Ash Wednesday: Being Real

"So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward."  Matthew 6:2

 This has to be the most important message of Lent.  Each time I come across this verse, I think about how much this message applies to today.  There are so many people out there that will just say a lot but not actually do things.  Heck, even I do that from time to time.  But, Jesus is very clear in this sermon, which is today's reading for Ash Wednesday.  He gives an example of what authentic worship is after showing what not to do.

Today's message is more than just about our personal relationship with God.  In each one of the admonitions by Jesus, there is the greater public involved.  If you sound a trumpet, you get people's attention.  If you stand on the corners and shout prayers, others will hear you.  If you look dismal, you are seen by others to be that way.  Today, I see these things happening not only out in public, but also in our social media.  I see countless posts, articles, critiques, videos, blogs telling us exactly how to live.  These messages tell others which body type is correct, which church is right, which theory accommodates everybody, which people should be around which people.  Many times, I read these things from people who are not even in situations where they would know what to say.  Bystanders narrate what should happen in schools, even dictating the roles of each staff member.

In the end, by being inauthentic with words, people start to make an echo chamber for their ideas, starting with something plausible, but ending with something that is so convoluted and impossible.  The same thing can happen with our spiritual lives.  When we just talk a lot, when we just do the motions, when we post the #blessed or other tags, we lose ourselves to our words.  Rather than better ourselves, we bog ourselves down with more and more words.

Lent is a time for us to dig out of the mess that we can create around ourselves.  Lent is a time for us to follow Jesus in our real, plain selves.  Jesus did not ask for us to come forward dressed in a wig, spandex, and heels (although I'm sure he'd be fine with that, too).  Jesus just tells us to live authentically.  When we make the good news become our truth, when we put our actions where our words are, when we are real, we will find Jesus.

I hope that everybody has a blessed Lent.

Day 040: Transformation

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Romans 12:1-2

This message speaks to me so much for today, for it is about to be Lent.

Lent is a time for us to transform so that we can become a wholesome offering to God.  In the Old Testament, there are so many specifications about how perfect an animal has to be in order to be sacrificed.  Alongside that, we know that Jesus is the most perfect sacrifice to renew all of us.

But we can't get bogged down in all of the customs and traditions of the world.  Although we might like to think that if we purchase the right amount of candles and icons we would be saved, that's not what God wants from us.  We can't let things become stumbling blocks for us.  We need to follow Jesus and allow him to transform us.  We need to make everything in our lives things that will bring us closer to him.  We need to attach ourselves to spiritual things so that we may grow in the best way possible.

And so, as we prepare ourselves for Lent, ridding our surroundings of every temptation and purifying ourselves just before we go in to receive our ashes for Ash Wednesday, let these verses be our prayer, that God may take us and transform us into something that is pleasing and acceptable before God.  When our own desire is for God, then we can start to become more godlike - perfect.