Lent XIV: Death

Deliver me from death, O God.

 - From Psalm 51

Lent and Easter are inextricably woven into the subject of Death.

The opening chapters of the Bible, in Genesis, portray a great drama resulting in the first human tragedy: death itself. And now . . . as we look ahead to the Cross, we are looking ahead to Death itself.

The Psalmist knew that he would die someday. We all know that. We're going to die.

Doctor, Doctor, will I die? Yes my child, and so will I.

And we all want to be delivered from that death. We want to live forever. Christ made it possible for us to live forever, but he had to make a decisive stand against Death. He had to stare it in the face and prevail.

But the Psalmist is talking about early death, sudden death, young death. Unprepared death. That is perhaps what terrifies us the most: death at someone else's hands - which is unnatural, inhuman, ghastly.

Next to immortality, we seem to want maximum power in this finite life. Money will do that. Fame comes close. And in Scripture, we have seen that responsible decisions, and even humility, are the paths to true power and influence.

But some people want impatient power. They want faux power - - - the ability to control others; and the evil person defines that as taking from others; making them unhappy. A loving person of power will bestow nice things upon others. But an evil person may conscript power criminally, in the form of harming others. And the taking of a life is the ultimate form of evil power.

The Psalmist want to be spared that.

In Lent, we join the Lord on his journey to the Cross. We will face Death down with Him. We will not shy away from it. We will not let it get to us. We will not let it cause debilitating sadness and defeat for us.

We will hope, and pray, for deliverance from Death that is criminal and evil.

Lent is a serious time. It's peaceful. It's reflective. It's realistic. And it moves forward.

Lent XIII: Progressive

 . . . and looked backward rather than forward . . . 

 - From Jeremiah 7

God is a Progressive.

He is on the Right Side of History.

Compared to His vision for us, the modern American Left is stuck in the Dark Ages,

God wanted humanity to evolve into a highly dignified race that can exercise self-control. Our sinfulness and evil is rooted in our self-love; our unwillingness to put others first.

We must learn to tame our appetites if we are to ascend into the status of companions of God.

He gave us every teaching, law, commandment, grace, warning, reward, punishment. He was patient, and just. He pulled out all the stops and made it very clear, and actually . . . easy, for us. But we refuse.

God is a Progressive. Real human progressivism is built around dignity, honor, nobility.

The hymn America the Beautiful has a line "Confirm thy soul in self-control."

A free people, one that has been entrusted with the great gift of democracy, must elevate self-control to a very high place in our pantheon of virtues. You can't have freedom, and democracy, in a society that has little self-control. Self-control must be advanced regularly. It must be held up. We must measure all of our practices, our laws, our routines, against the question: "Does this promote self control"?

There may be warning signs, that we're falling short:

• Crime up
• Drug abuse up
• Divorce up
• Children out of wedlock up
• Personal savings down
• Mass shooters up

These are guidepoints, not that we need more laws, but that we need to check our values.

God moves us forward, to peace, fidelity, health, wellness, prosperity, freedom, dignity, honor.

But we have to listen to Him. 

Lent XII: 490

" . . . how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times."

 - From Matthew 18

I noticed something in today's reading, that I had never noticed before. Peter had asked Jesus how many times to forgive a member of the Church that sinned against him . . . .

An interesting point, that the Church is supposed to forbear with one another, to an almost superhuman level. Nothing here is indicated about forgiveness of non-believers, although in other parts of Scripture it's clear we are supposed to extend the most grace to the lost.

But the point is also crystal clear: the Church should let nothing divide it from itself. We must be exceedingly long-suffering to each other, and not present to the world outside, a body with fissures and divisions that can be exploited.

I've stated many times on-line, that if the Church in the US would refuse to let temporal politics divide us, there would be no problem we couldn't solve.

Our divisions give aid and comfort to them that would love to see persecution restored against God's people. If we held together . . . there would be so much less boldness to expand sin in our culture.

And there are sins on the Left, as well as there are sins on the Right.

Shame on those, in a certain major denomination, that have publicly mocked and ridiculed their own brethren, on account of a recent denomination-wide vote that aligned according to the two American political parties.

Listen to each other!!

And there is no better way to forgive, than to really listen to that other person.

Lent XI: Just Wait

 Burnt-offering and sin-offering you have not required, and so I said, "Behold, I come."

 - From Psalm 40

And so, in the midst of the reflecting, the sacrificing, and awareness of sin, and our troubles; our mortality and brevity of life: of the negative balance of hard times to the good . . . we have a manifestly positive and uplifting Psalm.

And it has to do with the Annunciation: the coming of the angel to Mary: nine months prior to the birth of the Son of God; the Messiah; the Redeemer; the King; the Shepherd; the Lamb of God; the Branch; the Lion of Judah; the Christ.

The Christmas Story is year-round. The Advent, the waiting, really begins now.

Nine months is a long time. Christmas is nine months from today. Nine months ago was last June. Nine is three seasons. It's virtually a year. There's  a continuous cycle. But before we even complete the Easter season . . . it becomes time, once again, to await the birth of the Promised One.

Did I say that nine months is a long time? Indeed, it is.

The faith journey is all about the waiting.

How many people have we all known, whose faith wavered because they couldn't bear to wait another day, for God to do something? Why is this a surprise? God has been very clear, from the beginning of recorded history, that good things do not happen instantly. So many of society's problems are due to the inability of people just to wait, and enjoy this moment.

It has been said that travel is not about the destination: it's about the journey. Those that put together a good plan, a sound process, and that begin taking that single first step, and then another, and then another, without obsessing about the end-point, are the ones that are the happiest. And they are the ones that actually make it to the end. They are the ones that succeed.

Even in the Old Testament, God reveals that it's not all about the sacrifices, rules, regulations, rituals, and routines. Simply, He's going to take care of things.

And the Psalmist says: "Behold, I come!!"

Lent X: Eagerly

 . . . God; eagerly I seek you . . . 

 - From Psalm 63

Lent should be a time when we eagerly seek the relationship with God, of great men and women of faith. Wouldn't you like to see God, to be fully in His presence?

Granted, we are not likely to have the same kind of experience as Moses, or Enoch, or Christ Himself, had.

But there are documented cases where miracles were performed; where the Hand of Providence seemed to be moving human affairs, and personal decisions. There are times when I feel God more presently than at others.

Indeed, I have found that my times of greatest doubt, in a sense, provide me with the greatest evidence of God. I may doubt Him. But the Creator of the universe will never doubt me. If it were wrong, we could prove it. And we can't.

Lent: Waiting. Sacrifice. Prayer. Fasting. Meditating. Reading. Studying. Listening.

Gaining self-control and awareness.

Focus on others.

Focus on God.

Eagerly.

We're some three weeks into it, and I can't say that I have been doing much of any of it. So let's up our game. Improve our serve. Strengthen our grip.

Lent IX: Nostalgia

 . . . as in the days of old . . . 

 - From Micah 7

Nostalgia has had better days.

Don't dare pine for years ago. "We don't want to go back to the Fifties."

But consider: In the Fifties, both of my sets of grandparents had successfully raised large families, in houses that they owned, with modest incomes, without going into debilitating debt.

 . . . Can we at least go back to that?

In the Fifties, relative to today, there was great comity and collaboration in our politics.

 . . . Can we at least go back to that?

In the Fifties, my parents met. They really were the only other person that either of them had ever seriously dated. They were married a little over a year after they met; they moved all over the place, whether or not they were close to family - - - they followed the career and the better things to come. They stayed together, no matter what.

 . . . Can we at least go back to that?

In the Fifties, people of faith had a comfort level in sharing their values and their aspirations. Freedom of Conscience and of Speech were rights that everybody felt was worth fighting for.

 . . . Can we at least go back to that?

And even, in the Fifties, it was not uncommon for a person to be able to take out a loan, simply on their reputation.

 . . . Can we at least go back to that?

There were no mass shooters of the month.
 . . . no constant drudge of angry, f-bombed pop songs on public radio
 . . . no steady availability of any image possible, no matter how violent or vulgar, to the eyes of twelve-year olds
 . . . no multiplicity of parents' and grandparents' homes to visit on holidays (only one set of parents, in one home, and two sets of grandparents, in two homes)
 . . . latchkeys and daycares were rare. Children were either at school or with one or both of their parents, at all times.
 . . . no helicopter parenting. Kids, and their neighborhoods, were trustworthy
 . . . no sky-high costs of college

 . . . Can we at least get back to that?

Scripture is full of remembrances of old times, that were better.

Your childhood seemed better. You're not just dreaming that. It's not just you. You may trust your own memory. If it was good, it was memorable (our minds are very efficient in jettisoning bad memories). And if it was better . . . of course you want to see it sustained for future generations.

Society moves forward in civil rights, the pursuit of peace, the stewardship of the Earth, the overall advancement of humanity.

But that doesn't mean there weren't some things we could have, and should have, kept doing.

Lent is a reflective season. You might take your time in prayer, your time in thought and solitude, to feed the good memories. Notice them, and celebrate them.

For, our best and most beautiful memories may be the closest taste we may ever have, of what God's eternal kingdom is like.

And that's something worth waiting for.

Lent VIII: Anger

The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone . . . 

 - From Matthew 21

The familiar Parable of the Landowner is about a recurring theme in Scripture - the lunacy and evil of mob behaviors.

If Jesus ever got a crowd around Him, His demeanor was such that it calmed them down (except for the angry mobs that had Him killed). He did not incite to violence. He didn't sit there with envious rage, motivating crowds into a frenzied rage.

Christ was not envious. He couldn't care less about wealth. He knew that faith alone would keep us fed, and housed, and clothed, and safe. And He was right.

The Landowner in the parable hires these tenants to work his fields. They receive everything they need in return. But when servants are sent to collect the produce of the tenants work, they worked themselves up in resentment, since they had done "all the work," and by rights should be the ones to sell the produce and make a profit. As is the nature of mobs, the violent impulse took over, and they tortured and killed every one sent by the landowner, including his own son.

Lent is a private matter, it's personal. And so is the faith walk. We do not engage in mobs that can be swayed one way or the other, by silver-tongued orators. We go into our rooms, in private. We close the door and pray. We fast, but in such a way that it does not draw attention to ourselves.

Lent is about patience, and individuality, and independence. And an army of people acting accordingly, has twice the strength of an emotional mob, of equal numbers.

Lent VII: Mob

For I have heard the whispering of the crowd; fear is all around; they put their heads together against me; they plot to take my life.

 - From Psalm 31

People on both sides, politically, can relate to the 31st Psalm. But but only one side can legitimately relate to it. 

"Do not act from fear." That's what they say . . . use logic, and use positive feelings to inform your views on the present state of things. But is "fear" really an emotion we can just turn on or off? If I'm fearful . . . I'm fearful. I just am. And I cannot persuaded to feel otherwise. The things that I feared, must prove to me that I am ill-informed, or irrational, in feeling such fear.

The Psalmist is describing the effects of being surrounded by a crowd, or a mob. Mobs are random. They can turn malicious for no evident reason. And when you're surrounded by a crowd, or mob (all it takes is two or three people, to your one, to put you at a disadvantage) it is absolutely reasonable for you to feel a little tinge of fear. You don't know those people. You don't know what they're thinking. 

Perhaps your prior experience comes into play . . . you make a quick judgment as to whether or not you're in danger. If I were an evolutionist, I could attribute my fear to a natural response that can keep me, and my family, safe. Isn't that a laudatory objective?

Maybe fear is not all bad. 

Observe the current scene. Which side is the more emboldened to speak out? Which side is afraid to speak out? And why? Is there any justification for their fear?

We may be in an age that is exactly in line with what today's Psalmist is writing about.

During Lent, it's not at all a bad thing, to consider your total helplessness, and dependence upon God alone. 

Lent VI: Wrongness

 . . . by prayer and supplication with fasting and sackcloth and ashes . . . 

 - From Daniel 9

There's a humility that goes along with the growth of a great enterprise. Large and successful families get that way, because of the sacrifice and selflessness of their forbears. Nations grow into great powers, if a generation operates according to the long view, the selfless view . . . one that has future generations in mind.

Today, movements abound, of teenaged and college-aged students, saying such things as "If you won't be the adults, we will." But they give away their motives by stating that their thoughts are on their own futures . . . not that of future generations. Philosophically, they do not seem to be interested in ensuring that there even will be future generations.

But it takes decades of life, to formulate a long view of things. This is why we are charged with listening to our elders.

It is a common theme today: people say "I'm sorry" enough. But I think they don't say it much at all! To be sincerely sorry requires true humility - - - and lack of humility is the reason we have divorce, strife, wars. And if you can't be humble to each other, how can you be humble to God?

Daniel pulled out all the stops to make sure he was ready to hear from God. He was so concerned about the declining fortunes of Judah, that he humbled himself complete. Perhaps his contrition would count, and God's favor would return to His people.

We have to make it okay to be wrong. But I can't even get people to admit that, as imperfect people, they might be wrong about something.

But that's what's going to have to begin happening, if we are to turn around our poorly functioning national machinery.

Lent is a good time to try out a little contrition.

Lent V: The Baseline

And if you greet only your brothers and sisters . . . 

 - From Matthew 5

Greet only your brothers and sisters. Some people don't even do that.

In recent years, perhaps because of my advancing middle years, I have heard accounts of the fractures that occur among siblings, following the death of one or both parents. Disputes over their parents' estate; some not pulling their weight (in the care of the surviving parent), etc.

It must be easily assumed that the Lord expected us to naturally give preference to our siblings.

Someone once told me that her friends would forever be closer to her, than her siblings, cousins, etc. I argued that, as you get older, your friends will be drawn more and more to family. Because . . . when the chips are down, the best of us will feel the call of duty, to care for children, parents, brothers and sisters, cousins. You can say no to a friend, and there would be no scandal. But let it not be said, of any of us, that we turned our backs on family.

This person argued with me. Her friends would certainly always be there for her, as she would be, for them.

Shortly thereafter, events transpired with the health of some of her friends, that made it clear she was going to have to rely on family as the years wore on.

The baseline of kindness is - are you kind to your own family? God placed family into our lives. It's a natural, automatic training ground for unconditional love. "You can't pick family." Well then . . . let your devotion to godly love be tested and forged by making the easy choice: I will take care of family.

Okay, that's the starting point. Now you have hit the baseline.

Now . . . treat others; treat strangers, as you do family.

Now you're getting the hang of it.

Just another thing to reflect upon. Since it's Lent.

Lent IV: The Hand

 . . . your right hand shall save me.

 - From Psalm 138

I remember when I was a little kid, my Mom talking about a movie that used to terrify her as a child. It was called "The Beast with Five Fingers", and it was a black-and-white horror flick, about a severed hand that crawled around some old mansion, accosting people. I think it even killed one or two people. In time, it came on one of the local channels, probably on a Saturday late-night show. She found out about it and had us watch it.

Peter Lorre was in it, and he was at his creepy best, blabbering on about his encounters with "the hand" to skeptical others, whose doubts only set them up to become unwilling victims of the Hand.

Any human body part moving about, with being joined to the rest of a body, is simply, a frightening, and horrifying site for us. It makes for great visual drama and terror.

But then, there was the great hit single by the Judds, "Daddy's Hands," which described the calloused and worn, but strong hands of Daddy. They worked and made a comfortable life possible They dispensed swift and severe punishment for misdeeds. But they also could soften, and become a well-timed caress. They could hold the hands of a young child. They could touch others on the shoulder, instilling confidence and comfort.

The hand has come under attack in our times. Teachers, and co-workers (especially supervisors!) are warned not to touch others in their charge. And this is too bad; because, we need trustworthy people whose touch is not mistaken for inappropriate behavior. Where else, but down, can humanity go, when we're not allowed to touch each other?

Hands are critical elements of worship. We bring them together to pray, which symbolizes hands that are immobilized, neutralized, so that we can be touched by God. The bringing of hands together, also centers the human spirit - - - your circle is unbroken, your two sides are in balance.

We lift hands in worship, as if to raise them so that they may touch God. The open-handed stance reflect a heart that is open for healing and inspiration.

The hand can represent the gamut. It is symbolic of almost any form of human communication. It can take on almost any meaning we want it to.

So, we miss something powerful when we quickly read over passages that talk about the Hand of God. At the return of Christ, I'm sure God's hands will be evident, and it will be something to see!

Lent III

 . . . let the unrighteous   their thoughts . . . 

 - From Isaiah 55

Lent is a time of waiting, of patience, and of discipline. We give up things, because it is assumed that the things we give up, are things we can live without. It may be hard to do without them, because we have made a habit out of doing these things: eating certain foods, acting certain ways, doing certain wrongs.

The things that we can stop doing, the fasting from which won't kill us, is the beginning of understanding sin. Sins are things we wish we could overcome. When we succumb to temptation, and do it anyway, chances are it's sin, because it's something we could avoid doing. We really want to control ourselves. We can control ourselves. But at some point, we choose not to control ourselves. We put our own desires ahead of those of others. We put our desires ahead of our own needs.

That's sin.

We're all born to sin. We're born that way. Accepting yourself as you really are sound noble enough . . . it sounds that way. What do we way to the pathological liar? Oh leave him be. He was born that way. We were born at a level, above which it should be our goal to rise. We want to excel, and improve. We want to do less bad, and more good.

That's the point.

Lent is different than Advent. There's more than just being patient. You must also test yourself by giving up something you love doing. Christ did without a lot of things, and it prepared Him for his eternal purpose. Christ went ahead of us, doing without.

Now it's our turn.

Lent II

Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world

 - From Matthew 25

The Scorecard.

1. Feed the hungry
2. Give drink to the thirsty
3. Welcome the stranger
4. Clothe the naked
5. Care for the sick
6. Visit the imprisoned

There's more:

Do all of the above for the weakest, poorest, ugliest, least popular, shortest, sickest, skinniest, fattest, meanest, dumbest, and most obnoxious among you. 

Don't just focus on Number 3, as a bludgeon to use against your political enemies. Don't just favor #3, to the exclusion of the other six, without actually practicing it yourself. Don't just focus on #3, because it will get you more votes (more power) than the other six. 

Do all seven!

And do all seven for the people you don't like, don't align with, don't agree with, don't like being in the presence of!!

And if you fancy yourself a practitioner, even an expert, of one of the seven, don't brag about it! Don't announce it! Don't draw attention to yourself because of it!

Lent is no time for politics. 

Lent

Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

 - From Romans 10

It's so simple. So basic.

No theology. No complicated doctrine. No advanced degrees in Greek, Hebrew, or Phoenician required. No pilgrimages to The Holy Land. No miracles. No Science. No wins. No losses. No lengthy odysseys.

You just call on the name of the Lord. You call out to Him. The very act of talking to the Lord implies an awareness that He is; that He is there. You would not speak to a person not present, unless you were consciously affecting that person's presence, or crazy.

Of course . . . there are other elements involved: a confession of faith. Obedience to God's will. Loving others. Being thankful. Being humble. Being charitable. But these are not requirements of faith. They are, simply, evidence of it.

Faith. A belief that we'll get through this. We are not required to go to war, to participate in any marches, to join any political parties. You need not cover your car with bumper stickers (these are nothing more than telling, rather than showing). You just believe. Your view is eternal . . . you know . . . you know . . . that this life is just a drop in the bucket. It's not even that big of a deal. This present age may turn out to be the simulated life experience of someone else in eternity; and we're just along for the ride.

When we gather together, in Cafe Omega (my whimsical place in eternity, where we go and reflect on immortality, verses our experiences in the temporal plane), we'll laugh about how one or two of us were so concerned about some social or political cause, when all we really needed to do was take care of those around us.

 . . . in just the same way that we smile when a toddler is sad because he cannot find his favorite toy, knowing that it will be found in short order.

Lent is a simplification of everything. It's like Advent . . . a time to wait and be patient. To just . . . stop.

You may give up something for Lent. You may add something for Lent (more Bible study? A fitness regimen?). You'll practice the making of good choices.

But don't complicate things. Keep it simple. The days are getting longer . . . like they always do . . . like they always will . . . . It is just as certain as knowing that we will get through this.

As Dr. Leonard McCoy once said:

Of course! Of course!! A child could do it! A child could do it!!

Ashes VI

for I am poor and in misery.

 - From Psalm 86

In the Eighty-Sixth Psalm, there is not a hint of jealousy, or envy, or bitterness, towards rich people; no reference to any "One Percent."

The Psalmist doesn't regret his status. No self-pity. No mea culpas.

He doesn't even show anger to God. Just a calling out, a plea for God to remove his misery. A realization that God is in charge and is the only one that can really help.

For we are but ashes. No one is better or worse than you, or me. Donald Trump has no advantage over you. I am not smarter than my mortal enemy . . . at least, not relative to God's knowledge.

The imbalance of wealth is a serious problem. The increasing gap between rich and poor . . . a horrendous predicament.

But so is envy. Envy may be a bigger problem than wealth. Because, it's always better, more wise, more prudent, not to be envious. In fact, envy may be part of the root cause of the economic gap: What we notice, what we obsess over, grows. If people didn't envy wealth so much, maybe wealth would not be so desirable.

Envy sits down at the table with Greed. They share stories with one another. They discover that they have very compatible interests - - - they begin to like each other. They decide to go into business together, because they find that when they work together, they indeed experience win-win.

But ashes are swept up with ashesl dust with dust, and their is no difference between one speck, and the next.

Be emptied of your guilt, your envy, your emotions, your anger. And, let Lent begin.

Ashes V

 . . . so that you may live in the land . . . 

 - From Deuteronomy 30

Land is so central to everything. It has become the centerpiece of our vicious political divide:

To whom does the land belong?

Are boundaries good?

Can people lay claim to any property they want?

If you have your own country, your own land, your own property . . . and if it is safe and secure . . . then, and only then, can you claim to be truly free.

Land, territory, property. Let me have some, so that I can feel safe, so that I can do and say what I want. A man's house is his castle. And a castle has walls, a mote, guards. If you are the king of the castle, you will occupy the inner sanctum of the complex, where many outer layers of protection keep you safe. We all want that.

The American Dream was about commoners being able to live as if they were kings and queens, in well-fortified castles. It's what made such things as "freedom of speech" possible.

Territory seems to be everything. Nations go to war, not because of religion. Not because of romance. Essentially, and carnally, they go to war, because they want to extend their territory and make the outermost borders of their nation, secure, for their citizens: for the people that have a vested interest in the security of the country.

Nobody wants to live where the government won't even protect their property and freedom of conscience.

The essence of God's promise is that we will have land, and lots of it.

What is it about land? Is is because we are, basically, dust? We are from, of, and for, the land. We return to it when we die. We become Land. We are the land. As such, we have a rock solid claim to it.

It's no wonder we get so worked up over it.

Ashes IV

. . . do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets . . . 

 - From Matthew 6

So much talk about hypocrisy. But I feel as I always have: perhaps people that point out hypocrisy in others had better keep their mouths shut. Call anyone else a hypocrite, and you are declaring open season on others, to watch you closely for your own inconsistencies.

We are all dust. All ashes.

The 1970s song, "Dust in the Wind," by the group Kansas, used to strike me as horribly negative, depressing.

But I realize now, that despite it's somber tone, it actually is quite liberating:

Drop the facade. It's going to be okay. Life is short and you should have your hands full taking care of your immediate needs, and the needs of those immediately around you. It's not about you.

"Self-identify" describes nothing, if it doesn't describe a doctrine, distinctly to draw attention to one's own self. It's what you would expect from a wealthy culture that has, probably, too many options for people; when most of the world is starving.

I read where a 20-something made a life choice that impacted his immediately family, most specifically, his parents. They had to choose between eternal, universal values, and remaining in the life of their adult child. They chose the child . . . which in turn created another cycle of people around them having to come to grips with their own values and importance of friends and family.

There was a rippling effect, which is more than evident to those closest to these choices "that don't impact anyone else." Do the ripples continue out, into areas we cannot see, that we can barely imagine? Do millions of these faint ripples combine in society, and they are they partly responsible for some of society's most pressing problems?

The parents had to move and make new friends, because they felt that the old had shunned. Their child, commenting about this misfortune of his parents, blamed the erstwhile friends (not his parents). He said that "They were treated that way because of me." He said this, without any remorse, second-guessing, or any sense of guilt.

It's not about you. Our decisions do affect others. You can't get into someone else's mind and force them to think differently. And as to the faint, distant ripples that emanate from our choices: maybe one day we will be able to measure that. For now, I think the safe bet is to think of others. Yes, put them first. Consider their world, their needs. It's not about you.

Jesus directs us to do our good deeds, secretly. This rules out almost any behavior that puts oneself on display. Giving your alms publicly, and announcing it to others? Isn't that like telling everybody you're all for higher taxes, to take care of the poor?

We're just ashes. It's not about you.

Ashes III

 . . . as poor, yet making many rich . . . 

 - From 2 Corinthians 5

The reminder that we are just ashes, gives us perspective on what should be our priorities:

• Material gain is a ridiculous goal. Beyond providing for ourselves, our families, and the needy, there is no other reason to obsess about the gathering of wealth. And envy certainly has no place in the minds of people that realize they're but dust.
• The poor have a great gift . . . your awareness of want, makes you care more for the more needy. Or . . . it should. You can always serve someone else. 
• Politics, and denominationalism, make us believe we're better than others .By default, this is what it does. And that's wrong. We're all dust. No better, no worse, than anyone else. It's possible to bully even Donald Trump, and people do it all the time. He's no different than the rest of us. And the same goes for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. 
• Dust blows away in the wind. You're here for a little while, and then gone. We owe a great debt to those that came before, to remember them. And it takes work to remember them. In the Old Testament, and in all classical cultures, the tribal stores of long ago are always passed down. People do not feel like they belong to anything today . . . a family, more critically. And it's sad. We have forgotten, because like creatures of the world we do not have a long view of things. The eternal view looks back as well as forward, and does not get trapped in urgent, carnal hungers. Spiritual beings still regard people from long ago. We must not disrespect "dead people."

Ashes are the right perspective. They are the accurate perspective. 

What you believe is so important, or urgent, isn't. Take care of the eternal by taking care of the Now. The Here and Now. 

Ashes II

. . . you have established equity . . . 

 - From Psalm 99

The political squabbles of our time are pitiable, when viewed from the heights of eternity. One side wants total freedom for the individual. And we already have that, in Christ. The other wants total equity in our governance, and yet we all go to the grave, with an equal amount of assets, goods, wealth, and power.

Do we really think our present problems will seem that important, from our endless moment in God's Kingdom?

Do we really think humans can truly change our own unique and powerful thoughts, let alone our voices?

Eternal creatures will observe us, and see children arguing over advantages that really aren't there. Eternal beings are forever equal, forever free.

Here's equity for you - - - the crass version:

We are all dust. We are formed from a few molecules of earth. And as soon as we die we begin the return to the dust. The process cannot be stopped. As we walk from one place to another today, who knows whether our path is bestrewn with the remains of kings, or of beggars? There is no difference. Power, wealth, fame, popularity . . . none of it can add time to your life.

But that's all cliche.

A good reflection for Ash Wednesday is to look around those about you, in your Ash Wednesday service, and realize that they, like you, are but dust. As you go about your day, look around. Everybody is but dust. No one is better, no one worse. No one has an advantage over another.

And then ponder . . . do their politics, and your politics; their views and your views, really make a speck's worth of difference to the baseline truth that we are all completely, totally equal, no matter what?

God will establish true eternal equity. He has provided equity now. And he started off by making everything equitable.

Ashes

Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.

 - From Exodus 34

Many Christians, probably most, will not observe Ash Wednesday next week. This is because they opposed the practice of religious rites and rituals. Your faith should be sincere, and evident in your kindness toward others. You should not go through rote and scripted ceremonies, if your faith is sincere and simple.

But how many Christians that do not observe Ash Wednesday, fast at some other time? How many of these non-practitioners of liturgy at least follow in the steps of Christ, in such things as 40 days in the wilderness, fasting, prayer, bowing low, removing your shoes from your feet?

If you never do these things, perhaps you should observe a year of liturgical ritual?

Archie Woods often mentions the natural glow that we all have, in our faces. Science has shown that the human face does, indeed, give off light. So it makes sense that Moses' face shone, after he had been with God. Whatever it is in our faces, that make them faintly glow .. . Moses got a huge portion of that, and it lingered.

Ash Wednesday need not require you the outward sign, of the ashen cross painted on our foreheads. Some may prefer not to do that, noting the prophecy of the endtimes, about the fallen receiving a mark on their foreheads.

Be that as it may. I have received the ashes before. And sometimes I decline. It's all about what is motivating you in your heart and spirit. In our times, it is particularly bold to identify with the Church of Christ, by way of the ashen cross.

But if you really observe Ash Wednesday, and fast until sundown, while communing more with the Lord, in prayer and silence . . . it is almost certain your face will have that glow.