Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday... Is the first day of Lent. The first day of a season of self denial. It’s a day to remind ourselves to take our focus off of self and to refocus on Christ.

It is a day to "Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19)

It is a day to "Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel" (Mark 1:15).

It is a day to "Repent, and hear the good news" (Mark 1:15).

The ash is made from the palm fronds of the prior year’s celebration on Palm Sunday. The ash is a symbol of ecstatic praise gone cold over the past year.

Palm Sunday represents praise and adoration, Ash Wednesday represents the knowledge that our adoration has turned to dust.

May the ash remind us that our praises turn too quickly to dust, and spur us to refocus our lives on Christ.