Lenten Journal: Holy Time

For God alone my soul waits in silence,

for my hope is from him.
⁶He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
Psalm 62.5

It was there for the briefest time tonight: holiness - the presence of God in the community. I felt it, and I'm sure others did, too.

We gather on Wednesday nights for Evening Prayer. We usually use Holden Evening Prayer, a service written by Marty Haugen that has become very popular among Lutheran churches. But before we begin the singing, we gather, greet one another, share some timely announcements, and then partake of some minutes of silence.

Tonight was special for some reason. Normally there are the sounds of campus life all around us. Occasionally there's a bit more campus life than we'd like: I remember the night the fraternity next door started their party at the same time as our Evening Prayer service. But tonight, the whole campus seemed hushed with us. We gathered in silence.

True, it didn't last. I turned the words around on the first line of the call and response, and immediately the laughter cascaded through our small group of worshipers. But there's holiness in laughter, too; even the uncontrollable guffawing that seized some of our folks later had the holiness of safety and comfort woven through it.

Tonight was holy time, from the moment we walked in the door. The church exists to provide time such as this, the kairos in which the world's demands are made to wait while the needs of our souls receive our attention. I'm glad to be part of it, and I hope that you, wherever you are, are part of it as well.

Grace and peace,
Scott