Is that all?
February 22, 2012 —
I stared at a kleenex-sized box of my Dad’s ashes. He had wanted to be cremated, but I had never seen somebody’s ashes before. The man who had been so visionary, so creative, so full of love and life was now reduced to a couple pounds of gray ash. Is that all that’s left of us at the end of our lives? Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Ashes have been a reminder of death and an expression of grief throughout history. The point of Ash Wednesday is to remember that you will die one day and to humbly admit the ways you’ve messed up so far. No, your life may not be as messed up as somebody else’s, but we’ve all messed up. The Bible tells us that if we say we haven’t messed up we’re lying and only fooling ourselves; but if we admit how we’ve messed up, God forgives us and gives us a do-over.
Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent; a forty day period before Good Friday. Lent is a time when Christians give up something they really like to make their souls stronger and their cravings weaker. They make these small sacrifices to remember the big sacrifice that Jesus made on the Friday before Easter, when he died on the cross so our lives don’t have to end as a box of ashes. Jesus rose from the dead with a new body and is alive in Heaven praying for us. The Bible tells us that when he returns to earth, he will give everyone who loves him a new body like his that will never get sick, grow old or die. That’s a pretty sweet deal.
Do you love Jesus? If that seems like a strange question to you, then you may not realize he really wants to be your BFF. That’s what he says in the Bible, so it must be true. Yes, if you say out loud that you want Jesus to take over your messed up life and you believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, a box of ashes will not be all that’s left when your body dies. You’ll feel Jesus’ love in your heart and you’ll be filled with a joy and a hope that won’t stop.
See you in church Sunday!
Grace & blessings,
Pastor Bob
