Ash Wednesday
Joel 2:12-17, Psalm 23
I always feel a little self-conscious on Ash Wednesday. In years past I have had ashes in the shape of a cross smudged on my forehead. Typically, I would receive ashes in the morning and then go about my day. Going to work, running errands, last year I even had a doctor’s appointment and a book club meeting.
Then someone asks, “so, uh, what do the ashes mean?”
You can’t say “I don’t know.” That would be pretty embarrassing. But can you really tell them the truth?
Death. The ashes are about death.
For most of us Ash Wednesday looks a little different this year. No ashes-to-go on the way to work. No awkward encounters with acquaintances. Maybe no leaving the house at all. Plus, the reality of death we are supposed to remember today has been impossible to forget over the last year.
It is still true that from ashes we come, and to ashes we shall return. Our sense of this is more acute than ever. Now we know that everything can stop. Our world can completely change. Loss is never as far away as we want it to be. Things we held onto for security can be ripped from our hands in a flash.
After what has felt like a year long Lent, we find ourselves at the Ash Wednesday again. My impulse is to ask if we can have a pass on Ash Wednesday and Lent this year. Haven’t we been through enough? We are ready to get on with the resurrection and new life of Easter.
The problem with skipping ahead to Easter is that we miss God’s invitation to us today. Return to me. God knows we have drifted and wandered away from who we were created to be. God knows we have made mistakes and ignored opportunities to serve others. Today and the next forty days are our opportunity to make things right. To return to God.
May our hearts seek to return to God, even as we walk through a dark valley. Amen.
Joel 2:12-17, Psalm 23
I always feel a little self-conscious on Ash Wednesday. In years past I have had ashes in the shape of a cross smudged on my forehead. Typically, I would receive ashes in the morning and then go about my day. Going to work, running errands, last year I even had a doctor’s appointment and a book club meeting.
Then someone asks, “so, uh, what do the ashes mean?”
You can’t say “I don’t know.” That would be pretty embarrassing. But can you really tell them the truth?
Death. The ashes are about death.
For most of us Ash Wednesday looks a little different this year. No ashes-to-go on the way to work. No awkward encounters with acquaintances. Maybe no leaving the house at all. Plus, the reality of death we are supposed to remember today has been impossible to forget over the last year.
It is still true that from ashes we come, and to ashes we shall return. Our sense of this is more acute than ever. Now we know that everything can stop. Our world can completely change. Loss is never as far away as we want it to be. Things we held onto for security can be ripped from our hands in a flash.
After what has felt like a year long Lent, we find ourselves at the Ash Wednesday again. My impulse is to ask if we can have a pass on Ash Wednesday and Lent this year. Haven’t we been through enough? We are ready to get on with the resurrection and new life of Easter.
The problem with skipping ahead to Easter is that we miss God’s invitation to us today. Return to me. God knows we have drifted and wandered away from who we were created to be. God knows we have made mistakes and ignored opportunities to serve others. Today and the next forty days are our opportunity to make things right. To return to God.
May our hearts seek to return to God, even as we walk through a dark valley. Amen.
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Archive
2024
January
Clean Slate: Week 1 Discussion GuideStarting & Sustaining Change // M-Note 1.6.24Clean Slate: Week 2 Discussion GuideStarting Small, Dreaming Big // M-Note 1.13.24Clean Slate: Week 3 Discussion GuideTogether Towards Change...and Healthy Habits // M-Note 1.20.24Clean Slate: Week 4 Discussion GuideSlowing Down for God to Show Up // M-Note 1.27.24
February
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March
Entourage Discussion Guide - Week TwoUpdates from Clayton and Easter Invitation // M-Note 3.2.24Twenty Students Confirmed Last Sunday // M-Note 3.9.24Entourage Discussion Guide - Week 3How serving at Easter can really make a difference // M-Note 3.16.24Entourage Discussion Guide - Week 4Can You Know Joy Without Pain? // M-Note 3.23.24Entourage Discussion Guide - Week 5It's time for EasterSTL at The Factory // M-Note 3.28.24
April
Easter Discussion GuideScreen Time: Troubleshooting our Relationship with Technology // M-Note 4.6.24Screen Time Discussion Guide - Week 1Springtime Reminders: Joy Comes with the Morning // M-Note 4.13.24Screen Time Discussion Guide - Week 2Shaping the Future at the UMC General Conference // M-Note 4.20.24Screen Time Discussion Guide - Week 3
2023
January
February
Explore - Week 1Explore - Week 2Explore - Week 3Explore - Week 4God is Leading Us Forward // M-Note 2.3.23SENT: Week 1 Discussion GuideSomething To Try This Weekend // M-Note 2.10.23SENT: Week 2 Discussion GuideWe're Doing Something Big! // M-Note 2.17.23SENT: Week 3 Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 1Lent Devotional Day 2Lent Devotional Day 3SENT: Week 4 Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 4Lent Devotional Day 5Lent Devotional Day 6Lent Devotional Day 7
March
Lent Devotional Day 8Lent Devotional Day 9Celebrating BEYOND // M-Note 3.3.2023Who Is Jesus: BONUS Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 10Lent Devotional Day 11Lent Devotional Day 12Who Is Jesus: Week 1 Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 13Lent Devotional Day 14Lent Devotional Day 15Lent Devotional Day 16Lent Devotional Day 17The Evening Service is BACK!!! // M-Note 3.10.23Lent Devotional Day 18Lent Devotional Day 19Who Is Jesus: Week 2 Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 20Lent Devotional Day 21Lent Devotional Day 22Lent Devotional Day 23The Most Important Sunday of the Year // M-Note 3.17.23Who Is Jesus: Week 3 Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 24Lent Devotional Day 25Lent Devotional Day 26Lent Devotional Day 27Lent Devotional Day 28Lent Devotional Day 29Lent Devotional Day 30The Power of Easter and Invitation // M-Note 3.24.23Lent Devotional Day 31Who Is Jesus: Week 4 Discussion GuideLent Devotional Day 32Lent Devotional Day 33Lent Devotional Day 34Lent Devotional Day 35Lent Devotional Day 36Lent Devotional Day 37You Can't Miss This Part // M-Note 4.1.23Lent Devotional Day 38
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