What Time is it Lord?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"(this is part of a larger article, to which I made a contribution, in Relevant Magazine. \u00a0You can read the contributions from some friends of mine, here)\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Time is it Lord?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"(this is part of a larger article, to which I made a contribution, in Relevant Magazine. \u00a0You can read the contributions from some friends of mine, here)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Fibonacci Faith: Changing Everything\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-09-09T17:28:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/freedomslighthouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/firemen_flag.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Richard Dahlstrom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Richard Dahlstrom\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/\",\"name\":\"What Time is it Lord?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-09-09T17:28:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2011-09-09T17:28:46+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/#\/schema\/person\/35cc34ea723fe19cdf6bfe9446fde728\"},\"description\":\"(this is part of a larger article, to which I made a contribution, in Relevant Magazine. \u00a0You can read the contributions from some friends of mine, here)\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What Time is it Lord?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/\",\"name\":\"Fibonacci Faith: Changing Everything\",\"description\":\"The Blog of Richard Dahlstrom\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/#\/schema\/person\/35cc34ea723fe19cdf6bfe9446fde728\",\"name\":\"Richard Dahlstrom\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c70ef6941167d00acda35b40d90cb1e0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c70ef6941167d00acda35b40d90cb1e0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Richard Dahlstrom\"},\"description\":\"As Pastor of Bethany Community Church in Seattle, Richard teaches with vision of \\\"making the invisible God visible\\\" by calling people to acts of service and blessing. 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{"id":1638,"date":"2011-09-09T10:28:46","date_gmt":"2011-09-09T17:28:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.richarddahlstrom.com\/?p=1638"},"modified":"2011-09-09T10:28:46","modified_gmt":"2011-09-09T17:28:46","slug":"what-time-is-it-lord","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/richarddahlstrom\/2011\/09\/09\/what-time-is-it-lord\/","title":{"rendered":"What Time is it Lord?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

(this is part of a larger article, to which I made a contribution, in Relevant Magazine. \u00a0You can read the contributions from some friends of mine, here<\/a>) \u00a0As the 10th anniversary approaches, I\u2019m saddened by the debates about how to remember 9-11, and pray that we\u2019ll use this marker to simply align our priorities with God\u2019s priorities of justice, mercy, and intimacy. Here\u2019s my offering of remembrance, with a prayer offered at the end that isn\u2019t in the original article:<\/em><\/p>\n

Sept. 11, 2001, was our scheduled annual meeting at the church I lead in Seattle. We gathered, ditched the agenda and spent most of the evening in prayer. I\u2019ll never forget someone crying out with pathos: \u201cGod, you said in Ecclesiastes that there\u2019s a time for everything \u2026\u201d He stopped and the room waited in a pregnant silence for him to continue. In a broken voice he finally cried out: \u201cWhat time is it, Lord? What. Time. Is. It?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ten years later, it\u2019s still a question that needs asking.<\/p>\n

Is it time to argue about whether the emergent church is superior to the neo-Calvinist movement, giving voice to the same kind of polarization found in our politics? If the answer is yes, we\u2019ll fill the blogosphere with debates about who\u2019s headed for hell and who\u2019s not, who\u2019s pure and who are sons of Satan. The world will shake their head and say, ironically, \u201cJesus, save me \u2026 from Your followers.\u201d No. It\u2019s not the time for these things.<\/p>\n

In a world where dictators and extremists continue to oppress, torture, rape and indiscriminately kill, what time is it? Time to fight? Time for vengeance? Time for moving to the desert? Time for fear and banning mosques? It\u2019s not time for these things either.<\/p>\n

In the midst of human trafficking, rising food prices in the poorest parts of the world, homelessness and 25,000 children dying of treatable diseases every day, what time is it? In a world of rising populations and food shortages, peak oil and polluted water, what time is it? In a world where democracy seems immobilized by a lack of political will, while totalitarianism and terror wait for their moment to seize power, what time is it?<\/p>\n

The good news is this: God\u2019s given us the answer. \u201cGod has shown you what is good, and what the Lord requires of you: do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with God.\u201d This is the clarion call ringing out above the white noise that, for many, Christianity has become.<\/p>\n

Work at giving a voice to those who don\u2019t have one because they\u2019re stuck in the margins. Pursue healthy relationships, which will include extending forgiveness to those who wrong you and confessing your own wrongs. Walk closely with God as friend, guide, lover, so that little by little you\u2019ll start to look like Jesus.<\/p>\n

Nurturing these qualities won\u2019t make headlines, but it will cause the light of Christ to shine with just a little more clarity. Ten years after 9\/11, I think we all agree what time it is: It\u2019s time for His light to shine brighter<\/p>\n

O Lord of all the nations\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

As we remember the tragedy of ten years ago, we ponder the reality that you\u2019ve called us, not to fear, but to the perfect love which casts out fear. \u00a0You\u2019ve called us, not to self-preservation and building protective walls, but to love our neighbors and cross social divides created by class, color, creed. \u00a0You\u2019ve called us, not to close our hands in a tight grip around our wealth, but to live with simplicity so that we might live with generosity. \u00a0You\u2019ve called us to do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with God. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

We still fall short, prone as we are to fear, pettiness, greed, revenge. \u00a0May your holy spirit fall on us, that we, being filled with your very life, might overflow with the transforming hope of the resurrection. \u00a0Amen\u2026 Amen.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"