3 a time for killing and a time for healing,
a time for tearing down and a time for building up,
Reflection
Lately, I really feel like the clock is ticking and that I never have enough time to get everything done. I keep looking at my watch and my calendar and time seems to be accelerating. As humans, our concept of time is linear. We see our lives stretch out from birth to death. What we call life, is represented by the dash in between our birth and our death date on the tombstone. We count out our lives using chronological time and measure this time with clocks and calendars and seasons. We call this time we can measure chronos time.
There is another type of time in the Bible called kairos time, and we understand kairos time as God’s timing. We translate this from the Greek to mean that it’s the “right or opportune time” to take action. So we can translate Ecclesiastes 3:1, “For everything there is a right time.” Our verse for today says there is a right time to kill, and to heal and a right time to tear down
and to build up. While we live in a sinful world where killing and destruction are part of life, we are tasked by God to offer healing and hope in the face of injury and death and to be builders of what has been destroyed.
Kairos time is the time that God’s Kin-dom runs on, it isn’t linear time, it’s eternal time. It’s happening at just the right moment in time, happening both here and now and yet to come. God’s Kin-dom operates on God’s time, not our time. Jesus said, “The right time is now here. God’s kingdom is very near. Change your hearts and lives, and believe the Good News!” (Mark 1:15 ERV) As children of God we also live in the Kin-dom on kairos time. Kairos time is made up of God moments that resurrect, transform and sanctify us as new creations. We are often so busy that we miss those opportunities to see those God moments, where the Kin-dom breaks through right in front of us.
We are shaped by God’s love and grace to serve others. Theologian Henry Nouwen said, “But looked at from above, from God’s perspective, our clock-time is embedded in the timeless embrace of God. Looked upon from above, our years on earth are not simply chronos, but kairos…which is the opportunity to claim for ourselves the love that God offers us from eternity to eternity.” And while both chronos time and kairos time are gifts to us from God, we are here to use our time to show God’s love and share the Good News about Jesus with others.
by Jeneene Reduker
For Pondering and Prayer
What time is it? Are you only living on chronological time (chronos) or are you experiencing God’s timing (kairos)? The next time you check your watch or look at your calendar, remember, it’s the right time to show God’s love.
Prayer: Eternal and Loving God, in our busyness, open our eyes to those moments where your Kin-dom breaks through into our lives. Remind us that it is always the right time to show your love to others. Amen.
