Have you ever said about yourself “I live an ordinary life”? If you look up the word ordinary, you’ll see that it can be defined as ‘common place, unexceptional’. My guess is that most of us can say that we DO live an ordinary life.
But what does the word ordinary mean in the Church?
The Church teaches that Ordinary Time is that time that comes between our times of celebration (Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost) and our fasting times (Advent and Lent). During Ordinary Time, we are reminded that God walks among us and is constantly transforming our lives. Ordinary Time is a time for growth and maturation, a time in which the mystery of Christ is called to penetrate ever more deeply into our lives. The length of time we spend in ordinary time is about 33-34 weeks, as opposed to the 18-19 collectively with Advent, Lent, Christmas, and Easter.
To me, this says that we need to spend more time on being transformed. All of this talk about ‘ordinary’ made me think of a conversation I had with a friend. In asking about the serious health situations this family was dealing with, I came to find out about a brother, mother-in-law, nephew, and friend who were all helping out. Truly, they had enough on their plate, caring for and helping others was the last thing they needed to do and yet… He shared that before they did anything, they prayed, asking to know what God was asking of them at this time and place. I need to tell you that I was blown away!
The icing on the cake was that they agreed that helping these other folks helped them live out their faith life. I could only compare it to the life of the Holy Family. They lived simple ordinary lives and yet I am sure they had an influence on anyone who came to know them. I told my friend that he and his family were living in a Holy Family house. They did nothing exceptional and lived a simple commonplace life. Each day, encounter, experience was continually transforming them.
Another quick example (it was a week full of them!) is another friend who takes time out of his full schedule to have lunch with a group of retired priests once a week. Nothing exceptional, but it does allow them to tell their stories to a new set of ears, plus bring some laughter into their day. I am also sure that this person is also enriched by their stories and wisdom. Transformation is certainly taking place. Both of these situations are making the ordinary Holy. Amazing and so simple.
What ordinary things have you been doing that speak of self-transformation, of becoming more Christ-like? Like my friends, I think we forget to bless these transformative moments. For me, I know that this week, I need to see how I live my ordinary life in a Holy Family kind of way.
What about you?
Till next week,
Sister T
