Ash Wednesday
Genesis 3:19 (NASB)
“For you are dust,
And to dust you shall return.”
Today marks the first day of Lent—Ash Wednesday.
One of the purposes of Ash Wednesday is to remind us that one day, you and I will die. I have to admit, death feels cruel. Many try to romanticize it. Movies and even video games have a way of desensitizing us to it. But the truth remains: death is coming for all of us.
The apostle Paul calls it our last enemy:
1 Corinthians 15:26 (NASB)
“The last enemy that will be abolished is death.”
Death is not our friend. It stands in conflict with God’s good design for humanity. And as we begin this Lenten journey, we look ahead with hope to Resurrection Sunday—the celebration that Jesus has defeated sin and death.
But today, we pause.
Today, we face our mortality.
And there is something clarifying about looking death squarely in the eyes. It forces us to ask what truly matters.
It’s not overindulging in dessert.
It’s not endless scrolling on instagram.
It’s not video games or overspending on things we don’t need.
None of that lasts nor produces a life worth living.
Lent, like many Christian practices, invites us into an honest inventory of our lives. It is both subtraction and addition. We remove distractions so we can receive something better. As we begin this season, we are invited to give up comforts—food, entertainment, habits—not to prove anything to God, but to make room for what matters most: Jesus.
Why fasting?
The prophet Joel reminds us that God does not want performance. He wants our hearts.
Joel 2:12 NASB
“Return to Me with all your heart…
And tear your heart and not merely your garments.”
In Joel’s day, people would tear their clothing as an outward sign of grief or repentance. But God is saying: He wants something deeper.
Lent is not a performative practice. We are not trying to earn God’s love or acceptance. We already have it. Instead, Lent is an offering of our hearts. It is an invitation to move past performance and allow God to search us, examine us, and gently reshape us.
Joel also reminds us of who God is:
Joel 2:13 NASB
“Return to the Lord your God,
For He is gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger, abounding in mercy…”
Yes, God is holy. Yes, He is just. But toward the humble and repentant, He takes a posture of mercy.
He deals gently with you.
He deals gently with me.
And though He deals gently with us, our sin was not gentle on Him.
On the cross, Jesus bore the full weight of our rebellion. Naked and shamed, He did not defend Himself. Instead, as recorded in Luke 23:34, He prayed, “Father, forgive them.”
God does not delight in catastrophe. He abounds in mercy. As one commentator put it, “God is looking for someone to forgive.”
Joel’s words echo an earlier revelation in Exodus 34:6:
“The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth.”
This is the first time God reveals His name and character to Moses. And what comes first? Compassion. Grace. Patience. Abounding love.
So when we return in repentance, this is the God we are turning toward—not One eager to condemn, but One eager to restore.
Lent offers us the opportunity to return.
To clear space.
To quiet the noise.
To remember that we are dust—that our days are finite. That means each day we have is a gift.
So the invitation stands: cut away what distracts you. Make room for what matters most.
As we begin this journey, consider these questions:
Where have I drifted from the heart of God?
What is getting in the way of my walk with Jesus?
Where am I wasting time that could be given to what truly matters?
“Even now,” declares the Lord,
“Return to Me.”
