G race and peace in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Tonight, we begin a sacred journey, one marked by ashes and grace, by repentance and renewal. As we do that we are going to follow the man we met yesterday as he took his first step on a journey he knows will be long and hard.

T he man begins walking along a dusty, dry path. Each step kicks up tiny clouds of dust that cling to, and float about, his feet and legs. The air feels heavy, not with heat but with the weight of an unspoken truth.

Around him, the world is gray and dower, as though life has been drained from it. Looking down he notices footprints of others who have walked this way before. Some footprints are deep, left by others carrying heavy loads, while others are more faint and close together, feet dragged through the dust, showing the traveler’s strength was failing.

The man pauses to examine them, wondering who those people were, and if they made it their destination. As he looks ahead he sees a faint outline of a cross far in the distance. Something about the sight stirs both fear and hope. He continues walking, the burden on his back growing heavier with each step.

This journey begins with a man walking on a dusty path. I want it to cause you to ponder the paths that lie ahead of us. This path he walks is meant to be a symbol of our own walk through life. A time to acknowledge and confront our sin and seek renewal and restoration in God.

A farmer looked over his fields after a hard Winter. He found them cold, barren and lifeless. He’s seen this before. He knows the cure. It is new life planted and grown. That field is our heart affected by sin. It can become cold, burdened and weighed down, even scared, longing for renewal, restoration and growth, which only God can provide.

Ash Wednesday calls us to remember two truths: We are mortal. We are sinners. Yet, the prophet Joel declares, there is hope:

Return to the Lord your God,
for He is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger,
and abounding in steadfast love.¹

The ashes of Ash Wednesday are meant to show you your need for God, and this Lenten journey is meant to show you His efforts to pursue you, to save you.

Part I: Remembering Our Mortality

Y ou heard the word minutes ago:

Remember that you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.

Those words confront us with our reality. Just like Winter leaves a farmer’s fields barren and lifeless, we face the sometimes cold emptiness of our own lives because of sin an sin’s effect, because of the mess the world has become, because of what we have done to God’s gift of a perfect Creation.

Those words, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return” are meant to make you think about the undeniable unavoidable truth of our approaching death and our need for God’s renewal and life. Just like the farmer faces the reality of Winter’s grip, we face the reality of death’s grip. Death is that great equalizer. It comes for kings and cadgers,² princes and paupers. It comes for you.

T hinking about that truth: Watching the man on the path, he notices traces of others who have walked here before him. He begins to wonder: What stories these footprints hold?

They remind us of those others who have turned back to God in repentance and faith. The farmer knows Spring follows Winter. It is just as sure as God’s promise of new life which will break through even the harshest frost.

The ashes we received tonight should remind us two things:

1. God’s demand for the consequence of sin.

2. God’s deliverance through the Blood of the Lamb.

The ashes are not just a symbol of death. They are marked on us in the sign of the cross, that instrument of death, but one which brings us real life, perfect life. So confronted by our mortality, we are reminded of Jesus’ victory. This cross of ashes is meant to point you back to your Baptism, where you were first marked, with the sign of the cross both upon your head and on your heart, as Christ’s own and you were given the promise, the hope, of eternal life.

Part II: Confessing Our Sin

T hat is why we are introducing these “Sin Cards” today. The prophet Joel calls us to, “rend your hearts and not your garments.³” It is an invitation to real repentance which comes with real results.

The “Sin Cards” we bring forward tonight are a visible expression, and practical practice of our confession, and the personal struggles with the burdens we carry. This act of pinning them to the cross is a visible and physical display as we bring our sins to Jesus and trust in His forgiveness, which comes when He carried our sins to the cross to deal with them.

Those cards reflect the personal struggles, regrets, and the burdens each one of us carries. Maybe a harsh word spoken in anger, a moment of selfishness, or a failure to help someone in need. Maybe a time when faith failed. Each card on that cross will tell a story of a heart that needs to be free in forgiveness. As we pin these cards to the cross, we don’t just admit our sins, we also place our trust in Jesus to carry them away.⁴

R emember that man on that dusty road? He pauses, overwhelmed by the weight of his own burdens. Then he sees a cross ahead. The place where burdens can be lifted.

Part III: Returning to the Lord

Joel’s cry is clear, “Return to the Lord your God.” Returning to the Lord means bringing every part of our lives under His control and His grace. It includes our: work, relationships, joys, and struggles. The man’s walk reminds us of Paul’s words:

We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.⁵

This whole season of Lent is about pausing in the busyness of life to think, to reflect on faith, and admit our sins to God. It is waking up every day knowing God’s mercies are new every morning.⁶ We can say, “Lord, lead me, forgive me, and use me for Your glory.” Psalm 143 says:

Teach me to do Your will,
for You are my God!
Let your good Spirit lead me
on level ground!
For Your name’s sake, O Lord,
preserve my life!
In Your righteousness
bring my soul out of trouble!⁷

The real question is: How does that really happen? Not by our strength or effort, but by His strength and effort.⁸ Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross bridges the insurmountable chasm sin created between us and God.⁹ The only way to “be reconciled to God” is for God to do the work, ’cuz we can’t get there on our own.

The journey of Lent is not about proving ourselves good enough. It is about accepting are we not good enough and then receiving the grace that God comes to bring to you to make you good enough. The ashes do remind us of our sin. They also remind us of the cross, where that sin was defeated.

Part IV: Living in Grace and Prayer

The man on the path come across a group kneeling in prayer at a cross. The unity they have is how we are called to pray for, and with, each other, and trust God’s guidance in our live.

That is why tonight, we also begin a journey of prayer. The “Prayer Cards” will help us realize our dependence on God and our inter­dependence on each other as His Body the Church. Each one-word prayer represents a need, a hope, or a cry to God. These prayers, prayed here for you, remind us we never walk this journey alone. That is exactly what the Church is for. Whenever you have a need, a prayer, a concern write one word on one of those cards and put it in the offering plate.

Prayer is the lifeblood of the journey we walk in faith. Through it we draw closer to God and to one another. During Lent I want to encourage you to pray. If you haven’t started the “Praying the Psalms” plan think about starting now.

Conclusion: From Dust to Glory

The man sees the cross ahead, but as he approaches the path grows more treacherous. He wonders if he can continue, unsure of what lies ahead. Where will this journey lead? To find out you’ll need to join us on Sunday as we step “Into the wilderness.”

This message series is called, “From Ashes to Glory.” As we leave here today, marked with ashes, we are reminded our story does begin in dust, but it finds its end in the glory of Jesus’ resurrection. This journey ends in glory.

It is the cross that transforms our mortality into victory, our sin into righteousness, and our despair into hope. This journey begins with dust, but it leads to an empty tomb an d Easter’s victory. Use this season of Lent to:

Return to the Lord,
for He is gracious and merciful,
abounding in steadfast love.¹⁰

Amen.

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NOTES

1Joel 2:13