Are you someone who likes the ordered, routine and certain that you can control and prepare for or the random, haphazard and unexpected events that seem random? I have moments in both camps but I am aware that it is the unplanned that impact me more and help me see God at work and cause me to wonder more.
At the Faithworks conference last weekend, the academic, theologian Robert Beckford challenged us by asking, 'Have we got the message for this moment? He was talking about the kairos moment rather than the chronos moment. When something breaks in suddenly are we ready to respond and react?
As I was leaving the Premier Inn on Sunday, I walked out of my room and bumped into Brian McLaren, one of the speakers for the weekend - and brilliant he was too. As I queued up for breakfast at the restaurant, Jeff Lucas, another of the main speakers queued up next to me (I only needed to bump into Steve Chalke and I would have had the trinity!) Kairos moments. What message did I have? Some silly quip that is too embarrassing to write here. Then, at the end of the breakfast queue was the toaster. Not your bog standard toaster, but a conveyor belt toaster. You had to release the slices of bread one at a time and wait whilst each one went into the machine, out of sight, seemingly lost, until it slid gracefully out again, toasted on both sides. I was ready for the toast, I knew it would come in time (chronos), but I wasn't ready for the kairos moment when I met Brian and Jeff.
Am I going to queue up with the toast or be ready for bumping into people with a message that is relevant? I guess it is both/and not either/or, but what I must be is ready for both. God uses chronos and kairos and he can use me. Always be prepared to give a reason for the hope you have. You never know when the moment will come!
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