A half hour can last forever. Just ask my now adult-children, Matthew and Hannah.
When they were younger, typically a “time-out” for misbehavior meant spending a half hour or so in their rooms. It was an eternity for them. Yet, for me, that time flew by.
It was the same 30 minutes. Yet our perceptions of that period were completely different.
Different ways of looking at the same thing: time.
So it is with God and us. In The Lazarus Life, Stephen Smith, introduces us to the concept of chronos (literal time that can be plotted) and kairos time (the appointed time in the purpose of God). In a sense, although both terms relate to the same concept they refer to very different perceptions of it. Clearly my kids were on the chronos timeclock where every second would bring them closer to being sprung from their bedroom prison. I, on the other hand, was on kairos time, baby – less concerned about the actual 30 minutes than ensuring they understood why they had been placed in isolation.
Normally we’re fine with God taking his sweet kairos time. “Sure God,” we say, “no hurry. I’ll wait for your answer.” That is, until we hit a rough patch. That’s when chronos time kicks in for most of us. “I need that job now, Lord. The bills are coming due” . . . or . . . “I’m lonely and want a new relationship – now, please!” . . . or . . . “My wife’s cancer needs to be cured. Hurry!”
It’s that way with transformation, as well . . . isn’t it? We invite Jesus into our lives and we expect things to change immediately. Yet for most of us that change occurs slowly, deliberately. And it’s only when we look back that we understand transformation takes place in kairos, not chronos, time.
God’s timing, not ours.
Chronos time? I think I like kairos better.
Prayer: Jesus, today I throw open the doors of my life that you would transform me – all in the timing you think best. Amen.
Ed Klodt
Monday, February 22, 2010
3 comments:
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Great stuff Ed. Why is it that I only seem to be able to trace Kairos time when I look back?
ReplyDeleteI am really enjoying these daily articles, especially about time. If I am stalled in a line at the grocery store, I have learned not to fret and hopefully, by the time it is my turn, I can greet the poor grocery clerk with a pleasant smile...something that they may be needing at that moment. I have often observed their patience with the older people in our community and rejoice that they are so caring.
ReplyDeleteLikewise, when I am in too much of a hurry to get someplace in my car, I chide myself that the important thing is to get there safely and in one piece (sometimes adding a little silent prayer to the good Lord for more patience). Thankfully, and possibly due to this attitude, I have not had a single speeding ticket since I moved to Calif. in 1997 (we won't discuss my previous driving history).
Like Ed Klodt, I marvel at how time flies for us, when as a child, every day seemed like forever.
In a time of waiting for my husband's surgery to happen...only a week away at this point...the perception of time has again stalled for both of us, I think. Understanding the concept of kairos time(God's time) is relevant in all of our lives.
Thanks for your blog and keep up the good works!
I love the comments. Great question, Pastor Tim. My sense is that the idea of Kairos time making more sense when we look back is consistent with how God tends to have us look back to history in terms of understanding how he will work in the future -- i.e., "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery . . . (Ex. 20:2). Its both a reminder of the past and a peek at his faithfulness in the future, regardless of how long it takes.
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