Dear Faith Family,
"Truly, truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."
(John 12:24)
For much of the global Church, today marks the beginning of the season of Lent. A season in which we fall with Jesus into death and rise with Jesus into life again and new.
The first day of this journey of bright sadness is marked as Ash Wednesday. On this day, many traditions within the Church gather to consecrate themselves for the road ahead and the Lenten Rhythms by imposing ashes. The ashes remind us that we have our origin in dust, and from dust, we will return, by the absurd and gracious gift of Jesus' life, to a life full and forever. Ashes may be our end, but they are not the end.
While it is not our tradition to impose ashes, it is our tradition to join with the saints around the world on this day, praying the "Litany of Penitence" as our first steps toward the grave and abundant life. We start our journey of Lent by sharing our need for God's grace and receiving grace upon grace in Jesus.
Pray with and as the Church:
Most holy and merciful Father:
We confess to you and to one another,
and to the whole communion of saints in heaven and on earth,
that we have sinned by our own fault
in thought, word, and deed;
by what we have done, and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart, nor mind, nor strength. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have not forgiven others, as we have been forgiven.
Have mercy on us, gracious Father.
We have been deaf to your call to serve, as Jesus served us.
We have not been true to the mind of Christ.
We have grieved your Holy Spirit.
Have mercy on us, compassionate Father.
We confess to you, Father, all our past unfaithfulness:
the pride, hypocrisy, and impatience of our lives.
We confess to you, humble Father.
Our self-indulgent appetites and ways,
and our exploitation of other people,
We confess to you, self-giving Father.
Our anger at our own frustration,
and our envy of those more fortunate than ourselves,
We confess to you, generous Father.
Our intemperate love of worldly goods and comforts,
and our dishonesty in daily life and work,
We confess to you, just Father.
Our negligence in prayer and worship,
and our failure to commend the faith that is in us,
We confess to you, patient Father.
We turn to you, Father, and away from the wrongs we have done: acknowledging our blindness to human need and suffering,
and our indifference to injustice and cruelty,
We hold fast to you, always-present Father.
Acknowledging false judgments, uncharitable thoughts toward our neighbors, and prejudice and contempt toward those who are different from us,
We turn to you, ever-chasing Father.
Acknowledging our waste and pollution of your creation,
and our lack of concern for those who come after us,
We hold fast to you, never-changing Father.
Restore us, good Father, and let your anger depart from us;
Favorably hear us, for your mercy is great.
Bring to maturity the fruit of your salvation,
That we may show forth your glory in the world.
By the cross and passion of your Son our King and Friend,
Bring us with all your saints into
the complete joy of his resurrection.
Amen.
Love you, faith family. God bless!