Christmas Eve, Easter, then Ash Wednesday—believe it or not, Ash Wednesday is one of my three favorite worship experiences each year. There’s something so tender about showing up in the quiet of night to intentionally smudge the truth of human finitude on our foreheads: “From dust we are made, to dust we will return.”
In this sacred time of prayer and reflection, we are reminded of our fragility, our limits, and our deep need for God. The world often encourages us to believe in perfection and self-sufficiency through our accomplishments. On Ash Wednesday though, we stop just long enough to embrace the truth of our humanity.
In her “Blessing for Ash Wednesday,” author Kate Bowler writes, “We are full of bounce and brimming with hope. All woes, solvable. All problems, a distant whisper.” Yet, she also acknowledges many days when we are not so full of hope: “When our heads hang low, sunk with the grief of our neediness—when our bodies betray us.” On these especially human days, we are invited to remember that our lives are held together and sustained by God’s unwavering love.
We hope you will join us for Ash Wednesday worship on March 5th at 6 p.m. Together, we will embrace our shared humanity, acknowledge our contradictions, and prepare for God’s beauty in the Lenten journey ahead.
Grace and Peace,
Ashley
