I love how, in the last weeks leading up to Advent, the Church prepares us for Advent and the new liturgical year by choosing readings for Sunday Mass from the end of either Matthew, Mark, or Luke with themes that transition directly into Advent: waiting, watching, the Second Coming, the Judgment.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins is a reminder that at any time, the Bridegroom could come for us. On any given day, at LEAST three things could take our lives: a sudden crisis of health, a freak accident, or a random act of violence.

We need to be ready whenever He may call us. This means making a daily effort to focus on the kingdom of God–to commune with Him in prayer and let Him remind us of the passing nature of everything in this world so as not to grow dangerously attached to it.

This means striving to remain in a state of grace and going regularly to Confession. It means, through prayer, the Sacraments, and our manner of life, to strive to grow close to the Lord who loves us. We must do this if His Spirit is to shape us in His likeness, so that when He DOES come, He will not have to tell us, “I do not know you.”