared themselves for the unexpected and they were rewarded.
The sensible ones can be said to be wise enough to know what to do to be prepared.
But as we think about it, we are all given that wisdom to be sensible enough to see what God is showing us and even to hear what He wants to say to us.
There are many good examples to follow but do we want to see it? There are many good advices to listen to but do we want to hear it?
It is the foolishness in us that blinds us from seeing what God is showing us and also blocks our ears from listening to what God is saying to us.
Foolishness, in the spiritual sense, is actually a turning away from God. Foolishness, as we heard in the gospel, has a disastrous end.
One of the main causes of spiritual foolishness is unforgiveness. Because unforgiveness hardens our hearts, blurs our eyes and blocks our ears.
Unforgiveness is really foolishness and that is why fools can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the sensible and the wise, because they have learnt it from God.
As the 1st reading says: For those who love wisdom, she is readily seen, and found by those who look for her. Quick to anticipate those who desire for wisdom, she makes herself known to them.
Let us be sensible, let us be wise, let us be forgiving and loving.
And let us pray for wisdom with this prayer:
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
forever in the next.
Amen. (Reinhold Niebuhr)
