Ash Wednesday Service
Joel 2: 12-18
Dc. Larry Brockman
“Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart”. Yes indeed, it is never too late to turn back to the Lord.
Today is an especially good day to begin that process because we will all receive ashes on our foreheads, And as we receive them, we will hear the statement: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” to remind ourselves that life in this world is not what life is all about. It’s a somber reminder, but one that most of us in this hospital can understand. Because many of us see life as we know it end here for a patient or a loved one.
Just a month ago, my own Mom lay here just down the hall, a woman of 91 years, who had lived a full and vibrant life. But it was clear that her life here was ending. Was that all there was to life for her? Was life ending, or was there something else just beginning?
For those of us who are Christians, we know that there is more to life than life in this world. But we have to be ready for it. We have to recognize that God wants to be part of our lives, and that he has something special in mind for us in this life, something that will prepare us for the next life. That’s what Lent is all about. And that is what the Church is trying to do for the next 40 days, to get us all ready for the Resurrection and the promise of everlasting life that comes to us with Easter.
Joel says it well. “Proclaim a fast, gather an assembly, gather the people”. And then: “And say, spare, O Lord your people”. Joel is asking the people to listen up, repent, and mend their ways. And as the last sentence of the reading implies, the Lord was stirred to concern for His people.
All of us are corrupted by the world. It’s a fast moving lane that most of us live in. We have many things to do and precious little time to stop and listen for God’s voice among the noise and clutter. But we have to do it. The season of Lent is the perfect time of year to do it.
How? Well, first fast from things of this world that clutter your mind and keep you from responding to God. TV; the many obligations we book in our lives; and addictions to a person, a food, or an activity; be sensitive and respond to others in need- in other words, almsgiving. Find some time to pray and also to just listen to God. In other words: “Take the time, and return to the Lord with your whole heart.”
Tags: almsgiving, Fasting, Why ashes?; Prayer