Time Lords

Today I ran the clock for Chip's basketball game.  Though I dutifully followed the action on the court and listened carefully for the referee's whistles, it occurred to me that I could stop the clock.  Anytime I wanted.  I.  Controlled. Time.

If only.

Just imagine what I could get done at this time of year if I could stop time.  More time to prepare for worship.  More time to shop for gifts.  More time to socialize.  More time to slow down.  It would be grand and glorious!

But that's not the way the world works.  I cannot stop the clock.  The minutes will pass by, the hours march on relentlessly.  I do not control time.

Of course, the time we know is not the only time there is.  There's also God's time.  And if I am not in control of our human clocks, I am most definitely in charge of God's clock.  Yes, the calendar tells me that Christmas Eve will arrive on the 24th of December.  But no human-made measure of time can tell me when Christ will break into my life or yours, shaking things up, transforming, healing renewing.  God will do these things when God chooses to.  In fact, our faith tells us he's already doing all of this.  So maybe it's a good thing I'm not a time lord. Because that means I can leave things in the hands of the Living Lord, the One who came to us and will come to us with hope, life and love.

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