Look what the calendar dragged in—Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day cozying up together like an odd couple at a party! This month, we find ourselves caught between ashes and heart-shaped confetti, wondering if we should fast from chocolates or give them away. Penance and passion make for very strange dance partners.
On Ash Wednesday, marked by ashes on our foreheads, we ponder our mortality and the need for salvation. It’s a time to embrace the sober truth of Ecclesiastes 3:20: “All are from dust, and to dust all return.” We are reminded of life’s arc and our vulnerability. Valentine’s Day, the original “Hallmark holiday,” is a time for sentimental gifts and expressions of affection. It celebrates relationships, from partnerships to pets. Despite cliché and commercialism, it’s hard to resist a bit of romance! So, while crafting hearts and love notes, Ash Wednesday whispers: “Remember life’s bigger picture.” Valentine’s replies: “Spread love, even with a touch of kitsch.” An odd pairing, indeed.
But I wonder if God doesn’t have something to tell us if we sit between this very old tradition of the church and the contemporary fixation on warm-hearted affection.
Wednesday, February 14, is the first day of the transformational season of Lent, a season where we take stock of our lives and reflect on our shortcomings through a 40-day season of prayer and fasting. The prophet Hosea captures the spirit and hope of the season in a single verse: “Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers righteousness on you.” (10:12) It’s a very loving invitation from God to slow down and learn how to let love blossom in our lives like wildflowers out of cold, hard ground.
All of this points us to Easter, of course, the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection at the end of the Lenten road. It’s important to realize that giving up that extra cup of coffee isn’t just about surviving our caffeine withdrawal. It is about embracing the power of transformation.
The collision of Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday this year comes to me like a divine wink, saying, “Sure, enjoy the chocolates and roses, but don’t forget to break up the unplowed ground of your heart. Love isn’t just about grand gestures; it’s about cultivating a life that receives and reflects the love I have for you.”
In the midst of the chocolates and solemn ashes, and I hope you receive both, may we find God playfully sharing real wisdom: that love and repentance aren’t mutually exclusive. Perhaps, we can even discover a deeper truth at work – that the journey of Lent, with all its prayerful introspection and demanding sacrifice, leads us to a richer experience of the love God showers upon us through Jesus Christ.
God’s wisdom and love are ever-present, guiding us through the transformative season ahead, if you choose to slow down, look, listen and pray.
Grace and Peace,