10 January, Sunday — Wonderful Wonders

Jan 10 — The Baptism of the Lord

Isa 55:1-11
1 Jn 5:1-9
Mk 1:7-11

See, you will summon a nation you never knew, those unknown will come hurrying to you…

We rely very much on events to mark the passage of time. New years, birthdays, graduations, and anniversaries remind us that life runs its course, even though we may ignore its passing.

I have found these celebrations to be a useful reminder to pause and recollect; thinking about where my life’s journey is taking me, and assessing if there are changes that I need to make. They also remind me of a conversation I had with a friend once on being mentally prepared. He said that he would have a very clear picture of the end-goal in mind and work tirelessly towards that. However, he cautioned that should the end-goal shift, he would find it almost traumatising to change his vision of the new finish line in his mind.

Perhaps another approach to dealing with life’s uncertainties is to always be present in the moment. Realising that God always has us in his embrace, we know that nothing untoward (in His eyes) can happen to us. Just as baptism renews and washes us clean, God is always with us in the foreground, background, and in our hearts. He stands ready to pick us up and dust us off whenever we fall and never keeps a score.

The thought of this excites me and gives me great comfort. Knowing that God doesn’t see our lives as a screenplay with a scripted climax, but as a curious tale that meanders playfully towards an infinite array of endings.

Here’s to all of us nourishing a new relationship with time, and to seeing it as a helpful, but not constricting, reminder of God’s wondrous gifts to us.

(Today’s Oxygen by Gregory Mathew)

Prayer: Help us O Lord, to open our hearts and minds to being able to constantly refresh our yearning for you.

Thanksgiving: We thank you Jesus, for blessing us with opportunities to manifest your glory. May we see all things as opportunities for your love to shine through.