Preparing for Ash Wednesday

Our soon-to-bud apple tree

I like anniversaries. I like birthdays and New Years. I like a fresh start and each of these days mark a moment to reflect and take stock. I pause around each one and think about what's behind and what's to come. I plan a little. I dream a little. 

This is also one of the reasons I love Ash Wednesday. This day feels like the New Year of my soul. This is a day to contemplate the difficult. This day, I am reminded that my sin cost terribly and that there are stuck places in my life that I need to bring to Jesus...again. Sounds like a roaring good time, I know. But really, marker moments don't always wear party hats. In a world where the goal is to deaden pain and put our best energies toward having fun every moment, I recognize a need to hit "pause".

That said, lets not wallow. I do not want to move through all of life constantly focusing on my brokenness - there is too much hope coursing through the gospel for that. But, there is a place to face the reality that my sin nailed Jesus to the cross. There is a place to reflect and confess and focus on the work of the cross, to receive forgiveness and be thankful for it. 

Bobby Gross, in his book on celebrating the Church calendar wrote about Lent in a way that painted such a clear picture of this season. He writes "But the great Orthodox theologian Alexander Schmemann speaks of a "bright sadness" that is the true meaning of Lent. Yes, during these weeks we become especially mindful of the sinfulness that alienates us from God, indeed of the human evil that nailed Jesus to those rough beams. And this we lament with sadness. At the same time, we understand that by his death Jesus secured for us forgiveness and eternal life. We are like prisoners whose release draws near or refugees on our way back home or patients for whom the cure is working. Lent is sobering, but it leads to Easter!"

YES!

I hope your Ash Wednesday is day marked by reflection, contemplation and the hope of the gospel.