There Is a Season (09/01/2026)
This week kicked off several “seasons.” I watched as the kids returned to school and the orange crossing guards cones came out on Main Street. Last Friday night I sat on my porch and ease dropped on the high school football game taking place a block away; I could hear every play summary and the crowd’s spirit in their cheers. There is a season for every purpose under heaven (Eccl 3:1).
This week, we will celebrate Labor Day. For we old folks, that means we pack away our white and straw hats, we put away our sun block and make room on our shelves for cold and flu remedies and Kleenexes. We make a mental note about Sunday, Monday, and Thursday night football. We avoid errands between 7:45 and 8:30 and between 2:45 and 3:15 because of school traffic congestion. We put away our flip flops and move our sweaters to the active part of our closets and dresser drawers.
Just as there are seasons in our secular lives, there are seasons in our spiritual lives. Right now, we are making our way through the final weeks of Ordinary Time. Our focus is on Jesus’ life, teachings, and miracles. Our purpose is to celebrate Christ in every way and strengthen our relationship with Him through reflection and prayer. We are 2/3 of the way through Ordinary Time; we are ending the 22nd week in Ordinary Time and there are 33 weeks. What do we have to show for our journey so far?
We’ve been reading Matthew’s Gospel up until the point of Jesus’ final days before his passion, death and resurrection. Now we are reading Luke’s Gospel. How has reflecting on Jesus’ life, on his teachings, on his many miracles, and on his encounters with both the faithful and those who challenged or rejected him impacted our own spiritual journeys?
Is our resolve to follow Christ stronger? Have our modes of operation moved from external observation to internal transformation? Are we more conscious of the LORD at work in our lives and our world than we were a year ago?
Ordinary Time doesn’t mean “nothing special.” Ordinary Time is designed to help us order our lives more nearly to the LORD’s will for us as revealed by Jesus’ life, teaching, healings, and example. If we would be disciples, following in Jesus’ footsteps, what better way than to take time to reflect on where those steps took Jesus as He fulfilled his mission. And what better way than to seek prayerfully to discern our own part in Jesus’ ongoing mission.
One way we can do that is reading the readings of the day using lectio divina. The steps are:
· Lectio – read the passage slowly and deliberately;
· Meditatio – allow the Lord to speak to us, to highlight a word, a phrase, an encounter, a question, a point and then reflect upon it;
· Oratio – say a prayer reflective of the points from the previous reflection (praising the Lord for what is, expressing contrition for sins, giving thanks for gifts received, petitioning the Lord for help on the journey;
· Contemplatio – sitting in silence with the Lord.
There is a season for every purpose under heaven. Let us commit to using our seasons fully for love of our Lord and one another. Let us use them to grow in our essential relationships.
Until tomorrow, let s all love well.
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