Ordinary Time

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Jesus Christ to all generations forever and ever.  Amen.                                    Ephesians 3:20-21

Ordinary is defined as “no special or distinctive happenings; normal”.  Using that definition, ordinary is different for each of us.

The Lenten season has come and gone, Easter has once again filled us with joy and become a memory, and suddenly, we realize that  life has returned to ordinary time.  There are no special holidays coming up for a while, pollen is here in force, spring break is drawing to a close, azalea and dogwood blooms are waning, and we are all going back to the ordinary time of our lives.

We tend to view the ordinary time as boring , but it is in the ordinary time that God works to speak to us and change our life.  If we are attuned to the still small voice, we can become aware of how He is working.

As we were watching the Masters golf tournament this weekend, I continued to see that beautiful bridge which crosses the course around the 12th and 13th hole.  I began to think of all the times when God builds  bridges between the ordinary time of our lives to the extraordinary time, and all the times I cry, “Lord, build me a bridge.”  He can take an ordinary day, reveal a truth or sign, and suddenly the day is extraordinary.

I had an experience with this last week.  Hummingbirds have always been a sign to our family of God’s presence, His love, and His care – a sign that all our loved ones and friends are under His care.  On the Monday after Palm Sunday, the day after Grace died, I was standing at the kitchen window when suddenly, a hummingbird appeared at the feeder on our deck -the first one I’ve seen this year.  He fluttered around the feeder, looked toward the window, hit the other feeder, lingered, and was gone! God appearing to me!  I wasn’t expecting it, but God turned an ordinary, sad day into extraordinary in the blink of an eye.  I felt a great peace about Grace, Robert, and all those who have gone before.  God’s bridge from ordinary to extraordinary.

There are bridges being built every day which are sometimes missed. If we are just open to Him working, every day can be transformed from ordinary time to extraordinary!  Lord, build us a bridge!