Perhaps more so than any other day in the church year, Lent is a Season where we know we are going to hear about Sin. We might think we are always aware of our sin, but in day-to-day life, it’s easy to push it aside. It’s easy to make excuses. “I slipped up.” “I’m just tired.” “I’ll try harder next time.” “It could be worse.” “It’s not that big a deal.” But during Lent, there are no excuses. There’s nowhere to hide. We’re all equal.
All of us, sitting calmly in the pews, have a feeling that is more than a bit uneasy on the inside. We know this occasion marks the beginning of Jesus’ journey to the cross, and we know that it is our sins that put him there. When we walk into church during Lent, things will be a little different. We’ll see a barren cross off to the side. We’ll see purples replace the greens and whites. Our sins and our mortality are made even more real as we are signed with ashes in the shape of a cross on Ash Wednesday.
Ashes are a sign that we all share in this business of sin. We all fall short when it comes to Faith. We all could use a lesson on how to better Love our neighbor. Our priorities get out of whack and our focus gets out of focus. We get mired down in the day-to-day things we call “important” and soon find ourselves buried—buried under a pile of those same ashes. God knows that.
He gives us this Season of Lent to recognize once again that he is a truly loving God, always forgiving and always there by our side through the sin, through the pain, through the disgrace, through the addictions, through the financial struggles, and through the grief. God is there when we think we are all alone. God is there when we think we can no longer breathe under the weight of the ashes. God is there reaching down with his hand to pull us up. Is this going to be one of those “go-through-the-motions” Lenten seasons or are we ready to reach for that hand to rise “From These Ashes” with him on Easter?