August 7, 2016
12th Sunday After Pentecost

“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves. “But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.” Luke 12:35-40

“The term mise en place is a French term that means “putting in place.” Our oldest daughter Melissa graduated from the Cordon Bleu cooking school in Austin a few years ago. The graduation speaker, one of her classmates, offered a wonderful address called “Mise en place.” He used it as a metaphor for the art of cooking. You have your work station, and all the tools of your cooking craft laid out around it. It is clean. It is orderly. It is ready. He then used it as a metaphor for the art of living. Whatever aspect of life you’re involved in, have what you need assembled and at hand, and be ready to do your best.

This text is a Mise en place guide for the return of Christ. It is a combination of sayings about heavenly priorities and earthy peace (12:32-34), along with a brief parable (12:35-38; also in Mk. 13:34-36). Right before it is the “Have no anxiety” passage. Right after it is the parable of the faithful and unfaithful slaves. The message of this juxtaposition is: Don’t be anxious. Just be ready! And the way to pull that off is a spiritual version of Mise en place. Have all the preparations for the returning Lord completed and in place. We’ve seen the joke “Jesus is coming back soon. Look busy.” Looking busy isn’t enough. When he returns let him find mise en place.
How to be ready? You need to make sure your treasure (your heart) is in the right place, for starters. And then gird your loins. The context of this parable is first-century wedding customs. The bridegroom at a wedding ceremony would go forth to meet his bride and return with her to his own home. His servants would be properly attired, their loins girded, and their lights burning as they waited eagerly for him to bring his bride back to his home; so we are to maintain an attitude of expectancy while we wait for the return of Jesus. Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when he comes, shall find watching.” (Mise en Place: Reflections on Luke 12:32-40, By Alyce M. McKenzie, August 01, 2013, Lectionary Reflections, Luke 12:32-40, August 11, 2013)

What might it mean, in context, to “gird one’s loins”? To gird one’s loins is to take the long tunic, which would have been the dress of the day for men, gather in front, pull the excess between the legs toward the back, then separate into two sides to gather in the front and tie it off. Now one is ready to travel a long distance, to work hard, or to do battle. Hence, today when we say to gird your loins, it generally means to be ready to do battle. If your loins are girded, you are ready – you have prepared – you are expecting to act.

This is the meaning also of the devotion above, the French phrase mise en place. It is to live your life always prepared – always ready to meet the Lord – always ready for action – always prepared. It requires a little extra work but it also does not allow one to become lazy in your faith or in your life.

This life is a constant parade of decisions, troubles, accomplishments, changes, despair, joys and losses. We are constantly distracted by the cares of life. It takes work to be mise en place. But it will keep us constantly prepared for the Lord.

Pastor Dave