Ash Wednesday,
the beginning of a winding, potentially tortuous walk…
We are marked with “the gritty, humble, dirty, sacred mark of God – the Cross”1
Now marked, we are reminded – as though we need reminding –
of how vulnerable we are,
of the suffering that goes on around us, that goes on in our own lives…
broken hearts and fractured bones,
loved ones robbed of life by disease,
jobs lost, futures uncertain, today’s outcome questionable
But we are reminded as well of the gift that comes with that sacred mark –
reminded of a gentle washing away of the sooty dirt that accumulates in our lives,
of the sacrificial love made evident for once and for all
as the body of God’s own, took the shape of the cross
and set us free
I pray that this smudged and gritty mark will move beyond the confines of my head
to etch my heart and soul,
reminding me for the next forty days and more
of the love I experience in daily acts of kindness,
marking me with the light-charged, hope-filled, sacred mark of God –
the Cross.
1Before the Amen: Creative Resources for Worship, Pilgrim Press, 2007, pg. 50