You’ve probably heard of Advent and Christmas, Lent and Easter. Maybe even a wildcard like Epiphany. These are all seasons of what is traditionally called the church calendar or the liturgical calendar.
Starting with Advent in December, the historic church moved through the church calendar each year to help us remember, commemorate, and live out the story of Jesus and the start of his church. We’ve covered most of the church calendar in this series already:
With Advent, we recall Jesus’s first coming as a baby in a manger and look forward to his second coming when he fully establishes his kingdom. Christmas is, of course, the celebration of Jesus’s birth. Epiphany commemorates the revelation of God’s love to the world and the light of the gospel message made manifest in Jesus. The 40 days of Lent is a time of trial and testing where God works on our hearts and minds to help us realize our need for a Savior. Easter celebrates Christ’s resurrection, where we proclaim that, because of Jesus, sin and death do not have the power to separate us from God. And the season of Pentecost marks Jesus’s ascension into heaven and the Holy Spirit indwelling and empowering his people to live as his church until he returns.
Now, between Pentecost and Advent, there’s a months-long stretch (nearly half the year!) that’s simply called “Ordinary Time.” Though this season lacks some of the festive excitement of the others, it’s arguably more relevant to our daily lives and therefore more important for us to learn to embrace.
Ordinary Time in the church calendar represents the current age of the church, where we have received the Holy Spirit and get to experience God in ways that his followers before Pentecost couldn’t have imagined. But we are waiting for Jesus to return and usher in God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
This in-between period of waiting is hard! Early Christians thought so too. About 30 years after Pentecost, Peter wrote this as encouragement:
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (1 Peter 3:9)
Here we are, nearly 2000 years later, and Peter’s words (and the question he addresses) apply to us too.
Why is the “ordinary time” lasting so long? What are we waiting for?
People are still being saved. God is not finished with his work of redemption yet.
This might be an easier perspective for us to hold than for those Christians in the early days. After all, my life is a testament to God’s patience. If he had returned in the first century like Peter’s audience wanted, I would never have existed or known him. But because of his timing, I get to be in the new creation alongside those very people from Peter’s second letter, and we’ll get to enjoy God together forever.
This season of the church calendar is a chance to focus our hearts and minds on the season of church history we’re occupying. It’s a time to live out what we say we believe in our daily lives, applying Jesus’s teachings and carrying out the mission he left us with. Really, our worship of God in Ordinary Time should reflect our worship of God all the time.
Peter casts vision for this kind of worship:
You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. (1 Peter 1:9)
We saw before that we’re occupying this “ordinary time” before Jesus comes back because he’s not done with his world and people yet.
As his church, we are called to worship God in the “ordinary time” of our day-to-day lives. When we do this, we live out our calling to be his daily disciples. By following his commands and walking closely with him every day, we declare his praises, honor him with our lives, and show others what he’s like.
God has a calling for your life. He’s invited you to join him in his mission to restore his world. And you have been set apart for that mission.
The best part? You aren’t alone! God is with you every step of the way, inviting you to experience him and empowering you to live as he calls you to. Here are three areas to focus on as you determine how to spend the “ordinary time” God has given you:
The Bible is where we learn about God—what he’s like, what he cares about, and what he wants for us. It’s also where we encounter God, experiencing his transformational love and power.
Churches are messy places full of sinners. They are also where we encounter God—not just in a moving service or powerful sermon—but through the messy people worshiping alongside you. You can’t live the Christian life alone.
Hearing God’s word and assenting to its validity is one thing. Believing God’s word and letting it shape your actions, choices, and behavior is another. Move from passively receiving God’s teachings to actively living them out in daily discipleship.