The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place. // Matthew 12:14-15
She sighed and sipped her bubbly water, ice cubes clanking her teeth before she wiped at her mouth. “I suppose I could have done more,” she continued to slurp, “but the situation was just so gray.”
I couldn’t really contain myself but tried. I was fresh out of graduate school and had many opinions about how she had handled the situation. My lawyer brain was reeling. You could have, oh, I don’t know, actually stood up to them and done something about it? I sniffed, adjusted my glasses, and murmured, “Inaction has consequences too, as I’m sure you’re aware.”
Later that day, I couldn’t stop complaining about her inaction to my sister. My sister nodded and ahemed and made those reassuring sounds of exasperation to show she was on my side.
The truth is, sometimes it’s not time to fight. Sometimes it’s time to live another day. Jesus in today’s Gospel chose to withdraw from the place where the Pharisees plotted His death (Matthew 12:14-15). It wasn’t His time, you see. And His time is everything.
I’m not saying this woman exercised perfect prudence. My hot-headed heart certainly didn’t think so. But maybe the person in your life who has side-stepped, dragged his feet, not responded or totally dodged the question is actually not the slacker jackrabbit you think. Timing is, as they say in comedy, everything.
If you and I could know exactly what God knew about what will and should unfurl in time and space in our lives, boy wouldn’t we feel secure! Wouldn’t we be so certain about our choices and the subsequent consequences. Yet part of the joy (pain?) of life is that every day is a new leap of trust in God’s providence and His will and His timing.
Make a short list of what you’re desiring to happen now or in the future. Set it in front of a crucifix or statue of Jesus. Surrender your time to Him. His will always be better.
His time is everything. // Nell O'LearyClick to tweet
Nell O’Leary is the Managing Editor for Blessed is She, an attorney turned writer, speaker, and editor while tending to her husband and five kiddos. She also facilitates our community groups as she loves helping women find sisterhood. Her undergrad is in English from University of Minnesota and her J.D. from Ave Maria School of Law. Notably, she can down a hot cocoa in two seconds. Find out more about her here.
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