Day 70 – The Right Moment
Ephesians 5:15 (ESV)
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.
One of my worst habits is over-filling my time. I say yes to a lot, which lends itself to running around at a hundred miles an hour trying to squeeze as much as I can. The whole thing both irritates me and yet gives me a silly sense of pride. There is nothing more satisfying to me than arriving just on time; for example, hopping onto a train just at the moment that the doors open. Who wants to waste a whole 5 minutes waiting for a train to arrive? I know, I am sure many of you would hate to live like this and you would be right to conclude that many a time it has not paid off.
I leave absolutely no margin so I make sure I don’t waste a single moment. I can hear the mantra ringing around my ears, ‘don’t waste time, get as much done as you can, make the most of every moment.’
You’ll be glad to hear that this is not what Paul is talking about in his advice to the Ephesians church. He is talking about a completely different view of time.
You may well be familiar with the two words for time used in the bible: Chronos and Kairos.
Chronos is time as we tend to know it – seconds, minutes, hours and days. The perpetual ticking, the quantitative measure of time. The relentless tick that we fight against and inevitably lose. When I talk about my obsession with being productive, I am referring to Chronos time. Chronos is guiding my behaviour, influencing my decisions.
Kairos on the other hand (no pun intended) is about moments, opportunities, seasons. Whereas Chronos is all about chronological time, Kairos is about the right time, when we seize the day, make the most of the opportunity in front of us.
Paul is encouraging us to take hold of our Kairos moments and make them count. When the right opportunity comes, one that feels ripe, perfect, ordained, take it, make the most of it, and partner with Jesus to be fruitful and fulfilled. This is very different from living as a slave to time and tasks. It is about listening, sensing and knowing when the time is right to give it your all.
Life is full, there are so many possibilities. Let’s try and live in a Kairos way, taking time to listen to God and ask him if this is a Kairos moment, or simply a Chronos task that can pull us away from our purpose. What is the Kairos moment available to you in this season?
Prayer — God, I know there is much to do and I have all sorts of obligations to fulfil. But when I have the choice, please help me to live with a Kairos perspective, looking to make the most of the opportunities you have given me to partner with you for your glory and for your kingdom.
Hannah Miller
@hannahloumiller
Hellosidekick.co