The Bible expresses monthly time frames in telling the redeeming story of God's love for us and the world. As our spiritual ancestors were being prepared by God to be liberated from slavery in Egypt in the first Passover "The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, 'This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.'" (Exodus 12:1-2). The announcement of Mary's pregnancy has a month reference as well, "In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God" to tell Mary "you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus" (Luke 1).
The liberating gift of Jesus is wonderfully described in Galatians 4:4-5, "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children."
Part of the beauty of the Church is how God has given us different views of time. Some of us are long-range thinkers and planners; some of us are minute-by-minute people; some work by the week; and then there are the monthly people. Regardless of our time orientation, God uses us to accomplish divine goals.
Do you have a favorite life-giving view of time? What if we celebrated and served God and our neighbors in energizing and hopeful ways based on our favorite view of time in 2012? 527,040 minutes await us in 2012 (a leap year with 366 days). If that seems a bit overwhelming, how about an inspiring perspective from the song, "Day by Day", in the musical, "Godspell":
Three things I pray
To see thee more clearly
Love thee more dearly
Follow thee more nearly
Day by day
May we experience the fullness of time together in 2012 from every point of view.
