Today, we begin the holy season of Lent. These 40 days plus 6 Sundays have long been seen as a season of preparation leading us up to the celebration of Easter. It is indeed a time of reflection, a time to listen for God’s voice, and a time to renew our faith by returning to God’s path.  

In her book, “Circle of Grace: A Book of Blessings for the Seasons”, Jan Richardson writes about the rich symbolism of Ash Wednesday. 

“All those days you felt like dust, like dirt, as if all you had to do was turn your face toward the wind and be scattered to the four corners or swept away by the smallest breath as insubstantial— did you not know what the Holy One can do with dust?”

She continues:

“ So let us be marked not for sorrow. And let us be marked not for shame. Let us be marked not for false humility or for thinking we are less than we are, but for claiming what God can do within the dust, within the dirt, within the stuff of which the world is made and the stars that blaze in our bones and the galaxies that spiral inside the smudge we bear.”

On this holy day, may you remember what God can do with the dust. May you pause to ask God again to be about his renewing work - even within us.

Let us pray: Creating and loving God, in this holy season, heal us, renew us, and draw us closer to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.