#Wednesday

Most millenials today know that "#" is a "hashtag." Growing up, I knew it as a hash mark or a pound sign. You know, "Please leave a message. When you're finished, press pound." Well, yesterday I learned that the pound sign actually signifies pounds...

I work in the extension office at my university, and I sift through a lot of data for my research. Lettuce is often purchased in cases...20# cases. I asked my colleague how much a 20# case weighs and she said, "Oh, '#' means pounds." That was all fine and dandy until I finally put two and two together...the pound sign means pounds. Mind = blown. 

Reflecting on this revelation this morning along with my millenial lingo, I realized that if today is #Wednesday and also Ash Wednesday, then it's kind of like hASH Wednesday...right? Get it?

I think I'm funny, anyways.

In the Christian bubble, "Ash Wednesday" isn't often a day of significance. "It's a Catholic thing." I never really cared about the black ash crosses on people's foreheads much, even after becoming a Christian, when I arguably cared even less. 

Last year for lent, I tried (and failed) to "give up" facebook and other social media. My church teaches that fasting for Lent is in no way an obligation, but that it can be a valuable tool for growing closer to God. Realizing that facebook and all the comparison that ensues in my life is a toxic influence on my relationship (and desire to engage) with God, I decided to limit my use for the 40 days leading up to Easter. 

If I observe Lent, though, why don't I observe Ash Wednesday, which "kicks off" the Lenten season? I didn't have an answer to that question, so I decided to learn more about the practice. Amid my "research," I found two perspectives: on one side there were a lot of rules, rules and rules, but on the other side there was a viewpoint of mortality, salvation and freedom. The former teaches a lot of legalistic "Thou shalt not's" whereas the latter emphasizes our depravity, our sinfulness, and the life-giving grace of Jesus Christ.

So, what does that all have to do with ashes?

God once said to Adam, (the symbol of our sinful nature), "You were made from dust, and to dust you shall return." - Genesis 3:19

I realize that I like the symbolism of that ash cross. As humans, we are mortal beings. We aren't the gods we so often make ourselves out to be on social media, worshiping the people we follow and reveling in praise/likes/comments on our own posts. We are made from dust -- ash is primarily made up of calcium carbonate, and our bones are too. When our flesh fails, our bones break down into ashes. We're made from the clay of the earth, and just as we all come into this world naked and broken, we'll return to it the same way. That is, until Jesus proudly descends to earth on his magnificent stallion and gifts us new bodies of flesh and bone. 

Ash Wednesday is a day to remember exactly this principle, our own mortality. We are dead in sin, we are dead in ourselves, and it's only in Christ that we are made new and given life. We need God, we need His strength because our own is insufficient. We need his direction because we are lost on our own. We need Him, because He is the heartbeat of this world.

Ash Wednesday helps us remember this. In the ever so eloquent words of Elevation Worship,

"I need you

To soften my heart, and break me apart

I need you

To open my eyes, and see how you're shaping my life

All I am, I surrender"