Time Flying By

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A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Kate Wharton. Good morning. As I get older, I increasingly find myself using some of those phrases that, as a young person, seemed so annoying when I heard them. The one of which I am currently most guilty is “gosh, isn’t this year flying by?” I simply cannot believe that tomorrow is the fourth Sunday of Lent, that Easter is only 3 weeks away. “But surely it’s only just been Christmas?” I want to sigh. But maybe this is just what we need, what our year needs, what our lives need – milestones along the way to help us to navigate along our journeys. I’ve got a reasonably good sense of direction – I was a Girl Guide after all – and so I’m not bad at finding my way around with a map and a compass, even if these days I tend to rely mostly on my phone’s GPS. But signposts and waymarkers also help me in my spiritual life. The seasons of the Christian year, the festivals we celebrate, the special days of fasting and feasting, all of these help me in my walk of faith. They connect me to the past, to the saints who have gone before me, who also celebrated these same special days. They connect me to my sisters and brothers around the world, who celebrate the same festivals in their own way. And they can help us all, through their rhythm and their pattern, to navigate our journey with God, so that we now find ourselves once more in the preparation time of Lent. Loving Lord Jesus, help us to meet with you in the twists and turns of our daily journeys, and to know your loving presence in every season of life. Amen.