Healing in the Ordinary
So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12
I tend to want dull moments to be dismissed from my day. Maybe you can also relate. Do you ever watch a movie and fast forward through slower parts? Sometimes I think to myself, “get on with the good part!” Ordinary moments can seem mundane; but that tendency to fast forward to the ‘good part’ can especially be felt in the middle of a healing season.
In the years of my deepest grief, ordinary moments could be incredibly painful. I desperately wanted to flee from these parts of the day. As I became more curious about this I realized that many ordinary moments held a deep sting. While brushing teeth at the end of a day, I was hit with the stark reality that I was ending my day all alone. Sitting on the floor to play with my son also highlighted the fact there was no longer any adult conversation going on in my home. When I brewed morning coffee; it was for only one person now. Ordinary moments held constant reminders that my world had radically changed and that hurt.
While these moments hurt, I can now look back over the years and see just how much God used ordinary moments to heal me. It’s when I engaged in routine tasks that I began to learn to pay attention to my grief, worry, doubt, anger, or fear. This is where I began to cultivate new habits that lead me to Jesus. Habits such as: naming my emotions, paying attention to my body, lamenting, and pleading for the Holy Spirit to help me embrace Truth. These ordinary moments have shaped me. What if these moments in our day play a critical role in who we are becoming? What if it’s in the ordinary God is weaving this redemptive piece of thread into the tapestry of our lives?
Grief can serve as a great clarifier. Realizing in a fresh way that our days are numbered is incredibly terrifying and humbling. There is also deep wisdom with the recognition that our life is a midst. I am reminded of Psalm 90:12 “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” What if the value of ordinary time can actually increase here? What if we begin to embrace a more disciplined lifestyle? What if we begin to spend less time on matters that aren’t that important? Could the silence in the bedroom before we drift off to sleep actually begin to lose its sting? Can these empty spaces be filled with an awareness of God’s presence in our home?
I believe that the way we spend ordinary moments actually carries more weight for our souls than we realize. Today is actively shaping who we are becoming. When ordinary moments hold heartache, confusion, fear, or failure; they are also an invitation into deep formation. In her book Liturgy of the Ordinary, Tish Warren writes:
I’m living this life, the life right in front of me. This one where we aren’t living as we thought we might or as we hoped we would. This one where we are weary…and on this particular day, Jesus knows me, and declares me his own. On this day he is redeeming the world, advancing his kingdom, calling us to repent and grow, teaching his church to worship, drawing near to us, and making a people all his own.
When ordinary moments seem meaningless or painful, God is doing more than we could ever realize beneath the surface. God meets us in each moment of our day and His mercies never fail. Let’s keep showing up. Let’s keep giving Jesus all of our heart. This is our worship.
In Christ,
Brooke
