“Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice.” ~Proverbs 27:9
“Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice.” ~Proverbs 27:9
There is nothing like spending time in the presence of a dear friend. Time disappears and you just ARE. Alarm-clock-time is transformed into God’s time - real time.
I think of the Transfiguration in Matthew, Mark, and Luke - Jesus having a casual meeting with Elijah and Moses! Moses lived 600 some years before Elijah, who lived about 800 years before Jesus!
Madeleine L’Engle (my most favorite author/theologian) in her book, “Walking on Water” describes time using the Greek, chronos and kairos. “Chronos (where we get chronology) began with creation - time exists only where mass is in motion. Kairos is God’s time - it breaks through chronos with a shock of joy, time we do not recognize while we are experiencing it, but only afterwards. Kairos has nothing to do with chronos. In kairos we are completely unselfconscious, and yet paradoxically far more real than we can ever be when we are constantly checking our watches for chronological time.”
L’Engle mentions that children in play are living in kairos. We need to release our control and let loose - live like children. Maybe that is what Jesus meant when He said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven' [Matthew 18:3]. ‘The kingdom of heaven is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit’ [Romans 14:17]. Jesus said that He brought this kingdom to earth - We can have that right now!
Our church has a social media fast every year - it’s a time to pay attention to our surroundings, our relationships, our family, our friends - to foster kairos time. I recently spent time with a grieving friend. We cried more than anything else - when we checked ‘Chronos’, four hours had passed! Four hours? It hardly seemed possible. But it was in kairos - God’s time - real time. Precious and momentous. Necessary and authentic.
“Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children.” Mark 10:14
Written by: Bonnie Chovanec, 2026
