Sacred Time

We treat time as a commodity: We talk about how we plan to “spend” it and calculate how much we will need to complete a certain task. We ask our clocks and watches to “keep” it – to measure it and assign it according to our whims.

But author Christine Valters Paintner invites us to a different experience of time; she encourages us to see time as offering us invitations rather than making demands on us.  Paintner encourage us to see time as “sacred.”

This sacred time is time devoted to the heart, to things that matter, to catching glimpses of eternity, says Paintner. “Sacred time is measured not in minutes or hours, but in moments and spans, offering us an inner sense of expansiveness.”

In her book Sacred Time: Embracing an Intentional Way of Life, Paintner introduces us to eight cycles of time that permeate our everyday lives. Using Paintner’s book, in this study we will look at our relationship with time from our every breath to the seasons of our lives.

In this study we will read on our own then gather weekly for conversation in large and small groups. We will take a deep look at how we engage with time, especially in these later years as time becomes more precious and unpredictable. Our conversations will be gentle as we listen for what God’s spirit and our own souls have to say to us.

Course contents