LENT:
LET’S GET SERIOUS
LET’S GET SERIOUS
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily is, “Lent: Let’s Get Serious.”
I don’t know about you, but to me Lent is much too soon this year. I haven’t even finished my Christmas cards yet. And I would like a little space to continue celebrating the Giants' Super Bowl victory. Yet, I know the start of Lent is based on the Passover Moon – but we could go the way of the Eastern Christian Church – and that would make it a bit later. But here we are, it’s Ash Wednesday, and it’s time to start Lent.
Lent: Let’s Get Serious.
ASHES
First of all they rub it in our face with ashes that we are going to die one of these years.
There are two formulas that can be used when priests, deacons or ministers put the ashes on your forehead:
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel.”
“Remember, you are dust and into dust you will return.”
I always use the second formula. To me it has so much more impact.
However, I don’t like it when a baby gets ashes. To me they are too young for, “Remember, you are dust and into dust you will return.”
Yet, the moment is real serious when we receive the ashes.
The clock is ticking. The calendar pages keep turning. Our skin begins to wrinkle and wear out at some point.
Remember, we are dust and into dust we shall return.
As we get older, we experience going to more funeral services and quietly following a long line of cars to a cemetery.
Remember, we are dust and into dust we will return.
ASHES: GLIMPSES OF REALITY
We get glimpses of reality whenever we start to see ashes and smoke, crumble and wear, nicks and break.
The cookie crumbles.
Yesterday’s newspaper becomes the lining of the bird cage today.
The brand new band aid we put on the cut finger that morning has picked up dirt and stretch marks by the time we go to bed.
The little kid is enjoying the wonderful licks of a chocolate chip ice cream cone – and then the moment of insight – the sight of the cone getting smaller and smaller. The kid is discovering “The End” is not just what happens at the end of cartoons. The joyful licking taste and sound of an ice cream cone can’t go on forever. And sometimes there is the horror and the tears when a kid drops the whole cone or pop on a red brick Annapolis sidewalk – and the whole enterprise has to be thrown into a garbage pail.
The pet dog, cat, bird, or fish, dies.
The steering wheel, the upholstery, the carpet of what was once a brand new, beautiful car – starts to wear thin, fade a bit.
A classmate or best friend or neighbor – who is younger or in better shape, dies.
Remember you are dust and into dust you will return.
Lent: Let’s Get Serious.
PRAYER & FASTING
Lent: a time – 40 days – for the big two serious spiritual practices: prayer and fasting.
Prayer: not babbling – but communication – communion – taking time to sit or walk and talk and be with God: listening – really listening – reflecting on what’s going on in our life and the lives of those around us.
The title of my homily is, “Lent: Let’s Get Serious.”
I don’t know about you, but to me Lent is much too soon this year. I haven’t even finished my Christmas cards yet. And I would like a little space to continue celebrating the Giants' Super Bowl victory. Yet, I know the start of Lent is based on the Passover Moon – but we could go the way of the Eastern Christian Church – and that would make it a bit later. But here we are, it’s Ash Wednesday, and it’s time to start Lent.
Lent: Let’s Get Serious.
ASHES
First of all they rub it in our face with ashes that we are going to die one of these years.
There are two formulas that can be used when priests, deacons or ministers put the ashes on your forehead:
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel.”
“Remember, you are dust and into dust you will return.”
I always use the second formula. To me it has so much more impact.
However, I don’t like it when a baby gets ashes. To me they are too young for, “Remember, you are dust and into dust you will return.”
Yet, the moment is real serious when we receive the ashes.
The clock is ticking. The calendar pages keep turning. Our skin begins to wrinkle and wear out at some point.
Remember, we are dust and into dust we shall return.
As we get older, we experience going to more funeral services and quietly following a long line of cars to a cemetery.
Remember, we are dust and into dust we will return.
ASHES: GLIMPSES OF REALITY
We get glimpses of reality whenever we start to see ashes and smoke, crumble and wear, nicks and break.
The cookie crumbles.
Yesterday’s newspaper becomes the lining of the bird cage today.
The brand new band aid we put on the cut finger that morning has picked up dirt and stretch marks by the time we go to bed.
The little kid is enjoying the wonderful licks of a chocolate chip ice cream cone – and then the moment of insight – the sight of the cone getting smaller and smaller. The kid is discovering “The End” is not just what happens at the end of cartoons. The joyful licking taste and sound of an ice cream cone can’t go on forever. And sometimes there is the horror and the tears when a kid drops the whole cone or pop on a red brick Annapolis sidewalk – and the whole enterprise has to be thrown into a garbage pail.
The pet dog, cat, bird, or fish, dies.
The steering wheel, the upholstery, the carpet of what was once a brand new, beautiful car – starts to wear thin, fade a bit.
A classmate or best friend or neighbor – who is younger or in better shape, dies.
Remember you are dust and into dust you will return.
Lent: Let’s Get Serious.
PRAYER & FASTING
Lent: a time – 40 days – for the big two serious spiritual practices: prayer and fasting.
Prayer: not babbling – but communication – communion – taking time to sit or walk and talk and be with God: listening – really listening – reflecting on what’s going on in our life and the lives of those around us.
Prayer: not praying to be seen by others – but to be seen by God.
Fasting: not for the sake of feeling good about ourselves or for bragging rights – but to use the 40 days of Lent to step back and take a slow look about cutting back on compulsive eating or talking or watching TV or being on the computer or just doing nothing.
Fasting: to then use the gained time for family time – to concentrate on a different person in the family each week of Lent – or to walk more – to read a good book - to discuss what we’re reading with a spouse or a friend – or to help others – or visit the unvisited – to do quality work at work.
Fasting: from yak, yak, yak, without thinking about what we’re saying.
Fasting from gossip or destructive criticism – moving more to listening to those around us – what they are saying or not saying.
Fasting: turning off unnecessary lights – saving electricity – picking up litter – making our lawn and surroundings brighter – making this world the beautiful place God made it to be.
CONCLUSION
Lent: Let’s Get Serious.
We get the Ashes today because we’re announcing to each other and to the world, “We’re Christian and we’re about to get serious especially for the next 40 days. Today is February 6th – Easter is March 23rd, this year. We can do it. We’re loud about it today with the symbol of Ashes on our forehead – but for the next 39 days, calmly and quietly, we’ll do good things and do them well and do them for the right reason – with a smile on our face instead of ashes. Amen.
Fasting: not for the sake of feeling good about ourselves or for bragging rights – but to use the 40 days of Lent to step back and take a slow look about cutting back on compulsive eating or talking or watching TV or being on the computer or just doing nothing.
Fasting: to then use the gained time for family time – to concentrate on a different person in the family each week of Lent – or to walk more – to read a good book - to discuss what we’re reading with a spouse or a friend – or to help others – or visit the unvisited – to do quality work at work.
Fasting: from yak, yak, yak, without thinking about what we’re saying.
Fasting from gossip or destructive criticism – moving more to listening to those around us – what they are saying or not saying.
Fasting: turning off unnecessary lights – saving electricity – picking up litter – making our lawn and surroundings brighter – making this world the beautiful place God made it to be.
CONCLUSION
Lent: Let’s Get Serious.
We get the Ashes today because we’re announcing to each other and to the world, “We’re Christian and we’re about to get serious especially for the next 40 days. Today is February 6th – Easter is March 23rd, this year. We can do it. We’re loud about it today with the symbol of Ashes on our forehead – but for the next 39 days, calmly and quietly, we’ll do good things and do them well and do them for the right reason – with a smile on our face instead of ashes. Amen.
1 comment:
thank you Andy your message was what I needed to start my lent
Joe Bontke
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