Today's morning prayer asked the question 'what does ordinary time look like for you?'  A good question, I thought, as I am not in my 'ordinary time' at the moment.  So the subsidiary question then becomes something like 'what do I do with this time?'

Now, at risk of being struck off for heresy, if one more person describes it as God's gift of time to draw closer in prayer I am likely to brain them with a copy of The Interior Castle or the work of some other female medieval mystic who suffered from headaches, poor short term memory and a weird delight in bodily illness.  Yes, there is opportunity in this time to slow down, to be still, to focus more intentionally Godwards, but that doesn't make it somehow a 'gift'.  Someone, somewhere needs to do some proper joined up theological thinking about how we view illness (generally as 'not good') and the time/space out of busyness it necessitates (often casually perceived as 'very good') recognising that illness/injury demands a lot of energy (physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual) in its own right.  One of the most helpful and profound messages in my Christmas cards this time said "keep the faith, and when you can't let others keep it for you."  This can be understood at many levels, and seems to recognise that sometimes we just don't have the energy to be 'holy' and that's OK.  And it is OK.  And maybe someone reading this needs to know that.

So, if this time is not God's gift to make me more holy - which doesn't mean that God can't use it that way if that is what God deems best for me - what is it and what do I do with it?

One of my challenges is to establish some new rhythms to my days, ways that avoid them simply drifting past and me suddenly finding that it is Easter and I have spent four months reading blogs or watching drivel on TV.  Actually the latter isn't very likely as daytime TV drives me nuts very rapidly.  I know all the theory about life-balance, I could give the course with my eyes closed and my hands tied behind my back, but it isn't always so easy to practice what is preached.

So, here are some things I want to commit to for this 'ordinary time' to give it some sort of shape and meaning (they start with the holy of course ;-) )...

• use the Pray-as-you-Go daily mediation on weekday mornings
• use both sets of IBRA notes for personal Bible reading to give different insights on passages
• get out for a walk every day (unless it is sheet ice underfoot!)
• spend an hour a day reading simply for pleasure - not theology, not Bible study
• watch in full one proper news bulletin a day
• get that MPhil submitted!

I reckon that's enough to be going on with.  There will also be time spent with friends and a few treats along the way.  I still have to work out what Sundays should look like but don't feel too much urgency there - it seems valuable to explore how 'shutins' manage this.

No exactly 'oridnary time' as the church year sees it, but time when ordinariness can be explored in new ways.