Lent devotion 1: Ashes

 

Joel 2:12-13 “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.”

Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. (NIV)

 The somber season of Lent starts today with Ash Wednesday. Millions of Christians throughout the world will go to their local churches to either have a priest mark a cross on their forehead with ashes or they will drive by the church to pick up a packet with a prayer card and some ashes in a small bag.

 

I must admit, I’ve never done the ashes thing because of my Reformed point of view, but I can see how a sacred moment of reflecting on human mortality may make people more aware of their own frailty and draw them closer to their need of God. During this time of pandemic, it will probably have a deeper meaning, especially for anyone who has lost a loved one to Covid-19.

 So, although I do not practice this myself, I pray for every blessing of meaningful connection to God to be given to all who seek something sacred today – which is exactly what the whole season of Lent is all about.

 Q: How can I deepen my connection to God today?

 Prayer: Lord God, be with Your people all over the world who seek a meaningful experience today. Bless them as pilgrims and help us all to be co-travelers with them. In Christ’s Name, we pray. Amen.

 

Lent Devotions: Lent Begins at 40 - Isaiah 51:11

Isaiah 51:11    The ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. Millions of Christians around the world will attend worship services to have the sign of the Cross placed upon their forehead using the ashes of last year’s Palm branches. They do this as an act of penance, beginning a forty day journey of humility and contrition, in order to prepare their hearts and souls, bodies and minds for Holy Week and Easter.

It’s also a time when self-importance gives way to a focus upon God. Self-centered sin is cast side, to be replaced with a deeply spiritual awareness of who Jesus was, is, and ever shall be.

Lent begins at 40. The ashes represent sorrow and shame. The forty days are symbolic of Christ’s fasting in the wilderness just before He began His incredible three year journey of preaching, teaching, and healing. The whole season of Lent is meant to bring us closer to God by aligning our thoughts and acts, our words and ways with those of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. If we are successful in maintaining this focus, then Holy Week and Easter will become incredible too.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, as we begin this forty day journey of Lent, be with us step by step and day by day. Allow us the blessing of Your presence and guidance over everything that we think, do, or say. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is a bulletin cover designed by John for Lent and/or Holy Week. It is called “Purple Reign.” If you would like to view a larger version of the drawing, please click on the following link: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7050/6913397537_14e0996d59_b.jpg

When in Rome: A Calvinist Experiences Ash Wednesday

Today is Ash Wednesday. Being a Scottish Calvinistic Presbyterian, I don’t have a lot of knowledge or experience of this Roman Catholic Ritual. However, today I’ve been doing some research on the subject for two Bible Studies that I will be leading today.

I’ve discovered that it isn’t a sacrament in the RC church, but a sacramental, which means it can be given to any penitent sinners, no matter what faith or denomination they belong to. The ashes are normally made from the burning of last year’s Palm Sunday palm leaves. The burning takes place outside of the church at the front door, and four ancient prayers are said to complete the ceremony. The priest makes the sign of the Cross on worshippers’ foreheads heads with the ashes, and the mark is not meant to be washed off until the sun goes down. From what I have discovered, it’s the equivalent of the Jewish Day of Atonement and most of the scriptures that are read come from the penitent Psalms.

Acts 26:18 ‘to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

This morning at the first of the two studies, we talked about the origins and ceremonies of Ash Wednesday. At the end of the discussion, we each wrote down on blank cards something that we regretted in our lives, and placed them in a metal a vase. After saying a prayer of confession, I set the papers alight, reducing them to smoke and ashes. It’s funny, but I felt good, as if I had unburdened myself. One of the participants remarked that the smell of smoke purified the air.

I’m not advocating that we all become RCs and apply all of their spiritual beliefs to our lives, but I will say this: there’s something about Ash Wednesday that feels right. My Calvinistic brain can’t work it out, but I can’t deny what I felt. God works in mysterious ways, and His forgiveness and grace become more mysterious to me as the years fly past.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, today is a special day for millions of people throughout the earth. As they each come to You for mercy and forgiveness, grace and absolution, may they experience Your love and acceptance. Help us this day to be merciful, gracious and forgiving, too. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Wed for Ash

Church Window design for Ash Wednesday