LENT: YOU'RE WORTH IT!

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Season of Lent in the Christian Church. Although “Lent” may sound weird and seem outdated, it might really help you. Why? Consider this: God loved us so much that he died on the cross to save us from our sins. Granted, you’ve probably heard this many times. However, many of us struggle with what this means.

Take a moment to think about the visible image of Jesus on the cross. What we “see” is difficult, gross, and even unrealistic. What we “don’t see” is the reason that Jesus is on the cross in the first place. Namely, that Jesus loves us unconditionally. He doesn’t care what we’ve done or how bad it’s been. Jesus loves you, and no matter what, nobody and nothing can take that away from you.

God didn’t wait for the world to fix itself before God offered to save it. Nor did God wait for you or me to fix ourselves before God offered to save us. Jesus suffered and died so that we can be saved today, right now, despite our best attempts to screw it up.

Ash Wednesday (and Lent) is simply a way for us to recognize God’s love for us and demonstrate our willingness to live life better. Back in the olden days, even before Jesus walked on the Earth, covering oneself with ashes and wearing sackcloth (burlap) was the primary way that people demonstrated their sorrow for their sins. I’m sure it was really a sight to behold, to see your neighbor sitting in their front yard covered in ashes and wearing nothing but a potato sack. But that was the old way.

The Christian Church adopted this old practice of repentance and made an adjustment to it. Rather than sit in an old fire pit with our neighbors and pout, we anoint each other with ashes (on Ash Wednesday) as a sign to each other that we thankful for God’s love for us. That’s it.

Will you get “Ashed” today? If not, don’t worry too much about it. You can still participate in Lent. Just take 3 or 4 minutes and thank God for loving you. Ask for God’s forgiveness and tell God that you’ll do better next time. Then, when you wake up tomorrow morning, do it again. It’ll be worth it because God thinks you’re worth it.

“What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us... For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” 
(Romans 8:31, 38-39 NRSV).