I remember the first time I was invited to impose ashes during an Ash
Wednesday service. A mother brought her infant forward and seeing the baby, I
froze. I knew the words I was supposed to repeat:
“Remember, you are dust and to dust you shall return.”
I marked a cross on the mother’s forehead and said the words to her, but I was not prepared to place an ashen cross on that tiny forehead and say those words to one who had been born just weeks before.
But that mama knew what she was doing when she brought her child to the altar rail to receive ashes. She knew how precious and dear, and sometimes how fleeting, life is.
The ashes remind us both of what we already know and of what we sometimes forget – that in Christ, death does not get the last word. I haven’t hesitated since.
Ash Wednesday invites us to speak honestly about sin and death. We join in confession for our sin, and on behalf of those who are not here with us tonight, acknowledging our complicity in the brokenness of the world where we live.
A world that cannot live in peace;
A world that cannot see that every person is beloved and created in God’s
image;
A world that cannot be vulnerable and authentic in its compassion and prayer for the stranger.
Our confession is our response to God’s Word and promises for us. As disciples of Jesus, we confess “with confidence that the judgment has been, is and will be lifted from us by the grace of God in Jesus Christ.” (The Rev. Fleming Rutledge)
And in its honesty, our confession becomes the turning point of our lives where we commit to actively “turn around” — to turn away from ourselves and return to God with all our heart.
Just as Pastor Mark said on Sunday that after the Transfiguration, Jesus turns his face toward Jerusalem, in Lent, we turn our faces toward God, coming up from the ashes to learn to live as disciples of Jesus in new ways and to commit to the deeper work that leads to transformation.
Here at Grace, our midweek learning and worship will focus on deepening our practices of prayer, both communally and individually.
Often prayer is described as talking to God, but prayer practices also invite us to rest from all the other things we could be doing so that we can draw close to God and renew our strength. Spoken prayers let us name the concerns of our hearts, but because the best conversations aren’t one-sided, prayer also asks us to wait on the Lord to speak. Amid the noise and wordiness of our lives, silence invites us to listen for God.
One week we’ll explore a prayer labyrinth, where prayer is combined with movement, and another week we’ll experience different kinds of healing prayers. Other weeks we’ll practice morning and evening prayer as well as prayers around the cross and centering prayer.
Throughout the season, Jesus’ words in Matthew’s gospel will remain with us. There Jesus tells the disciples to “beware” or “pay attention” to where their hearts are in all they do, whether it’s giving or praying or fasting. Jesus urges us, in whatever we do, to act with honesty and authenticity. It’s too easy for our motives to get mixed up, for our hearts to harden, or for us to curve in on ourselves in sin. In a world that so often is transactional, rewarding merit and achievement, we are called to remember that discipleship isn’t about what we get or whom we impress but who we are, in relationship with God through Christ: forgiven and reconciled.
On Ash Wednesday, and throughout the Lenten season, we are invited to focus on how God’s grace-filled and loving response to us defines who we are and how we practice our faith day by day.
Let us pray…
Good and
gracious God,
We give
thanks for your abundant grace and mercy and for your steadfast love.
Thank you
for forgiving our sin and for inviting us to return to you again and again.
Reconcile us
to you and to one another as we practice our faith and deepen our relationship
with you.
We pray in
the name of your Son Jesus Christ.
Amen.
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