Ashes


As the years go by, we become more aware of the reality of death.  Some people are more compelled by circumstances to face it than others.  As a former hospice chaplain I would hasten to argue that no one gets really comfortable dealing with death.  Moreover, not many of us particularly enjoy contemplating our own death.  Death is always sad, often painful, and difficult to process.


“For dust you are, and to dust you will return.”

(Genesis 3:19d NIV)


One holy day that confronts us concerning death is Ash Wednesday.  Many christians dread this day.  It marks the beginning of the 40 day lenten observance.  Lent is not a season filled with fun and excitement.  Rather, it is a time of self-examination through prayer, reflection and discipline.  It is designed to prepare us for Holy Week and the joys of Easter.  It calls us to examine our fate if left to our own devices.


During the Ash Wednesday service a cross of ashes is traced on our foreheads.  As this is done, the worship leader looks us square in the eye and recites from Genesis, “remember you are dust, and to dust you will return.”  God said these humbling words to Adam and Eve in order to make sure they knew they were mortal.  How depressing!  Imposing ashes on a person’s forehead and reminding us we will die is clearly a powerful and uncomfortable moment.  It is hard to be reminded we will die.  It is hard to remind another that they will die.  Yes, death is an inescapable truth, but do we have to be reminded of this?  What good can come from confronting our mortality?


There are great spiritual benefits to confronting death.  It actually forces us to reflect on the importance of life.  We are confronted with questions like: Do our lives have purpose and meaning?  Do our lives make a difference?  For whom?   Further, confronting death causes us to contemplate ultimate questions in life.  Why are we here?  Is there a God?  Is there life after this life?  Why?  Reflecting on these questions shapes our core understandings and guides our very being and souls.


Out of ashes new things emerge.  Ashes are a symbol of death, but they also represent the possibilities of new life.  The reality is that all the cells in our bodies will someday move on and be used for another purpose.  When we recognize this we face the reality that we are merely part of a bigger play.  The story of life is not all just about us.  Never has been and never will be.  Spiritual maturity begins when we take this to heart, and start living for others and not just for ourselves.


But wait, there is always so much more.  Yes, the ashes of Ash Wednesday remind us of earthly death and new birth, but they also remind us of God’s eternal grace.  They remind us of this because they are imprinted on our foreheads in the shape of a cross.  Adam, Eve, you and me are definitely mortal, but Christ’s cross always represents sacrificial love standing in between death and eternal life.  Ashes, ashes, we will all fall down.  Thankfully, by the grace of God it is never the end.


Personal Reflection

During Lent one year a friend of mine tried to start a new discipline that was hard for him to do.  Everyday he would come into the lunchroom and everyone would ask if he had been faithful another day. For the first few weeks he responded triumphantly,  “Yes, I made it another day!”  It became quite humorous actually.  Many of us started to make friendly wagers about when his will power would run out.  All of us would wonder each day if he had kept to his new discipline.  Well hey, it was something fun and interesting to talk about.  It was a good distraction.  


After a few weeks of this theater, my friend entered the lunchroom deflated and defeated. We all knew before he even said it.  He had not made it another day. Wisely, another friend looked at him and said, “Good!  Now we can end the drama and focus on what the season is really about.  You can keep going, you know.  You don’t have to quit a good thing.  Just shift your focus away from you and your will power to the grace of God.”  


We all learned a great lesson about spiritual disciplines that day.  It is never about our ability to accomplish things.  It is more about attention and focus on the eternal grace of God.


Today is God’s Present! 

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