A new look (for me at least) at an old parable

I figure when God wakes me up with a passage of the Bible in my mind, I would be well advised to get up, find it and read it. Particularly when it is completely out of the blue - no sermons, no reading, no nothing along the lines of this one.

What was it? The parable of the ten virgins, Matthew 25:1-13

"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep."At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.' " 'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.' "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. "Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!' "But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.'"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

Growing up in my Southern Baptist church, this was always about being ready for the Lord's return. Which in my head meant, I gotta be good, I gotta be ready, I gotta be something, or else Jesus is going to come back and I'm getting left. Well, I know that's not so, and it hit me reading this time, that that's not what God is telling me with this story right now.

See, before waking up in the morning with this parable in my head, I went to bed praying for my future. Some very specific prayers for direction, wants and needs.

Here's what God has spoken to my heart with this story.

Be ready for what's coming. Keep my oil jars full and my lamps clean.
Get prepared - have my house, my finances, my health, my work, and everything in my life that I can, in order. Then when the amazing opportunity, the amazing gift, the amazing future, that God has coming for me this year, arrives - I'm ready to walk right into it.

So, I'm listening and taking care of things that I've been procrastinating about. I'm going to be ready.