God of the Journey, bless the Lenten path of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text for today comes from Colossians 3:1-4: 1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Today is Ash Wednesday and already we've had the first of two worship services that mark this 40-Day Journey (we don't count Sundays) leading up to Easter. For many it is a time of "giving up" something as a form of sacrifice and spiritual renewal. I've shared how I was not familiar with Lent growing up as it was not usually celebrated within our little church, but my Catholic friends would show up with what I thought was a smudge of mud on their forehead. "Hey, did you know you have mud on your forehead?" "It ain't mud," they'd reply very seriously since they had been made to get up so early and go to church, "It's ashes!" Their look said it all: You don't know nothing! And then they would add, "I'm giving up candy for Lent!" And sorta smile and sorta frown at the same time. "WHY?" I would ask, wondering the gravity of the crime that this dear soul had commited to have such a sentence placed on his life. "The priest said we had to give up something during these forty days but I don't know why..." I didn't know either and I thanked God I did not attend their church. Then throughout the day I'd hear those friends commiserating about giving up Cokes, bread, meat (meat?), and all the fun foods in my life and I would wonder why! Then I began to remember that during this time on Fridays my mom would make some neat fish foods, like salmon croquettes and sardines straight out of the can and then it began to click - it wouldn't be too much later after that that I found out my mom was still a Catholic and observed the no-meat on Friday teaching of her church.
I write this this morning with a smudge of mud on my forehead. I took part in our Ash Wednesday service and I had both oil and ashes placed on my forehead and I now understand the purpose of this journey. Today's passage speaks of being raised with Christ and the understanding behind that is that we also die in Christ to our sins and our past life; through faith we become new creatures and we should be seeking the things from above. That's exactly the purpose behind this Lenten Journey to seek heavenly things and renounce those things that mire or tie us down to the earthly things. The giving up of certain things is that sacrifice but the sacrifice isn't complete until we take up something spiritual in its place. We can give up meat, but take up the meat of the Gospel. We can do without sweets but replace them with the sweetness of spiritual music and singing. And keep always in your heart that idea that on Easter Sunday we get the greatest blessing of all; the celebration of Christ rising from the dead. And because He lives, so do we.
PRAYER: Loving God as I start this forty-day journey, let me walk slowly and gently with You. As I give up earthly things as a part of my sacrifice, let me take up Your things to make the preparation between now and Easter a wonderful spiritual experience for me. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.
Eradio Valverde
