"Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks."
Luke 12:35-36 (ESV)

In a movie from many years ago, a certain British character falls in love with a lovely young Portuguese woman who cleans his vacation cottage. She speaks no English and he speaks no Portuguese. They part company without ever exchanging any meaningful words, but developing a real bond. In the climax of the film, you see him taking classes and learning Portuguese to go and see her. Before a gathered crowd in her hometown, in the restaurant where she works, he confesses his love in broken and grammatically incorrect grammar and asks for her hand in marriage.

She responds happily to his badly worded proposal in her own broken English. As they embrace and beam at each other and the crowd cheers, he says, "You learned English." And she smiles and says, "Just in cases."

Much of our young lives is filled with an education that may or may not be directly useful to our future careers and lives. We are left asking, "When will I ever use this?" And often, we are right. Some of the knowledge we acquire is later useful, makes us good citizens, informed, or is useful in daily life or work, and some is not. And sometimes, we take the same approach to our Christian education and spiritual formation. When will I ever use this? When we should perhaps be more like Aurelia, the young Portuguese woman... Just in cases...

What if our mindset was hope? What if our outlook was that at any moment, someone we love or are called to love will walk in the door, and the things we have learned will help to bring us together? What if because we know every person in this world is our brother or sister and learning the words to speak to them in love would make all our lives that much better? Bible study and worship and retreats and our classes and study and interactions, would we approach them with hearts and minds open to learn? Just in cases...

Prayer for Today

Lord, help me to be eager to delve into your truth for my life eagerly so that I may be ready to be and do what is needed for those who come into my life with open arms. Give me a heart to learn and to grow and be ready... just in cases. Amen.