“We Have All The Time We Need”

Wasn’t it just Advent and didn’t we just put up the Christmas tree, yet I just heard that Lent begins in less than a month. And when I mix in the fact that we’ve been out of action for the last month with a lot of sickness I really feel that life is racing by. 

In the midst of all this I was pondering the fact that the church celebrates the life of Jesus in just 12 months each year.  It’s tough to squeeze 33 years into 12 months. There doesn’t seem to be enough time to pause and think and wonder about the life of our Lord. I’m just getting into Advent and it’s over… into Christmas and it’s over. I often say to Judy, “I wish we could just “push the pause button”… I need time to think about what’s happening, to enjoy the moment, to ponder.

Here’s something to ponder. Have you ever wondered how Christ experienced the unfolding of his short life. The catechism tells us that, “He became truly man while remaining truly God.” (CCC par. 464) How did that work? He did reveal glimpses of his prior life as true God… “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.”(Luke 10:18) We see his life as true man as he experienced hunger and suffering and joy and sorrow… a full life.  

But how did Jesus experience the unfolding of this unique life as true God and true man. As lawyers say today, “what did he know and when did he know it?” We are told that “Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and favor with God and man”. (Luke 2:52) I never heard that Jesus carried around a book with an outline for  each day of his life…. “okay, tomorrow go feed the 5,000, and then go and heal a leper, and on the next day select your 12 apostles…” 

I find it interesting to think about this. Jesus clearly knew and understood the scriptures, so he had the broad outline. He had holy people speaking into his life like Mary and Joseph and John the Baptist who helped him “increase in wisdom and stature, and favor with God and man”. Most importantly he prayed, spending time with his father. These were critical moments where the Father led and guided and encouraged Jesus. (ref. Luke 5:16, Mt. 17:5, Mt. 14:13, etc.)  It’s interesting to speculate a bit on this. It seems that certain events triggered  specific responses, like when Jesus was baptized by John, the first miracle at Cana, when John was beheaded, the entry into Jerusalem, etc.  

Okay, where are we going with this BLOG? What can we learn from this “pondering” that can help us with our own life? Well perhaps the unfolding of our own life  has similarities with how the life of Jesus unfolded. Like Jesus:

• we have the scriptures to guide us. 
• we also have the teachings of the church. 
• we have hopefully ”increased in wisdom” and  learned things about our own vocation and mission over the years. 
• we have holy people who have spoken into our lives… a friend, a spouse, a pastor. 
• Certain events can trigger responses from us…like sickness, a job change, a tragedy, a blessing.
• we have our times of prayer hopefully each day where we can hear from our Father in heaven and be encouraged, where we can gain insights into what we should be doing, where the Holy Spirit can empower us.
• like Jesus, each of our days includes some unknowns, some sufferings.

So, let’s not worry that time seems to be racing by. Let’s use the time at hand knowing that we have all the time we need to get holy and accomplish all that God has for us to do. And that is very good news.