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.