Ash Wednesday

by Abby Mohaupt

Daily Lectionary Text:

Isaiah 58:5-12 (Common English Bible)

Is this the kind of fast I choose,
a day of self-affliction,
of bending one’s head like a reed
and of lying down in mourning clothing and ashes?
Is this what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?

Isn’t this the fast I choose:
releasing wicked restraints, untying the ropes of a yoke,
setting free the mistreated,
and breaking every yoke?

Isn’t it sharing your bread with the hungry
and bringing the homeless poor into your house,
covering the naked when you see them,
and not hiding from your own family? 

Then your light will break out like the dawn,
and you will be healed quickly.
Your own righteousness will walk before you,
and the Lord’s glory will be your rear guard. 

Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and God will say, “I’m here.”
If you remove the yoke from among you,
the finger-pointing, the wicked speech;
if you open your heart to the hungry,
and provide abundantly for those who are afflicted,
your light will shine in the darkness,
and your gloom will be like the noon. 

The Lord will guide you continually
and provide for you, even in parched places.
He will rescue your bones.
You will be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water that won’t run dry.
They will rebuild ancient ruins on your account;
the foundations of generations past you will restore.
You will be called Mender of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Livable Streets.

 Reflection:

In our reading from Isaiah, I'm specifically reminded of how my faith calls me to share my food with people who are hungry, share my home with people who are homeless, share my clothing with people who are naked. Caring for others is an act of faith and these acts also mark us as people of faith. 

Lent always reminds me of the ways I fall short of the ways I should be acting. I'm not very good at sharing what I have; instead I think I try to keep things for myself. Ash Wednesday is a reminder that what I have is limited--we are dust and to dust we shall return. Our short lives should thus be marked by caring for others, living as a light in the world. 

As we enter Lent, I wonder how we will choose to share our resources with others and how we will find light in the coming weeks.