time

The Wedding in Cana

2 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. ² Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.³ When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”⁴ And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” ⁵ His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” (John 2:1-5 NIV)

The Festival of Tabernacles

⁶ Therefore Jesus told them, “My time is not yet here; for you any time will do.” ⁷ The world cannot hate you, but it hates mebecause I testify that its works are evil. ⁸ You go to the festival. I am not going up to this festival, because my timehas not yet fully come.” (John 7:6-8 NIV)

Jesus Predicts His Death to His Disciples

²⁰ Now there were some Greeksamong those who went up to worship at the festival. ²¹ They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” ²² Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.²³ Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴ Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. ²⁵ Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep itfor eternal life. ²⁶ Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.” (John 12:20-26 NIV)

The Last Supper

 ¹⁷ On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” ¹⁸ He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” (Matthew 26:17-18 NIV)

What common theme did you notice when you read these passages from Scripture?

Did you notice time? The hour? In each passage, Jesus reminds His followers that He is one with the Father. Everything Jesus did and said during His time on Earth was the will of the Father. Even though the disciples – his closest friends – did not fully understand his meaning until after His resurrection. Jesus was always quick to remind everyone that His life was the “kernel of wheat…”: valuable solely because He gave glory to the Father.

 I remember when I learned that God exists outside of time and space. Yet God also created time. My devotional blog is an extension from my teaching of an anatomy and physiology course, which was my favorite subject to teach. But earlier in my career, I also taught Earth and Space Science. I learned that the Big Bang Theory is how astronomers explain the way the universe began. It is the idea that the universe began as just a single point, then expanded, contracted, and stretched to grow as large as it is right now. And it is still stretching! That single point, the singularity is based upon scientific evidence and so is the expansion of the universe.  But the Big Bang Theory does not state how and by whom the universe was created. God created the universe, not chaotically, but orderly from a single point, the singularity. He created the sun, Earth and moon and deliberately positioned them and set them in motion, so that the interaction among them determines time.

  Earth rotates on its axis once every 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4.09053 seconds, creating the “24-hour day.” As the Earth rotates, it also revolves around the sun every 365 days, 6 hours, 9 minutes.This is the reason for leap year every four years, when one day is added to the year at the end of the month of February (February 29^th). Earth is tilted on its axis, creating seasons. Locations at or near the equator experience very little change in temperature throughout the year. Those locations north and south of the equator experience greater changes in temperature when Earth is tilted either away or toward the sun. And finally, Earth is the only planet whose distance from the Sun allows life created by God to flourish.

The first Sunday in November is when Daylight Saving Time ends in most areas of the United States. In 2021, people who live in the areas will “fall back” one hour and return to Standard Time on Sunday, November 7, 2021, at 2 a.m. Be sure to set your clocks back one hour before bed Saturday night! Do you notice how adding one hour to the day affects you?  In the Spring, do you notice how subtracting one hour from the day affects you? There are many long-term situations when the typical 24-hour day is interrupted. It is understandable that frequent travel to other time zones, parenting a newborn baby, working 2^nd or 3^rd shifts can affect a person, but just adding an hour in the Fall and subtracting an hour in the Spring?

Most cell phones automatically adjust to the new time zone, but for the human biological clock, this is not so. The change of just one hour can negatively affect sleep, mood, hunger, emotional and physical disturbances…….Why is this true? 

The pineal gland is key to the body’s internal clock because it regulates the body’s circadian rhythm, also known as the “biological clock.” The circadian rhythms are the daily rhythms of the body, including signals that make someone feel tired, sleep, wake up, and feel alert around the same time each day. The pineal gland also regulates some very necessary and important biological functions, such as the sleep-awakening cycle, hormone secretion, blood pressure and even metabolism!

The main function of the pineal gland is to receive and convey information about the current light-dark cycle from the environment and, consequently produce and secrete melatonin cyclically at night (dark period).

As the body is exposed to more sun throughout the day, the secretion of  melatonin drops off. And as it gets darker at night, the  secretion of melatonin increases again. Melatonin helps maintain the body’s normal sleep cycle known as circadian rhythm, that internal clock we all have running 24 hours per day.

There are several strategies to reduce the negative effects of the loss or gain of an hour of sleep. One is to gradually adjust your sleep/wake cycle before the time change. After the time change, stay on your new schedule. While it may be tempting to use extra caffeine in the afternoon to help yourself adjust, a better solution is to take a short “cat nap” later in the day.

It is also a good idea to keep mealtimes the same, remembering to eat healthy (more protein, fewer carbs). Researchers also suggest finding ways to get more light during the darker days and months. Some people travel to warm, sunny climates. Others take melatonin supplements or spend time sitting under specialized lamps.

God created the Universe, God created time, and God created the rhythms of our bodies. It’s a lot to comprehend, isn’t it? It calls to mind God’s words to Isaiah when He declares, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” (Is. 55: 8). But as we discussed earlier, nothing was created out of chaos. Even in the way we are designed to fall asleep in the dark and awake in the light of the morning, there is beauty and order.

As you consider how you will adjust to the time change, perhaps you may also think about keeping or establishing a new rhythm of time spent with the Father each day. Jesus was well aware of His own time – how it should be used and when things should occur – because He was well aware of the Father. When the world outside grows darker with the changing of the seasons, ask God to help keep His light alive in your heart.

¹² When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I amthe light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12 NIV)

Illustration 188651753 © Viktoriia Kasyanyuk | Dreamstime.com

Illustration 184356455 / Biological Clock © Elenabsl | Dreamstime.com