Let’s be like the wise virgins

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

THE parable of the 10 virgins, 5 wise and 5 foolish, (cfr. Mt 25,1-13) reminds us that we should seriously take our duty to be always prepared to meet our Lord who can call us anytime. Let’s be wary of our tendency to be easily trapped in our earthly affairs, such that we take for granted what the real and ultimate purpose of our life here on earth is.

Someone I know, for example, was what may be considered as a gym buff. He was into sports and regular exercises. He was meticulous with his diet and other health regimen. He was even a doctor by profession. But then one day he was just discovered lifeless in his own room. Yes, we have to be ready always since God can call us anytime!

And the preparation for this eventuality need not involve anything extraordinary. It is enough that whatever we do in our daily routine is done with God and for God. That way, we would always be motivated to do things in the best way that we can, leading us to be more and more like God. And even if we cannot escape the limitations and imperfections of our work, God will always understand and would be happy to see us working with that intention.

What God would consider is the faith, hope and love that beat in our hearts as we do our daily activities. It is not so much the human success in our work that is important. Of course, if we do things with God and for God, it is very likely that our daily activities would have good effects and results. But these should not be the main consideration.

And so, it stands to reason that during the day we make many pit stops, so to speak, so we would know whether we are still on the right path, with the proper direction. We would have the chance to rectify and purify our intentions.

And at the end of the day, it would be good that we make it a habit to make a general examination of conscience that should end with a loving expression of sorrow for whatever mistake, shortcoming or sin we may have committed during the day. That way, we express our intention to be reconciled with God always. That in the end is what truly matters!

Let’s be always guarded against the tendency to fall into many distractions during the day, especially because nowadays there are many alluring and irresistible things that can take us away from our proper focus in life.

Also, since we usually suffer from a lot of pressures due to work and other concerns, we can easily fall into distractions as a way of coping with the pressure. But then, these distractions can become extreme and uncontrollable. They can become addictions.

We really have to learn how to find Christ in everything that we do. For this, we need to develop the habit of always looking for him consciously or deliberately. By looking for him, we can find him that can lead us to love him, which in the end is what matters in life.

And the secret, as always, is really to develop, to take care, and to make vibrant one’s spiritual life, one that is supported by an appropriate plan of life that nourishes one’s faith and piety.

It is to give one a global picture of things, making him realize where we came from and where we are supposed to go, and training him to relate the things of this world to our eternal destination with God in heaven.

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com