Preparing Our Hearts for Easter: Day 1 – Ash Wednesday

An article by Frank    No Comments

In the lead up to Easter we will be putting up a new lent devotion each week day. These devotions will also be available in the discussions section of our Facebook page and will be played on New Zealand’s Rhema.

Today is Ash Wednesday and as we prepare our hearts for Easter and the gift of Jesus’ sacrifice, we recognize our own mortality.

The church tradition on Ash Wednesday was to mark the foreheads of the faithful with a cross made with a mixture of ash and oil. As the priest imposed this cross he would draw on the words of Genesis 3:19 and say “Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.” This would mark the beginning of a journey of repentance and self denial up till Easter.

This tradition acts as a reminder of who we are – mortals – people with a limited time on this earth.

Reflecting on our mortality leads to a question not about our end, but about our present – how will we live? Is life simply the pursuit of our own pleasure – a series of events that delight our senses but when we pass, leaves no lasting memory? Is this our life or do we wish to offer something more meaningful?

As we begin the journey of preparing our hearts for Easter, let’s reflect on our mortality and what it would take to live a meaningful life that embodies the sum of God’s desire for us as explained in the answer a lawyer gave to Jesus when asked what one must do to inherit life. In Luke’s gospel the lawyer says this “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself”. When the lawyer asked Jesus who his neighbour was, Jesus answered with the story of the good Samaritan, a people group despised by the religious culture of the lawyer and yet he was the one who served the man in need.

Pray

Jesus, In our journey towards Easter, preparing our hearts for the gift you gave, may we be open to your challenge to live a mortal life of service – one that carries meaning for those around us, those struggling in our world, rather than simply the fulfillment of our own pleasures and desires. Help us to see further than ourselves.

Amen