Chapter 22

How can we as Christians live as disciples of Jesus in our own particular time and place? We can’t live yesterday over again because yesterday is done and gone, nor live tomorrow because tomorrow hasn’t yet arrived. We only have now. Moreover, we can’t live in Chicago or London if we live in Spokane, nor serve as a doctor or lawyer if we’re a teacher, nor live as a single person if we’re married. What does it mean to follow Jesus right where we are, at this time and in this place? What do you learn from these biblical texts about living for God within the limitations of time? Psalm 90. Psalm 30. Philippians 4:4-13. Matthew 5:32-33. What do you learn about living for God within the limitation of place or circumstances? Note that Psalm 139 states the principle, and the texts in Ephesians 5 and I Corinthians 7 apply it to specific circumstances.

Psalm 139:1-18, 23-24; Ephesians 5:21-6:9; I Corinthians 7:1-24, 32-35

This exercise requires two steps.

1. First, think about the particularity of your own life. What are the demands on your time? Outline these in detail. What are the specific demands of the specific circumstances of your life (marriage, work, etc.)? Again, outline these in detail.

2. Second, respond in two ways.

   • Spend a week doing your best to see God and God’s purpose in them because God is already there, already loving you, already at work. Wherever you are, wherever you go, whatever you are doing, God is present. Can you “see” him there?

   • Try to explore how you might follow a healthier rhythm so that you can be present and attentive to one thing, at one time, and in one place, so that all of you is present and attentive. Could you limit the use of your mobile phone? Could you take a stroll three days a week and enjoy the world around you? Could you invest a little more uninterrupted time in your kids, spouse, or friends? In short, how can you give yourself to one thing at a time, in the circumstances in which you live, knowing that God is already there and at work?

What did you learn about the importance of time and place (circumstances) from the biblical texts, the chapter, and your spiritual exercise? How did these sources of information and these practices change you? What was especially hard?

Psalm 90:12, 16-17

Psalm 139:7-12