From the ashes we rise and to ashes we return. Never has
that been more evident than this year, at least for me and my family.
Ash Wednesday has long been one of my favorite church
services – in many ways it trumps Christmas and Easter.
Personally, Ash Wednesday has been my individual marking
that my faith is my own – that wherever I have been, whoever with, I’ve gone to
church on a dark Wednesday night to note the sacrifices of Jesus.
In middle school, my family went all together to Chapelwood
before school. I remember my dad hurrying off to work and my mom driving us to
school, black crosses marking our foreheads. I remember being embarrassed wearing
the ashes to school, and some years, wiping it off.
Then college. In College Station, my junior year was the
first time to attend Ash Wednesday services alone, at a Methodist church I’d
been attending with my roommate. I loved every minute. I felt so close to the
Lord in a simple, unceremonial service. I wasn’t there to be seen by others. I
didn’t know anyone. I was there to just to grasp a bit more about God. The next
year I was in Washington, D.C., and I went solo to a church on Capitol Hill,
led by a female minister, and the verses and music stirred me. I was in need of
a reminder that God is not that far away.
Next year, I was lucky enough to be in Paris with dear
friend Renza, and we went to an American church together. It was delightful to
be in Europe, walking cobblestone streets to church, blessed by time with an amazing friend.
The last few years I’ve attended at Chapelwood UMC where my
family grew up. A few years ago Josef Klam spoke, and I still have the notes
tucked into my bible. His words still stick out to me when I take the time to
reflect on them. He talked about the importance of fasting – cleansing your
life of something that takes you away from God. He gave TV shows as an example,
and all kinds of other things.
Too much fills my life that has nothing to do with eternity,
hope, or Christ. Too many times I focus on the outward appearance and leave no
time for the inner.
We are miracles, us
humans. God breathes life into us and he rescues us as breath escapes us.
We come from nothing and we take nothing with us. How often do I hear that and
not believe it, not allow it to sink in?
My dad died five months ago, completely unexpected. The
engine on his small airplane malfunctioned and that was it.
Ash Wednesday is at the heart of how we’re dealing with
this: my mom, brother, husband, future sister in law, and everyone else that
loved TR, Robo, Tom, Dad. Ash Wednesday is at the heart of it: the promise that
the resurrection is real. Jesus knew it was coming, he knew he’d be betrayed,
but he was obedient and forgiving and he gave his entire life for us. Watching
someone I love with all my heart disappear from the earth makes me realize what
a sacrifice that was, for Jesus to throw His body on a cross and willing cease
to live.
Ash Wednesday is at the heart of my beliefs: no Easter bunny
or Santa Claus or commercial discounts or materialistic distractions: just a
dark church, a passionate minister, and devoted congregation. People gathered
in need of a savior.
I do not believe life ended for my dad on that gravel runway.
He and my mom taught us otherwise. They poured their faith into us, and Ash
Wednesday is at the heart of it. Genesis 3:19 tells us that familiar phrase “from
dust to dust” or in other translations “ashes to ashes.” But the New Testament
promises more. God promises we will not return to ashes.
There is nothing left of my dad physically, except but a lot
of amazing pictures, some handwritten notes, and a container of his ashes. All the living he did in between his “ashes
to ashes” remind me that life is meant to be lived. Life is meant to be
given away. Life is meant to be spent seeking adventure and pulling others
around you into it. My dad did all of those things. Infinitely more than him,
Christ did all of those things. And through the Holy Spirit, we’re given the
chance to continually learn from Christ, to marvel at God in the world all around
us, and rejoice.
My prayer for you, lovely reader, is that you do two things
today: think about Ash Wednesday and what is at the heart of it, and hug your
loved ones a bit tighter today.
Thank you, as always, for reading.
“I came that they might have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10
If you’re in need of a devotional or sermons to listen to
during Advent, West Brazelton’s sermons from Grace Bible Church are stellar.
http://www.gbchouston.org/Sermons
And I also love but often forget Daily Devotionals from the Upper Room.
http://devotional.upperroom.org/devotionals/2013-02-13
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