It’s About Time
by Darrell Waddell
“Another year has come and gone”, I thought to myself. “How is that possible … where did the time go?” There never seems to be enough time. We rush around in frantic hopes of getting things done, squeezing more and more into less and less, as if our capacity is somehow magically elastic.
I got an email from a friend a while ago …. “Hey, how are you? Haven’t seen you in a while. We should get together! What’s a good time?”
I looked at my calendar, and he looked at his, and we set a date and time in 3 weeks, only to cancel, reschedule, and cancel again. We have yet to get together. Life is busy; it’s complicated … often by very good and important things.
Four weeks ago I was late for an appointment in the U District. I searched in vain for a place to park, and finally found a spot on the Ave. With minutes to spare, I started to run. (I was training for the Seattle Half Marathon, so it felt kind of good.) As I passed someone on the sidewalk, my foot slipped, and I rolled my ankle. “Oh great,” I thought. “That’s going to hurt.” I kept running, heard a pop, and felt a sharp pain.
That afternoon, I drove myself to the ER where x-rays confirmed I had broken my foot.
“The good news”, the doctor said, “you won’t need surgery. The bad news is: absolutely no weight bearing for 6 to 8 weeks, possible as long as 12 weeks. We’ll know more in a month.”
“Oh great,” I thought. “I’m training for the half marathon, I have a trip to San Francisco already booked, and we’re heading into Christmas! I don’t have time for this!”
Well, the trip has been cancelled, and the Marathon will be run next year.
Every move I make now is calculated. Everything takes more time. Getting in and out of bed, dressing, finding ways to exercise, fixing meals, everything takes time and effort. But in the midst of this, I’ve learned a valuable lesson. When life is turned upside down, God has a way of showing up in unexpected ways.
This month, I am learning to slow down, to reflect, and to listen. What an amazing gift.
There is never “a good time.” There is only “God’s Time.” This year, when God interrupts your plans, and God will, I pray that you open your heart and listen. The tiny Babe of Bethlehem is speaking.
But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. Galatians 4:4-5
The Risk of Birth
Madeleine L’Engle -1973
This is no time for a child to be born,
With the Earth betrayed by war and hate
And a comet slashing the sky to warn
That time runs out and the sun burns late.
That was no time for a child to be born
In a land in the crushing grip of Rome;
Honor and truth were trampled by scorn-
Yet here did the Saviour make his home.
When is the time for love to be born?
The inn is full on planet earth,
And by a comet the sky is torn-
Yet Love still takes the risk of birth.
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