Out of the Ashes

One thing we Americans are good at is fixing things. It doesn't seem to matter what the problem is, we've got the solution, or we'll find one. For example, I have heard that one woman fixed the problem of her free flying birds pooping on the carpet, the counters, the children's toys and bedspreads at home. She invented "Flight Suits", as they are known, little birdy diapers that fit snugly onto most household birds. Someone else invented hands free binoculars so you can drink your beer and eat your peanuts at the ballgame, but still see the game from the nosebleed section. That's where I usually am. There's the alarm clock that rolls off your bedside table, on to the floor and across the room. You have to get up to turn it off and before you can hit it with a hammer! I even heard there is a motorized ice cream cone so you don't have to turn the cone yourself. Only in America!

In America, we can fix just about anything. One thing we can't fix though is our problem with sin. No matter how much you might want to fix this problem, there nothing in the yellow pages or online that can help. My father-in-law is a great handyman, but even he doesn't have the right tool to forgive me for my sin. Every look in the mirror, every gray hair and wrinkle, every aching joint, every trip to the eye doctor for a stronger prescription, every funeral reminds us that we are formed of the dust and to dust we shall return. Before I know it; in the blink of an eye, the gravestone will read "Here Lies Andrew C. Elling". Trust me, there will be one like it for you too.

At our Ash Wednesday service the other night, we all acknowledged this conundrum. The conundrum is why we showed up there that night in the first place. It's why we put dirty ash crosses on our foreheads. We can't fix this problem, but we have a God who can. Ash Wednesday is an acknowledgement of this. It is the beginning of a journey. Too often we skip ahead to the joy of resurrection day. Jesus didn't do that. He walked the journey there one step at a time. Our faith will not be as deep and strong as it can be until we all walk with him. Walk down the mountain resolutely toward Jerusalem. Stand with him on trial and as the whips tear the flesh off his back. Carry the cross with him up to Golgotha. Feel the nails pierce his hands and feet as if they were your own. Do not let yourself jump ahead too quickly to Easter Sunday. The good news is that day will come. Instead, wait a while first. Walk with Jesus. Feel it. Shed some tears. Gaze upon our bloody and beaten Savior. That Savior is the only possible fix for your problem of sin and mine.

At the service on Ash Wednesday, we all read Psalm 51. You should too. If you feel your failures like King David did. If you admit your weakness, acknowledge the flaws, confess your sin to God, give your life to God, pray for His forgiveness through Christ, then you will live in the end. In fact, you will live starting today. If you can say the same words to God that King David did, then when you die, when you return to the dust, then the gravestone might have your name on it, but you will not be there. Like our Lord Jesus Christ, like King David, you will not be there. It is on your journey to the cross of Jesus that you will find life.