Are You Missing a Sacred Moment?

Sometimes a sacred moment starts out as an ordinary moment. We can miss it if we don’t slow down.

The word sacred gadosh in the Old Testament means “holy” or “set apart.” The utensils, bowls, and other items used in the Jewish temple were considered sacred, set apart for holy use, and a reminder of God’s covenant with the people of Israel. Every utensil had a holy purpose pointing to the Messiah. Jesus fulfilled the covenant with God, and now the Church, the body of Christ, has been set apart for holy use to reflect the holiness of God. We are the utensils God uses to point to Him. Sometimes, probably most of the time, God uses ordinary moments in our lives and transforms them into holy, sacred moments for His use and glory.

This month, two of my dearest friends shared encounters with strangers that began as ordinary. Reflecting on their stories, I realized God had exchanged the ordinary for the sacred.

Living the Set-Apart Life

One friend, while eating alone, was blessed by her server’s attentiveness. Along with her generous tip, she wrote him a personal note of thanks for his kindness. This unexpected note encouraged the server so much that he kept it in his order book. Each time he takes an order, he sees the note and remembers that his act of service is important. Their relationship grew from time given and gratitude expressed. How the fruit of this encounter will continue to grow is only known by the Lord.

Similarly, my other friend was going about her shopping routine at a grocery store when she noticed a woman struggling to get a greeting card back into its plastic sleeve. Not wanting to embarrass the woman, she pretended to look at the cards as well, eventually helping her with the plastic sleeve. From this act of kindness, a friendly conversation ensued. Trusting my friend, the woman shared that she had just been diagnosed with terminal cancer and lived alone. This meeting began a caring relationship of meals and visits for the remainder of the woman’s life. An everyday encounter turned into a sacred gift of love.

God calls us to a sacred, set-apart life—one through which Jesus can shine. We are invited to notice the needs of others, even in our busyness. Jesus always took time to notice. In Luke 8:43-48, Jesus is surrounded by a crowd pressing in on Him. But there is a woman who has searched for Him, convinced that just touching the hem of His garment would heal her. She found Him, touched His hem, and was healed. Jesus could have kept moving but He stops and speaks with her.

Too often, we let moments slip by unattended, when God wants to take them, set them apart, and make them sacred in someone else’s life. We just need to slow down and pay attention to the people God brings to us.

The Disciples Slept While Jesus Prayed

We are not alone in this unawareness of our surroundings. Even the disciples missed moments when God was calling them to attention. As Jesus went up to Gethsemane to pray, the disciples fell asleep even after Jesus beseeched them to stay awake. They fell asleep, not once but three times (see Matthew 26:36-46). They must have recalled that night over and over wishing they had been more present to Jesus’s needs.  Only later, after the cross, did they understand the severity of what Jesus was facing. On the cross, Jesus attended to His mother’s needs, entrusting her to John for care (John 19:26-27). He assured the criminal on the cross next to Him that he would be with him in paradise (Luke 23:39-43).  In moments when most of us would focus on our own needs, fears, and pain, Jesus was reaching out to attend to others’ needs, fears, and pain. The Son of Man chose repeatedly to set apart His human suffering for the needs of others in order to draw them to Him — the Son of God. The power of the resurrection, the victory over sin and death, is ours to be manifested as our life is transformed into the image of Christ. Our ordinary lives are set apart for the work of Christ, set apart for the sacred moments that rise up out of our death to self for the service of God.  

I wonder how often I have let an ordinary moment slip by when Jesus meant it to be sacred, set apart for His service and love. What about you?

This weekend, we honor the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord. In a world desperate for hope, may we live remembering we are now God’s utensils set apart for His holy use.

Blessings,

Personal Parables Practices

• Will you give thanks today for the sacrifice of Jesus?
• How will you remember that you are God’s instrument to guide others to Jesus?
• Will you ask the Lord to open your eyes today for an opportunity to spread His love and hope?

A Prayer for Easter

Lord, thank You that use my ordinary life to bring Your extraordinary love to each person who crosses my path. Remind me that each moment given is sacred when given in Your name and for Your purpose. No moment is too small for You to use and multiply. Amen.

Scripture for Meditation

1 Peter 2:9 NASB20 –  But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Hebrews 10:5-10 NIV – Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:

“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—I have come to do your will, my God.’”

First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Music for Reflection