Forty days

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How long is 40 days?

Yes, I know the answer is built right in to the question.

But also, units of time are arbitrary labels set by man against the movement of heavenly bodies to standardise the measures as a caution against chaos. We need these language games, these semantics, to survive in harmony with one another. We need it so that our cultured society will not collapse.

Given all that, how long is “forty days” really?

It’s 960 hours. It’s 57,600 minutes. It’s 5.714 weeks. It’s 1.315 months.

From today, it’s October 21.

It’s all very quantifiable and civilised.

But on a more personal level, the measure of time is not as easily consistent.

It has to do with context and perception.

Consider the concept of the last five minutes between a close scoring championship basketball game, and the same five minutes of quiet coffee time by yourself or with friends. Both are the same measure of time. But the perception of the participants are worlds apart from one another.

A thirty second plank exercise can be agony. A thirty minute back massage is bliss.

What’s at stake matters. What’s in store matters. Comfort level state matters.

So, forty days for me is not necessarily the same as forty days for someone else. Even if the activities are the same. And especially when they are different.

All of which is a roundabout way of saying I am attempting and 40 day Daniel fast with a friend, and I already know it will be difficult. I already know I will skip some days. And I already know that I will be suffering through most of it.

God help me, this is impossible without You.

“So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith.”

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭3:9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

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