It's time...

It's not quite a week since Epiphany. Christmas has come and gone. The Magi's gifts have been given. Our homes have been stripped of any holiday glitter and the sanctuary is once again emptied of the decorations. There are no more wreathes, no poinsettias, no candles in the windows. Had we not been present in this Sacred Space during the Advent and Christmas seasons, we would have no idea what we missed.

But I was here. I did see the Meeting House decked with boughs of greenery and symbols of the season. I did find myself surrounded by the warm, welcoming candles. I did feel the power that this time of year presents. And now it is all gone.

The morning after Epiphany (the first day that the Sanctuary was emptied of its decorations), I sat in one of the pews and looked around.

It doesn't seem possible that Christmas is over.
It doesn't seem possible that Lent will soon be beginning.

I've just celebrated the adoration of the Christ Child and now I must prepare for what comes next...his death.

It's too soon!

I want to savor the experience of hearing the story of his birth once again.
I want to capture the brilliance of the moment when the congregation sings Silent Night.
I want to hold on to the light present in the faces of our children.
I want to stay here...safe, warm, comfortable.

As my eyes pan across the front of our worship space, it's as if a voice were calling to me. My focus lands on the cross, the symbol of our faith, high above the choir pews. It calls out to me in such a way that the blurriness of this new seasons seems to come into sharp focus.

It's time...

It's time to move beyond the wreathes and the candles.
It's time to move beyond the Advent and Christmas hymns.
It's time to move beyond that which is safe, warm and comfortable.

It's time to turn the focus from Bethlehem to Jerusalem.

Jesus will age very quickly in these next few weeks. No longer will he be the Holy Infant. No longer will he be the toddler receiving the gifts of the Magi. He will be grown and steeped in his ministry, focused on the future and working diligently to bring us all along.

It's time...

It's time to leave the manger behind.
It's time to move beyond Herod, the shepherds, the angels and the Magi.
It's time to focus on a new task.
It's time to spread the word, to share the Good News.
It's time to speak the truth to power.
It's time to overturn the tables in the temple.
It's time to teach our faith to the younger generations.
It's time to challenge the status quo.
It's time to feed the hungry clothe the naked.
It's time to release the prisoners and bring sight to the blind.

It's time to be an active part of Jesus' ministry in the world.

And then it is as if the voice calls to me once again... All that we have experienced along our Advent and Christmas journeys has prepared us for what is to come. We could not be about the work and ministry that Jesus shares had we not understood that which he represents, that to which we were witness in the experiences surrounding his birth.

And now I understand. And now I am ready.

It's time...