Time to Let it Soak In

My mom used to tell me I couldn’t go swimming until I had let my lunch settle. According to her, it took exactly thirty minutes for my food to settle before I could get back into the water. If I got back into the water too fast, I would get sick, cramp up and die a terrible death. I’ve never fully understood her logic and sometimes, I’m not sure if that was even true. I think it was just her way of telling everyone to take a break and get a little rest. 

Churches are the same way. After the celebration of Easter, we feel the need to jump right back into our full schedules. Seems to me, we need a few days to think about the details of the cross and the resurrection. What does it mean that God in Christ died for sinners? What does it mean for our past that Christ has justified us through His death? What does it mean that Christ has conquered death?

Granted, while we can only grasp this in part, it still demands our full attention. What’s more, once we begin to comprehend the meaning of His sacrifice, what does that mean in our daily living? If Christ has been raised from the dead – and He has – how does that change what we do with our time? Our resources? Our talents?

The world wants us busy and distracted. The world wants us to get back to living so fast we don’t have time to think about it. Why? Because if we take time to think, to do our best to understand what Christ has done and is doing for us, we might live very, very differently.

And that’s worth thinking about.