From Dust to Dust

Out of dust we were taken and to dust we shall all return. Lent is a season that I welcome gladly each year. As many of you know, I grew up in the Roman Catholic Church, so I grew up celebrating Lent. When I started going to a non-denominational church during my middle school and high school years, Lent (and the church calendar in general) was abandoned. I was fine with that at the time. It was nice to have a break from church tradition because it had turned into a sort of dead orthodoxy for me. However, when I attended college at Southwestern, the church calendar became a pertinent part of my life again. Not really by choice, but by default. I did choose to attend a Methodist affiliated college, after all. My first Ash Wednesday at college sent me straight back to my Roman Catholic roots. I wasn't sure how to feel about Lent because somewhere along the way I had convinced myself that the church seasons, Lent included, were irrelevant. My first Lenten season at Southwestern proved otherwise. However, I didn't realize how much Lent meant to me until Easter morning that year. If anything will make Easter relevant to you, it will be Lent.

After experiencing and participating in Ash Wednesdays and Lenten seasons over the past six years, I've come to realize that Lent will really rock your world if you take it seriously. I've discovered that you will find a different joy on an Easter morning that has been preceded by a serious Lenten season. Lent is a time for us to acknowledge that we are weak and sinful. From dust we were taken and to dust we shall return. Our lives are meaningless without Christ. We fast and pray and seek Christ during this season in more intentional ways. Lent is a time when we acknowledge that we are not self-made. This is a difficult realization for all of us. We're good and making and re-making ourselves. Lent is letting go of all of that.

On Easter morning, I cannot wait for the sun to come up because it signifies that Jesus has risen! Jesus has won the battle over sin. If you observe Lent, on Easter morning you don't have to pretend to be happy. Friends, you're going to be happy because the time to mourn and reflect on your brokenness and frailty is gone. Easter becomes extremely relevant when you've spent a season acknowledging your own sin.

When we observe Lent, we wake up as different people on Easter morning. I hope and pray that this Lenten journey will be meaningful for you. Blessings during this season of reflection, friends.

A picture from our tiny country church prior to our Ash Wednesday fellowship meal and service. The purple linens reflect the change in our church season. We are preparing for our Lenten journey that will lead us to our Easter vigil.