Ash Wednesday

26th February 2020

Ash Wednesday

One of the prayers for this morning - "let us turn to him with our whole heart."
What does it mean?
Our whole heart, no room for anything else, anyone else.
It's a hard call, not easy to attain, but therein lies the happiness of the Christian.
Ash Wednesday starts that time when we try to turn more to our God.
We are asked to think about three things in particular:
Prayer
Fasting
Almsgiving
My musings are just that. I hope they help or at least make you think:
Time is a precious gift to us.

Let us make time for prayer, to take some quiet moments just conversing with Our Lord.
Let us pray better, taking more care to prepare and maybe have a book with us or the Gospels, for when our imagination wants to capture us and distract us.
Let us remember during the day a particular person or intention to pray for.
In the Gospel ( Matt 6) Jesus says,
" But when you pray, go to your private room and when  you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you." Sometimes, I feel that the prayer, which gives so much peace, is the reward itself.

Let us take the time to think about our fasting.
Yes, it can be about food and some of it should be, especially today, but there are so many more ways in which we can fast ( deny ourselves).
What about fasting from tv so that we have time for others.
A dear friend who is dead now used to choose a person who he found it more difficult to get on with and spend his lent doing things for that person, giving his time and energy . At least two lents were devoted to his mother. She ended up feeling well blessed with a devoted son who loved her dearly.
What about a day for each member of the family when we pray more for that person and also contact them.
Remember our time is a precious gift to us, if we give it to others for God, it becomes even more so.
What about running a prayer group with some friends throughout lent.
There are lots of ways we can fast. But whatever way we choose, let us do it cheerfully and without show,   " and your Father who sees all that is done in secret..."
You probably have more ideas.
Please share them with us.

Let us take time to think of Almsgiving:
Let us look at where we can help. Who needs our assistance.It needn't be a big donation but it should be done with love.
It could be there is a family near who are struggling and could do with some extra food for the children.
Or maybe a friend needs a copy of the Gospels and you can buy it for them.
It could also be some money that you have collected from your fasting in other areas that you send now to those in need.

Pope Benedict:
" Dear friends , on this lenten journey let us be careful to accept Christ's invitation to follow him more decisively and consistently, renewing the grace and commitments of our own baptism, to cast off the former person within us and put on Christ, in order to arrive at Easter renewed and be able to say, with St Paul: I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me."

Let us make a good Lenten journey  close to Jesus.