Time is Holy

December 3, 2015
Reflection by Jane Hale

Did you know that, out of all of the goodness of creation, the very first thing to be sanctified and blessed was Time?  The first creation story in Genesis takes us through the broad, sweeping creation of heavens and earth, light and darkness, water, land, and sky, vegetation, sun and stars, animals of all kinds, and even humans, and then, on the seventh day, when the good work was done, God looked back on the time that had passed, and then “blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it, God rested from all the work that [God] had done in creation” (Gen 2:3).  Time is holy.  The question for us, then, is how will we inhabit the holiness of time? Instead of seeking the ever-elusive work-life balance, which assumes that life begins only when work ceases, can we set ourselves to a rhythm of life-giving work and life-giving rest?  Can we join God in God’s holy rhythm of creation, a rhythm that values wholeness and abundance of life, community and communion, mutuality and connection, creation and rest? When we look at our calendars, do they reflect the holiness of time?  If not, what might we do to bring them into sync with what God is up to in the ongoing, sacred process of creation?

Holy and Gracious God,  Thank you for inviting us to participate in your cycle of creation.  Please guide us as we seek to faithfully inhabit your holy time.  Help us to live out our days by your life-giving rhythms of creation and rest.  Amen.