Ashes to Ashes
Today is kind of a strange day in my spirit.
Last night, at childbirth class, it kind of hit me in a way that I'm gonna be a dad! There will soon come into the world an entirely new person, another heir to the magnificent love of God, and that person will be entrusted to our care. It's terrifying but for the first time last night it truly felt like a noble and wonderful calling. Feeling little Scooter swim around in his "mummy's tummy" made me understand a new and invigorating reason why we Christians are here.
But today is also Ash Wednesday. It is the one day of the year that is set aside to remember our mortality, where we place ashes on our forehead to remember that while we have a divine spark, we remain simply dust.
And so you understand the tension in my soul. But it is a good kind of tension; it's the kind of tension you sit in it, pickle in it a little bit, and let it flavor you. Out of this kind of tension, tension between the old life and the new, we gain depth and thoughtfulness. We allow ourselves to experience joy and sadness all at once until we realize there is a world greater than we yet know.
Our little one coming into the world soon will be treated and subjected to a terrifying world which still manages to be good beyond words. But our little one's life never will be completely good until a world beyond ashes.
Maybe you are having similar feelings today, on the day we remember our mortality. Don't run away; don't hide from it. Let it flavor you and spread that flavor to a bland world.
Last night, at childbirth class, it kind of hit me in a way that I'm gonna be a dad! There will soon come into the world an entirely new person, another heir to the magnificent love of God, and that person will be entrusted to our care. It's terrifying but for the first time last night it truly felt like a noble and wonderful calling. Feeling little Scooter swim around in his "mummy's tummy" made me understand a new and invigorating reason why we Christians are here.
But today is also Ash Wednesday. It is the one day of the year that is set aside to remember our mortality, where we place ashes on our forehead to remember that while we have a divine spark, we remain simply dust.
And so you understand the tension in my soul. But it is a good kind of tension; it's the kind of tension you sit in it, pickle in it a little bit, and let it flavor you. Out of this kind of tension, tension between the old life and the new, we gain depth and thoughtfulness. We allow ourselves to experience joy and sadness all at once until we realize there is a world greater than we yet know.
Our little one coming into the world soon will be treated and subjected to a terrifying world which still manages to be good beyond words. But our little one's life never will be completely good until a world beyond ashes.
Maybe you are having similar feelings today, on the day we remember our mortality. Don't run away; don't hide from it. Let it flavor you and spread that flavor to a bland world.
posted by Rev. Michael Jordan at 10:32 AM
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