Ordinary Time 
Pause
Tick. Tick. Tick. That’s the clock. Measuring time in seconds, minutes, hours, days… Time that we schedule and manage and spend. The Ancient Greek word for this time is chronos.
Take a minute to feel the chronos passing by.
But there is another kind of time. It’s the right moment for the right action. It’s God’s time – and our time with God. It’s when Eternity meets our experience. The Greek word for this sense of time kairos.
Breathe in and out, sensing God’s presence, and enter into kairos – knowing that God has words you need to hear today.
Listen
We live at best to be seventy years old, maybe eighty, if we’re strong. But their duration brings hard work and trouble because they go by so quickly. And then we fly off.
Teach us to number our days so we can have a wise heart.
Psalm 90:10, 12
Think
No one wants to think about death, especially young people dying before their time. But the news tells us that school shootings, suicide, cancer, COVID-19, traffic accidents… all take young lives. When someone dies young, a life is ended before their good is felt to its fullest in the world. We are all robbed of their talents and gifts, love and compassion. And we ask ourselves: How do we, old or young, make our lives count?
The psalmist writes about a wise heart. Basically, that’s knowing what is right and then having the heart to do it – not just head knowledge but also heart action. Wisely managing our time each day means that we make decisions based on our values and beliefs, and then we act out of love and concern for others.
When we have a heart for God, we spend our time helping to spread God’s kingdom of love and compassion. We stand up for someone who is bullied; befriend a classmate who sits alone at lunch; work to share what we have with those who need it. How will you organize yourself today to show your heart for God?
Kay Zimmerman
Pray
God, help me to have a wise heart for you today. Show me how I can spread your love even while I’m doing my regular school or work activities. Help me to make everything I do count for you. Amen.
Go
Thank God for today.
Open yourself to God’s surprises.
Do what is most important.
Accept that you can’t do everything.
You are blessed and loved.
Music
Day by Day
Carter Harrell
