Besides many helpful hints about water safety, we can learn a lot from the U.S. Coast Guard. Their motto is “Semper Paratus.” But “Always Ready” is more than their motto; it is the way that they live. And it has served them well… through two centuries of hurricanes and shipwrecks, floods and wars. Living with the certain knowledge that danger is always approaching can either paralyze you… or it can empower you. Being ready for threats helps make them manageable. It empowers the Coast Guard to meet the inevitable with courage and competence. And that is Christ’s message to us in this week’s gospel: Semper Paratus… be Ready Always… accept responsibility… don’t run from it… don’t hide from it. Be prepared… and have faith that with God’s help, all will come right.