“THE ACCEPTABLE TIME”

Meditation for Friday of the 25^th Week in Ordinary Time
(Eccl 3:1-11; Lk 9:18-22)

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted.” Let us meditate on these words so that we can have the right disposition towards our daily responsibilities and faith journey. The two-way dynamics of time given in the first reading is a deep reminder that we should not be consumed by any one side of the coin of time; we should not dwell on any side in isolation of the other. For example, if we are sweating at the time of planting, we should at the same time remember the joy of the time of harvesting. That means if we accept the time of birth, we should be ready to accept the time of death.

Think about how wise and strong we will be if we approach life with this consciousness of the two-way dynamics of time. Time is constantly unfolding. On whatever side of the coin we are now, a new dawn is unfolding. This awareness will make us battle-ready; hardly will we be thrown off balance when the odds are against us, for there is time for everything. It will help us to apply discipline and moderation in life. Thus, this wisdom is indeed the right disposition we need to live a happy life, for it humbles us, giving us stability and constancy even in the face of the changing times.

 

Meditate on such sweet and beautiful stability and constancy that is not ‘owned’ by one season or the other; it keeps us firm in good times and in bad, in silence and in speech, in abundance and in lack, in time of health and in time of sickness, etc. It means we live, no longer for anything happening under the earth, for such a life will flourish at one season and dry off at another season. However, as Christians, “Whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's” (Rm 14:8).

 

In the gospel, Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do the people say that I am?” Peter answered, “The Christ of God.” Jesus instructed them that He would go through the time of suffering, the time of rejection, the time of death, and rise on the third day. Therefore, Jesus is for us the Lord of all times, the Alpha and the Omega (Rev 22:13). “Besides, you know the time has come…” (Rm 13:11-14). All times and seasons are now God’s time (Kairos), since Jesus Christ has won for us eternal salvation in time. That means all times and seasons are nothing but opportunities for us to be saved. So, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of salvation” (2 Cor 6:2). Amen.

 

Fr Jude Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R

Saints Peter & Paul Catholic Church,

Tedi-Muow, Lagos.

Friday September 23, 2022.

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