Stay awake and be ready! For you do not know on what day your Lord will come.

The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise (Mt 25:1).

My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God. O God, you are my God whom I seek…thus will I bless you while I live; lifting my hands, I will call upon your name (Psalm 63).

How many mothers want to read “Stay Awake” or “Be ready…for you do not know when he will come”?

There certainly were days in my life spent surrounded by more than many children—homeschooling, disciplining, cleaning, cooking, driving, and welcoming Dad home at the end of the day. Those days formed me and formed my children. Little did I know that I was awake; little did I know that I was ready. What I knew was the daily routine of serving, loving, praying, and hoping. I knew this through diapers, mac & cheese, broken arms, the sock basket, the money struggles, and the constancy of being present. I also knew this through wonder, play, crying and reconciling, morning prayer with the children, Mass, and excitement from getting a donation of clothes.

To be awake and ready is to be in love with God. This love is consummated every day in our daily duty… My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God. O God, you are my God whom I seek…thus will I bless you while I live; lifting my hands, I will call upon your name (Psalm 63). We are Catholic mothers. Our lives are lived in love and prayer, often without us knowing it or believing it. But we do believe. In our hearts we yearn, we pray, my soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God. In our life we are awake, and we are ready: we love.

I used to wonder if it wasn’t a little uncharitable of the five wise virgins not to share their oil. And then I read this: “Their oil represented their love for Christ, and [that] we cannot substitute another’s personal union with Jesus for our own.”

The first reading today from the book of Wisdom:  Resplendent and unfading is wisdom, she is readily perceived by those who love her and found by those who seek her.

The kingdom of heaven is at hand. It is here. It is with us, and within us. Today’s message is one of tenderness and loving care. Whether I feel worthy, or feel wise, or feel prayerful is not the truth of my life, or yours. The truth is that you and I are in love with our Lord. We serve him in love, and our prayer – in every moment (prayed, but the Spirit who animates us) – is My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord, my God.