Ash Wednesday 

   “For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” (Gen 3: 19) 

   These words to Adam and Eve after they had sinned in the garden of Eden apply equally to me and to every human person.  Life on this earth will end for each of us.  Ash Wednesday is an important reminder of our mortality and urges us to consider whether we are in a right relationship with our God.

   Ash Wednesday sometimes seems to be only a time when we give up something as a sacrifice.  It is that but it is so much more.  The sacrifice is not so much the sugar or coffee or whatever we choose to give up, but it is intended to be a reminder and a participation in the sacrifices Jesus Christ made for us to offer us redemption and eternal life.

   As we begin this season of Lent I believe we should not only sacrifice something material but also something more spiritual.  Some suggestions might be:

 

   Pick up that bible that has been gathering dust and read the gospels.

   Give up that grudge you’ve been holding against one who hurt you and try to reconcile.

   Give up an additional hour or so to attend daily Mass at least once a week.

   Commit to spend time in the adoration chapel before our Lord in the Eucharist.  Contemplate the many sacrifices He made for us and sorrow for the pain He endured.

   Make a commitment to spend more time in prayer.  Not just saying an extra rosary or Our Father, but to remove ourself from the distractions of this world and spend quiet time with our Lord.

 

Whatever we may sacrifice it should truly be a sacrifice.  It should be something that we will yearn for but refuse, offering it instead to Christ who offered His life for us.