Ash Wednesday

-

Scripture Joel 2:12-13

12  “Yet even now,” declares the Lord,

          “return to me with all your heart,

       with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

13        and rend your hearts and not your garments.”

       Return to the Lord your God,

for he is gracious and merciful,

       slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;

and he relents over disaster. [1]



Devotion

            Today being Ash Wednesday signals the beginning of the Christian season of Lent. A season of fasting and repentance. Two things that are in short supply in this world. We would rather laugh and feast than weep and fast. Our sins, however, demand weeping and mourning.

            We who are complicit in the sins of the age. We show a disregard for the law of the Lord. We sneer as we break the commandments. Saying God does not see he does not stop us from our sinning. We laugh and celebrate as we sin against God.

            Yet God says he will be merciful and relent from punishing us for our sin if we will simply acknowledge them before our God. If we will but repent and truly begin to love our God with all our heart, mind, and strength and our neighbor as ourselves, God will forgive us our sins and restore our spiritual and physical health.

            Millions of Christians around the world will take the ashes on the forehead this day.  As a sign of their willingness to repent and seek after God. I pray that this year the desire will turn into reality. Millions will truly “rend their hearts” and seek after the face of our Lord. That through this season we will be humbled before God. We will mourn for our sins and cry out to God that we might receive mercy.

            The liturgy of the ashes used for the imposition of ashes on this day includes the words “from dust you were made to dust you shall return” is a humbling reminder of the fragility of life. May we face this truth head on today and weep as we face the greatness of a God who is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love for his frail children of dust. Willing that none should perish but that all be raised to eternal life.



Prayer:

            Father forgive us our sins this day as we come before you in fasting and repentance. We forsake our sins this day and return to you. Give us your strength as we seek to be loyal to you above all others. May our repentance be true and lasting this year. May this Lent be a time of self-examination and return to you. May we truly offer up worship and praise that is acceptable in your sight. To God be all the glory. May God’s children of dust worship the one who breathes life into all people. Amen.


[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Joe 2:12–13.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Welcoming the Unwelcome

-
  Scripture: Luke 7:36-38 (NIV) 36  When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37  A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38  As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and poured perfume on them. Devotion:             First of all, some warnings to my readers. This post will exceed the 500 words I try to limit my posts. Second, this post will contain content people may find offensive or otherwise unfit for print. Please understand that my purpose is neither to offend nor upset but to provoke thought and, hopefully, respectful dialog.             We will use Luke chapter seven as an aid to interpreting the events that occurred last Thursday at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. On that da
Read more

Father Forgive Them

-
  Scripture: Luke 23:33-34 (ESV) 33  And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34  And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Devotion:             The situation Jesus finds himself in here in today’s scripture is difficult for us to even imagine. A sham trial, no credible accusations of any kind, let alone any deserving of death, and yet here he is. A brilliant Rabbi, a teacher of the people who never led even one person astray from God’s will. This Holy One of God soon to be food for vultures.             This man who had done nothing wrong had no one in all the crowds who would speak up in his defense lest they be next to face the cross. An innocent man hung between two scoundrels. No voice from heaven declaring that this was the man that they were killing was actually the true Son of God. (See Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5, John 12:28) No the heaven
Read more

Transgenderism letter

-
  This is a copy of my letter to my senators, representative, and President Biden. January 15, 2024 Dear President Biden, Senators T. Duckworth, R. Durbin, and Representative D. LaHood             I am writing to you because I am concerned about the situation affecting our children and grandchildren, namely transitioning them from one gender to another. This nation must adjust course concerning these “interventions” because they are dangerous, irreversible, and life-changing. Our country should not be permitting these procedures on minor children under any circumstances. We must also make sure that adults who seek this care are given informed consent as to the risks versus benefits of sex reassignment treatments.             There are many drawbacks to gender-affirming care for minors. Besides the loss of any ability to give or receive sexual pleasure and sterility these treatments cause, there are social and psychological effects that we have no way of identifying because these
Read more