Dear Saints of God, We are entering the Season of Lent, a time when we walk with Jesus toward the cross. Lent is a season of introspection and making space in our lives to sit with God. Some Christians choose the spiritual practice of fasting, willingly sharing in solidarity with Jesus' suffering. Others may avoid eating meat on Fridays or give up unhealthy habits in favor of healthier ones. Some may engage in charitable activities or set aside time each day to pray or read something inspirational. Some may take this time to do what twelve-step programs call a "Fearless Moral Inventory."
Whatever spiritual practice we choose, the importance of interrupting our daily routines and making room to discover who we are at a deeper level cannot be underestimated. These practices help us to see not who we imagine ourselves to be, but who we truly are and who God sees us to be. We use this time to measure our thoughts, words, and deeds against those of the One who had no sin. We find the courage to acknowledge when we, like all of humanity, fall short of God’s desire for our lives. We recognize when we have not loved God “with all our heart, mind, and strength,” when we have failed to “love our neighbors as ourselves,” and when we have not loved ourselves and each other “as God loves us.” We use this time to plead with God as the Psalmist pled, “Create in me a clean heart, O God.” (Psalm 51:10)
It all starts on Ash Wednesday, a day when many Christian traditions, including ours, distribute ashes to those who wish to receive them. It is an especially profound spiritual practice because when we receive ashes, we confront our own mortality; we acknowledge that we too will return to the dust from whence we came. When we receive the ashes, we are invited to “Turn away from sin and believe in the Gospel,” believing that death does not have the final word and that God breathes new life into the ashes of our lives, as the hymn says, “If you but trust in God to guide you.” It is in this trust that we find new hope, believing that through Christ, God makes all things new.
May your Lenten journey be poignant and filled with courage as we walk with Jesus and witness for ourselves God’s unsearchable love.
Pastor Russ
