Be Prepared! (BP)

Thursday in the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time, Cycle I

1Thess 3:7-13; Mt 24, 42-51

When I was a Boy Scout, the first thing that I learnt was the expression, Be Prepared. Baden Powell the founder of the Boy Scouts used to say that this is the single most important thing. Everything we did at our scouts meeting was aimed at making sure that we were well prepared for anything that might happen. That is why they always made sure that they teach us basic first aid, different types of knots, what things you must always have in your pockets...Whether I was really prepared is another story!

But Baden Powell was very proud that his initials were BP. He used to say that his friends at school used to tease him, saying that BP stands for baking powder. However he used to insist that BP actually stood for "Be prepared."

But Baden Powell was also a spiritual man and he believed that there was the ultimate event that we must all be prepared for, the even that passes all other things that might ever happen: the moment when we have to leave this life. He used to say that everything we do in every second in our life must be a preparation for this moment.

This is what Jesus is telling us to do through the parable of the servant who waits for his master to return. It is important that we do not understand this parable in the sense of a teacher who gives spot tests to catch who of the students has not been studying. That is a very negative and childish perception of God. Rather, the attitude must be that of being prepared for that encounter with Christ, which after all is an encounter which happens first and foremost in this very life: in the Word of God and in the sacraments, but also in our brothers and sisters, especially in the poor around us, and in the challenging situations in our life.

Jesus gives us a very clear example of how can we prepare ourselves: he says that the prudent servant prepares dinner and serves his guests. We can prepare ourselves for this encounter by doing small acts of charity and of service to each other.

We need not be discouraged or overwhelmed with how we are to prepare ourselves and whether we are sufficiently prepared or not. Instead, let us learn from St Paul in his first reading: he says that together with his community he is praying that the faith of the people of Thessaloniki will continue to grow, together with their love for each other and a deepening desire for God.

Let us therefore pray for each other that we may take our preparations seriously yet peacefully and that in our hearts there may grow the desire and expectation for this encounter, which occurs in every moment of our lives.