ASH WEDNESDAY: RETURN TO GOD

The words, “Return to me with your whole heart,” spoken by the prophet Joel, reveal the depth of God’s love. God is not indifferent. He is not distant. He is constantly searching for His children. He longs that we experience the warmth of His relationship. The prophet reminds us: “For gracious and merciful is he, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment.”

Ash Wednesday is not about a ritual alone—it is about a relationship. It is about a Father calling His children home. When we receive ashes on our foreheads, we hear one of two solemn formulas: “Repent and believe in the Gospel,” or “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Ashes are a powerful symbol. They speak of mourning, mortality, repentance, and humility. They remind us of our human frailty. They bring us face to face with the truth: we are not self-sufficient. We are not eternal on our own. We are dust—beloved dust, but dust, nonetheless.

Throughout Scripture, ashes marked moments of conversion and crisis. In the Book of Esther, Mordecai clothed himself in sackcloth and ashes when destruction threatened his people (Esther 4:1). Job repented in dust and ashes (42:6). Daniel fasted with sackcloth and ashes in earnest prayer (9:3). The king of Nineveh humbled himself in ashes after hearing Jonah’s warning (Jonah 3:5-6). Even King David fasted in grief and repentance after being confronted by the prophet Nathan (2 Sam. 12:16). Ashes mark the turning point.

Joel’s invitation is universal. Young and old. Priests and people. Families and leaders. It is for everyone, “Return to the Lord your God.” Lent, therefore, is not about giving up chocolate, coffee, or soda alone. It is about turning toward love again. It is about conversion of heart.

Saint Paul calls this moment an “acceptable time,” the hour of salvation. This is not a random season. It is a grace-filled time. God wants us back—not partially, not casually—but wholeheartedly.

The forty days of Lent echo the great biblical journeys of transformation:

• Moses spent forty days on Mount Sinai and received the commandments.• Elijah fasted forty days before encountering God in the still, small voice.• Jesus fasted forty days in the desert before beginning His public ministry. Forty days in Scripture always lead to something greater. The desert is never the end. Resurrection waits beyond it.

Therefore, the Church gives us three pillars for this sacred journey: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

1. Prayer: Prayer restores intimacy. Jesus tells us to go into our inner room and pray to the Father in secret. Prayer reconnects us to the Source. It quiets our anxieties and reminds us of who we are before God.

2. Fasting: Fasting detaches us from excessive comfort and noise. It brings us into the spiritual desert. It disciplines our appetites so that our souls can breathe again. Fasting says: God is enough.

3. Almsgiving: Almsgiving turns our eyes outward. It opens our hearts to the poor, the hungry, the lonely, the abandoned. It unites us with Christ present in the suffering. It makes our conversion visible in love.

But Jesus warns that we do not do these things for applause, but for the Father who sees in secret. Lent is not spiritual performance. It is interior transformation.

With ashes on our foreheads today, we begin a pilgrimage. It is a journey of humility, but also of hope. We walk toward Easter. We walk toward victory. We walk toward the empty tomb. And so we pray with the Psalmist: “Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness.”

Here is the Good News: “For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.”

Ash Wednesday begins.

Return to God—with your whole heart.

Readings: Joel 2:12–18; 2 Cor. 5:20–6:2; Matt. 6:1–6, 16–18

Reflection Questions

1.     What area of my life is God inviting me to “return” to Him more wholeheartedly this Lent?

2.     Which of the three pillars—prayer, fasting, or almsgiving—needs deeper intentionality in my spiritual life right now?

3.     As I remember that I am dust and will return to dust, how does this awareness reshape my priorities, relationships, and daily choices?