Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the 40 period leading up to Resurrection Sunday.
Throughout history, God has used 40-day periods to accomplish His purposes.
- It rained for 40 daysdelivering Noah, his family and the animals from destruction.
- For 40 days, Moses was on Mount Sinai, face to face with God, receiving the Ten Commandments.
- The spies of the nation of Israel surveyed the promised land for40 days.
- Jonah, in obedience, went to Ninevah proclaiming destruction in 40 days and inspired a revival in the sinful city.
- Jesus spent 40 daysin the wilderness overcoming temptation before beginning His earthly ministry.
- For 40 days, Jesus walked the earth after His resurrection, giving many “convincing proofs”, speaking of the kingdom of God, and birthing the early church.
- Even in this century, Pastor Rick Warren influenced millions of people with his 40 dayplan in his bestseller book, The Purpose Driven Life.
For the past few days, I heard people mentioning what they would sacrifice during this 40 day period. No longer limited to fasting food, people are giving up social media or activities. Some friends aren’t giving up anything, but are adding specific acts of generosity and kindness to their 40 days.
And then there are those who are too busy to stop on one day to receive ashes, and for them, there’s:
Ashes-to-Go!
Yup, this morning, I heard that advertised on the radio. No need to stop by a house of worship. Just grab some ashes as you’re at your local coffee shop, train station, or street corner.
To be honest, my judgmental attitude got all up in the face of what I considered to be just short of an abomination.
It seemed to me that the purpose of Ash Wednesday for those who observe it is to stop, to rest, to contemplate, to step aside from the busyness.
My husband often remarks about the long lines at the Starbucks drive-thru’s. He says that the whole concept of Starbucks is to experience an atmosphere where people can gather and sip. The drive-thru’s are just short of an abomination.
But the Ashes-to-Go folks had this to say:
“Ashes to Go” is about bringing spirit, belief, and belonging out from behind church doors, and into the places where we go every day. It’s a simple event with deep meaning, drawing on centuries of tradition and worship to provide a contemporary moment of grace.
We take ashes to the street corner because that reminder of need, humility, and healing shouldn’t be confined to a church building. We probably need it more when we are in the middle of our daily business! The ashes we receive are to remind us throughout the day of our need for God, and of God’s call to us.
Now, I don’t want to get into denominations, traditions, liturgy, or any other church practice. I understand that for some getting ashes on a street corner may just be a habit without meaning, a going through the motions without emotion or depth of conviction. But for some, it provides an opportunity to connect with God right where they are.
Jesus didn’t camp out in pews. He went where the people were. And bringing Jesus out of the church and into the community is an idea I totally support.
It’s not my job to judge. I’ll leave that for God to sort out.
And that’s was my Ash Wednesday lesson today.
What do you think?