Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Kairos Joy

I've been doing a whole lot of processing these past few days - ever since my last post. After writing, I felt as though I really had nothing of value to say, other than a check-yes-or-no to my success or failures. That was definitely not my intention with this blog, or this project!
In any case, shortly after writing my last post, my mom sent me an incredibly inspiring and challenging article entitled "Don't Carpe Diem" (you can check it out for yourself here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/glennon-melton/dont-carpe-diem_b_1206346.html). The part that really challenged me was when the writer spoke of Kairos time. I've included a snipit, in her own words: 

"Then there's Kairos time. Kairos is God's time. It's time outside of time. It's metaphysical time. It's those magical moments in which time stands still. I have a few of those moments each day. And I cherish them. Like when I actually stop what I'm doing and really look at Tish. I notice how perfectly smooth and brownish her skin is. I notice the perfect curves of her teeny elf mouth and her asianish brown eyes, and I breathe in her soft Tishy smell. In these moments, I see that her mouth is moving but I can't hear her because all I can think is -- This is the first time I've really seen Tish all day, and my God -- she is so beautiful. Kairos."

After reading these words, I began to look for Kairos moments in my own day. Moments when God would break through my "chronos time" and I would be transported, for just a moment, into "kairos time," overwhelmed by the wonder of God's grace and blessing in my life.
As I was still pondering the importance of "Kairos" in my everyday, I started reading a book titled Who Got Peanut Buter on My Daily Planner?: Organizing and Loving Your Days as a Mom, by Cindy Sigler Dagnan. And what should I read in the first chapter, but a challenge to "Cultivate a Hearty Sense of Humor." This may seem unrelated to you, but read this section I pulled out of the first chapter:

"The truth is, kids, and our lives with them, are hilarious. Get a fun-patterned spiral notebook and start jotting down the cute things they say or do, together with the date and their age. Whenever possible, tuck a snapshot of the moment in next to it. Not only will it be fun to look back on, but it will craft a touching and priceless log of your days together." (pg. 19)

Still unrelated? Well, let me attempt to guide you through my train of thought.
  • I am focusing for the next 6 months on cultivating an attitude of Joy in my daily life! I want to encounter Joy in every day and every aspect of my being (mom, wife, friend, etc.).
  • In reading Don't Carpe Diem, I was convicted to pay more attention to the Kairos moments in my day. Be attentive to the moments when God pulls me from Chronos time to make me fully aware of His blessing in my life.
  • Within a week of my Kairos conviction, I am reminded that God has blessed my life with humor! Humor as a mother, especially!  And, through Cindy Sigler Dagnan, I am given practical tips for creating reminders and intentional memories of these humorous moments!
  • Within this past week, it is as though I have been given very clear, practical advice for intentional joy:
Seek out Kairos moments, gifts from God, and keep them as Joy memoirs!

In light of this thought process, here are 3 Kairos moments from yesterday:
January 24, 2012 (Kaidyn, age 2; Selah, 5 mo.)
  1. While attempting to feed Selah her cereal, Kaidyn sat beside me at the table and struck up a conversation with his little sister. They smiled and laughed together, clearly aware of something that Mommy was not :)
  2. During my morning kitchen clean-up, I put my ipod on with some Christian pop tunes. Kaidyn came running into the kitchen saying, "Dance. Dance." Then he proceeded to fill my kitchen with dancing that only a joy-inspired 2-year-old could create :)
  3. We were having company for dinner last night and I was trying to get ahead on my to-do-list. So I set the table in the morning with a fancy table cloth, plates, silverware, napkins, fancy glasses, etc. Kaidyn came by and set himself, his Lamby, and his Puppy up at each place setting to enjoy their own fancy pre-dinner imagined meal :)
Kairos! Thank you, Lord for Joy!

"This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” ~ Nehemiah 8:10b

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