Ash Wednesday

Today is Ash Wednesday, a day to remember that we are ‘dust and ashes’ and to look our mortality in the face. We do so not to make us miserable or morbid. The reason is actually just the opposite. As we embrace our mortality we find freedom to take hold afresh of the gift of life.

Like Lent, the Gospel of John begins with words about life. The beautiful diverse and fragile life of creation. The personal, precious and complex life of our own existence. All this is a gift, spoken into being by God through Jesus, the Word.
The life we live is not always beautiful or easy. It is often dark. As we see within it the gift of God and the beauty of God, we discern a light that shines brightly and can never be put out.

Read: John 1:1–5

Pause & Pray: Take time today to see the signs of life around you and within you and say thank you.

In a moment of stillness, acknowledge God as the source of all life and, as you are able, place your own mortal life in God’s eternal hands.