The story where the phones went flat

The wedding was beautiful, not a dry eye in the house. All of their friends and family had come to help celebrate this special day and join as witnesses of the covenant agreement between man and wife. The newlyweds went off late in the afternoon for their photo session. They had arranged for ten girls from the church youth group to light the path to the reception using their phone torches.

Before the wedding, five of the girls had decided to travel light. All they needed was their phone, it had everything they could possibly need for the day. Of course, they all had the torch app that they would use later on, but their phone also holds all their socials and a game or two to pass any quiet moments. It was these apps that held their focus while the happy couple were off taking photos, and it was these apps that were responsible for draining the batteries on their phones while they waited.

Wedding photos never fit the time allotted to them on the day, they always take longer than expected. The light isn’t quite right, and people take longer to get into position the more tired they become. Whatever the reason, by the time the ten girls got the text message that the bridal party was on their way, some of their battery indicators were showing 3% or less, not enough juice for a battery draining app like the torch over an extended period of time. Definitely not enough to keep their precious phones going for the obligatory wedding photos on Insta late that night.

Five of the girls had come prepared. The couple were 2 of their best friends and they didn’t want to let them down, that’s why they put up with the extra hassle of bringing a portable power bank with them. Power bank plugged in and torch app shining, the five girls were ready to receive the wedding party. The other five girls begged to borrow the power packs, but they were all needed by the girls that brought them. They started asking around other guests to find if anyone else had a spare phone they could use, or a charger cable they could borrow.

While they were running around trying to get some charge from anywhere they could, the wedding party arrived and they missed the whole moment they had been invited to participate in.

In the original story in Matthew 25:1-13, these girls were called the five wise virgins and the five foolish virgins. I used to think these labels were harsh. After all, the five foolish virgins were ready for the event. It could even be considered smart/wise to travel light to the wedding. The wisdom shown by the five smart girls came, not just from being prepared, but from relationship. It was for love of the groom that they were more than ready for anything that might happen. 

Jesus told this story to his disciples when telling them of things that would be happening at the end of time when he (the groom) would return to earth to claim his church (the bride) as his own. Many have waited for this day their whole lives, expecting it at any moment, and it hasn’t happened yet, but it will. My Dad always told me that we are more likely to be right than all the generations that have gone before. 

So, we now “wait in eager expectation” (Rom 8:19) not just passing time, but juiced up and ready for anything. We wait, not out of obligation, but for love of the one who will come. We all say “Come, Lord Jesus” (Rev 22:20).

Photo: freepic.com, subinpumsom