Expect the Unexpected

By Kendra Osborn

I was standing in the kitchen after a long day at work, preparing dinner for my children, when the phone rang.  I saw that it was my father-in-law and I immediately knew what he was going to say.  I answered the phone and sure enough, he was on his way over.  I love when my father-in-law comes to visit and so do my boys.  However, my house was not ready for such an unexpected visit. 

I hung up the phone and stopped the dinner preparations.  I looked around at the mess in every room and became overwhelmed with all I needed to do.  I quickly started picking up, hiding the laundry in the bedroom and shutting the door.  I put the dog outside and hoped my father-in-law wouldn’t  need to use the restroom while he was here. There was not enough time to be fully ready and prepared for his coming. 

I finally got things in decent order so we could visit in the living room, but no further.  As I went back to preparing dinner, the Lord spoke to me and said, “Kendra, are you ready?  You need to start living as if at any moment you will have company.”  The Lord quickly showed me that He was not just referring to my physical house or being ready for visitors.  Am I ready, am I prepared, for His arrival?  In that moment, the Lord pressed me to examine my heart, soul and mind. 

Do I live as though I am ready?  Am I watching for His return, even though I don’t know the hour or the day?  Am I fully prepared and ready for when He does come? 

He reminded me of one of my favorite parables, the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25:1-13.  There were ten virgins who went out to meet the bridegroom.  They all knew they were going to meet him, but only five went prepared with extra oil for their lamps and the other five were foolish and went with nothing. 

The bridegroom was long in coming and all ten virgins fell asleep, but the bridegroom did come.  They woke to a loud cry "Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet Him!"  The five who were prepared entered the wedding banquet with the bridegroom.  The five who were not prepared were not allowed to enter and the door was shut.  Verse 13 says, “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” 

The Lord taught me in that moment of craziness, trying to get ready for my father-in-law to drop in, to expect the unexpected, and live as such.  We should live with a sense of eagerness and watchfulness for His coming.  Why do we go about as if we are ready to go out and meet the Bridegroom but go empty and unprepared? 

Dear Sisters!  We do not want to hear the cry ring out “Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet Him!” only to stand in front of a shut door begging to be let in, and hear our Lord say from the other side of the door “I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.” 

Pray with me:  Lord God, our Beloved Bridegroom, Lover of our souls!  Prepare us to come out and meet you!  Show us where the filth and dirt are on our bridal gowns and help us to come before You and receive Your cleansing.  Clean the spots and remove our stains, how we long to be a spotless bride standing before You!  Lord God, show us Your ways and what we are lacking.  Reveal to us where we are unprepared and not ready for Your coming!  Lord, teach us how to be watchmen, expecting Your arrival.   Let us not become weary or discouraged at how long the waiting period is, but to use that time to prepare ourselves even more. Prepare us, oh God, let us be refined as silver and gold in the fiery flames so we would be pure.  Let us be wise and come with our lamps lit and have extra oil in our jars.