Practicing Piety with God: Ash Wednesday

The first reading is Joel 2:1-2, 12-17

The psalm is Psalm 51:1-17

The holy gospel according to Matthew (6:1-6, 16-21)

Jesus said:

“Beware of practicing your piety before others

       in order to be seen by them;

              for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

²“So whenever you give alms,

       do not sound a trumpet before you,

              as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets,

                     so that they may be praised by others.

                            Truly I tell you,

                                   they have received their reward.

       ³But when you give alms,

              do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

                     ⁴so that your alms may be done in secret;

                     and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

⁵“And whenever you pray,

       do not be like the hypocrites;

              for they love to stand and pray

                     in the synagogues and at the street corners,

                            so that they may be seen by others.

                                   Truly I tell you,

                                          they have received their reward.

              ⁶But whenever you pray,

                     go into your room and shut the door

                            and pray to your Father who is in secret;

                                   and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

¹⁶“And whenever you fast,

       do not look dismal, like the hypocrites,

              for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting.

                     Truly I tell you,

                            they have received their reward.

              ¹⁷But when you fast,

                     put oil on your head and wash your face,

                            ¹⁸so that your fasting may be seen

                                   not by others but by your Father who is in secret;

                                          and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

¹⁹“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,

       where moth and rust consume

       and where thieves break in and steal;

       ²⁰but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,

              where neither moth nor rust consumes

              and where thieves do not break in and steal.

                     ²¹For where your treasure is,

                            there your heart will be also.

The gospel of the lord.

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Today’s readings and, indeed today as a whole, are full of contradictions.  On Ash Wednesday we mark our foreheads with ashes.  We remind ourselves and each other of our mortality—that we are dust and to dust we shall return.                          Even as we are clearly alive and trust in God’s promise of everlasting life, we are dust and to dust we shall return.

In our readings, we vary between Joel’s call for an assembly, repentance and sacrifice to God, the psalmist’s declaration that God cares about our hearts—our whole beings—rather than burnt offerings, and Jesus’ warnings against being like the hypocrites, who make a scene when giving offerings and alms.

What I realized with Jesus’ warnings in the gospel is that he’s not talking about what we do so much as why we do it.  Sometimes I think we take this passage a little too much at face value, a little too literally.  Jesus gives different examples for what he’s talking about—giving alms, praying, and fasting—and each example is different, but the hypocrites’ motivation is the same.  So much so, that if we’d had a couple more examples, we could’ve gotten a rousing refrain going. 

Each time Jesus warns against hypocrites who give alms, pray, and fast very publicly it’s “so that they may be seen by others.”  God is not the focus of their prayers and from the description I actually wonder if they’re thinking about God at all.  They give alms, pray, and fast so that others will see and think highly of them.

Now, we spent Epiphany praying on street corners, in our places of worship, and throughout the community as well.  The irony of Jesus’ words today is not lost on me J  But the goal of our praying was to look for God at work and to learn a bit more about the community and where God might be calling us.  To open us up to God in the midst of ordinariness.  …And maybe I was also curious what might happen if someone did notice you and ask what you were doing. 

But really, when we give alms, pray, or fast, the goal is not to look good for others—to show off.  The goal is, as today’s psalm states, to open ourselves to God that God would put a new and right spirit within us.  Giving alms—giving money in offering—gives us power over our hearts.  As Jesus promises, where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Our offerings bring our hearts back to this place and our money for ministry and mission bring our collective heart to the body of Christ and to the community.

Praying cultivates openness to God.  Pausing to spend time intentionally with God in prayer—whatever that may look like—takes us out of the busy-ness that can overwhelm or distract us.  As we breathe, the Holy Spirit breathes through us. 

Similarly, fasting refocuses our hunger for God and deepens our empathy for those who hunger without the means or access to satisfy their hunger.  Each of these practices are intended to draw us closer to God and in so doing, draw us more deeply into God’s love for all of creation.

As we journey through Lent we will be traveling from the dusty desert wilderness to chicken coops, from fig trees to far away lands of famine, rooms filled with perfume of pure nard, and ultimately we will follow Jesus to the cross.  In the midst of this we will also be exploring prayer with the Episcopalians, exploring our relationship with God in new ways.

It is too easy to get caught up with the hypocrites in thinking there is only one way to be faithful or pray.  The reality is, there are many ways to pray, bowing your head and folding your hands or repeating the Lord’s Prayer are just a couple examples.

The goal of prayer, and what the hypocrites in today’s gospel are missing, is to be intentional about time spent with God.  Traditionally Lent has been a time to prepare for baptism or even first communion.  It is the time of the church year when we can refocus on our spiritual life.

Some people do this by fasting—giving up chocolate, food, or even Facebook—to spend that time, money, and energy reflecting instead on God.  Some people decide to read the Bible—maybe reading through one of the gospels—during this time.  Some decide to pray every day.  Some choose an extra way to be in service or give more money to a church or other organization.

House for All Sinners and Saints, an ELCA congregation in Denver, Colorado, has a list of different things to do each day of Lent.  The list includes praying for enemies, giving away food cards, and internet dieting, among others.

The goal in each of these opportunities is not to adopt them all permanently or to show off or brag about your piety, but to explore different practices and see what resonates with you.  Maybe you really liked learning about a saint and want to learn more, or maybe confessing a secret really lightened the burden you hadn’t realized was weighing you down.

Each Wednesday we will be experimenting together with prayer.  Maybe one of these new ways to pray will resonate deeply with you.  Even if they don’t, however, you will have spent intentional time with God in community, which is, itself, prayer.

That is Jesus’ exhortation in the gospel.  To practice your piety, not for others, but in ways that are meaningful.  To see your own cross marked on your forehead, to remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.  Practice your piety to deepen your faith, to strengthen your relationship with God.  Ash Wednesday is our invitation, as our foreheads are marked with a cross of ash, Jesus invites us into deeper relationship, into quiet spaces, and sung praises.  Into the grace of God.

This Lent that lies before us is a journey.  As we journey together, we know that we head to the cross.  The ashes marking our foreheads direct us to the death that is no longer the final word.  From dust we are and to dust we shall return.  Yet the crosses of ash direct us through Jesus’ death on a cross into the hope of new life—resurrection.  As we wait and wander, Jesus leads us deeper into our faith.  Spiritual nourishment is part of the way of the cross.  May our journey this year bring you closer to God, closer to each other, and closer to all of creation.

Amen.

jesus knows your demons - lent 1/ash wednesday

el santo evangelio según san mateo.  gloria a ti, cristo señor.

Luego el Espíritu llevó a Jesús al desierto,

      para que el diablo lo pusiera a prueba.

Estuvo cuarenta días y cuarenta noches sin comer,

      y después sintió hambre.

El diablo se acercó entonces a Jesús

      para ponerlo a prueba,

      y le dijo:

            —Si de veras eres Hijo de Dios,

                  ordena que estas piedras se conviertan en panes.

Pero Jesús le contestó:

      —La Escritura dice:

            “No sólo de pan vivirá el hombre,

                  sino también de toda palabra que salga de los labios de Dios.”

Luego el diablo lo llevó a la santa ciudad de Jerusalén,

      lo subió a la parte más alta del templo

      y le dijo:

            —Si de veras eres Hijo de Dios,

                  tírate abajo;

                        porque la Escritura dice:

                              “Dios mandará que sus ángeles te cuiden.

                              Te levantarán con sus manos,

                                    para que no tropieces con piedra alguna.”

Jesús le contestó:

      —También dice la Escritura:

            “No pongas a prueba al Señor tu Dios.”

Finalmente el diablo lo llevó a un cerro muy alto,

      y mostrándole todos los países del mundo y la grandeza de ellos,

            le dijo:

                  —Yo te daré todo esto,

                        si te arrodillas

                        y me adoras.

Jesús le contestó:

      —Vete, Satanás,

            porque la Escritura dice:

                  “Adora al Señor tu Dios,

                  y sírvele sólo a él.”

Entonces el diablo se apartó de Jesús,

      y unos ángeles acudieron a servirle.

el evangelio del señor.  te alabamos, cristo señor.

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como jesús, tod@s tenemos diablos.  hay personas que no creen en el infierno hoy en día, pero todavía experimentan y afirman que el infierno existe por lo menos aquí en la tierra.  para la gente que ha servido en una guerra, oímos que la realidad de matar o ser matadx es un infierno—y para muchxs ese infierno regresa a los estados unidos con ell@s después de servir.

tenemos diablos de la depresión y la ansiedad que hacen daño a nuestras relaciones con otras personas y con nosotr@s mism@s.  el demonio que dice que no tienes valor, que no hay por qué vivir, que nunca serás suficiente flac@, alt@, inteligente, ric@.  que no tienes las habilidades de hacer el trabajo, que nadie te contratará.

quizás es el demonio que te encuentra cuando trabajas en un proyecto y oyes que no es suficiente, que hay más que hacer—cada palabra, cada persona, cada cosa tiene que ser perfecto o no vale nada.  el demonio que te dice que no sabes lo suficiente del idioma, matemática, la ley, leer, cocinar… y nunca encontrarás un trabajo, la justicia, aprobación.

el demonio que dice que si no lo haces tú, nadie lo hará y todo se vendrá abajo.  que hay que ser a “mi manera o te largas.”  el demonio que te dice que el mundo afuera es caótico y no puedes controlarlo, entonces tienes que controlar todo que puedes—todo en tu alrededor.

esos diablos vienen sin cuernos, ni colas, ni horcas, y quizás por eso son más insidiosos.  son invisible, susurran en una voz que pensamos que sólo yo oigo y saben como callarnos para que no nos da cuenta de que tod@s tenemos demonios.  los míos son diferentes que los tuyos, pero los dos existen.

cuando aparecen en secreto, cuando estamos sol@s, no tenemos amigos ni familia para ayudarnos en la lucha contra el diablo.  cuando pienso que soy sólo yo con un diablo, el diablo gana.  pero jesús conoce a tus demonios.  jesús contradice cada palabra del diablo.

cuando el demonio te dice que no tienes valor, 

      jesús te llama “hij@ amad@ por dios.”

cuando el demonio te dice que no hay tiempo y nunca terminarás el proyecto, 

      jesús dice “quédense quietos, reconozcan que yo soy dios,”    

      nunca será perfecto y           está bien.

cuando el demonio te dice que nadie te puede ayudar 

y que tienes que hacer todo sólo, 

      jesús te recuerda que él tuvo los doce y la setenta 

      y también tú tienes gente para ayudarte cuando pidas.

cuando el demonio te dice que a nadie le importas, que esta tristeza profunda o el abuso es tu cruz, jesús te dice que ya se murió en la cruz para que nadie sufriera—no eres sol@ y no es tu responsabilidad de llevar esta cruz sólo.  jesús dice, “sal del abusador” no tienes que quedarse con él.  hay gente aquí en la iglesia y en el mundo que te quiere.

jesús crea comunidad para que cuidemos unos a otras.  para que nos apoyemos.  jesús responde a cada diablo con toda la confianza del hijo de dios y con todo el amor de dios mism@.  nosotr@s no tenemos esta fuerza para combatir cada diablo que encontramos, pero no la necesitamos porque tenemos a jesús.  jesús tiene la fuerza y nos quiere tanto que haría cualquier cosa—aun ser matado en la cruz—para vencer a nuestros diablos, para librarnos del mal.                                     

gracias a dios.

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like jesus, we all have devils. some people don’t believe in hell today, yet they still experience and admit that hell exists at least here on earth. from people who served in war, we hear that the reality of kill or be killed is hell on earth—and for many, that hell returns with them, usually labeled ptsd, to the united states after serving.

we have devils of depression and anxiety that harm our relationships with others and with ourselves. the devil that says that you have no value, that there is no reason to live, that you'll never be skinny enough, tall enough, smart enough, rich enough. you don’t have the skills to do the job, no one will hire you .

maybe it's the devil that finds you when you work on a project and you hear that it’s not enough, there's more to do, every word, every person, every thing has to be perfect, or else, it’s all worthless. the demon that tells you that you don’t know enough of the language, math, reading, cooking, or the law and you’ll never find a job, justice, approval.

the demon that says that if you don’t do it, nobody will and everything will fall apart. that it has to be “my way or the highway."  the demon that tells you that the outside world is chaotic and you have no hope of controlling it, so you have to control everything and everyone you can—everything around you.

these devils don’t come with horns, tails, or pitchforks, which is perhaps why they are so much more insidious. they are unseen, they whisper in a voice that we think only we can hear, and know how to shut us up so we don’t realize that we all have demons. mine are probably different than yours, but both exist.

when they appear in secret, when we’re alone, we don’t have friends or family around to help us fight against the devil.

when i think it’s just me and the devil, the devil wins. but jesus knows your demons. jesus counters every single one of the devil’s words.

when the devil says you have no value, 

      jesus calls you "beloved child of god. "
when the devil tells you that there is no time, and so much to do, 

and you will never finish the project, 

      jesus says, "be still and know that i am god," 

      it will never be perfect, and that is fine.
when the devil tells you that nobody can help you 

and you have to do everything alone, 

      jesus reminds you that he had the twelve and the seventy 

      and you also have people to help you when you ask.
 

when the devil tells you that nobody cares, that this deep sadness or this abuse is “your cross to bear,” jesus tells you that he already died on the cross, so that no one would have to suffer—you are not alone, and it is not your responsibility to bear this cross alone. jesus says, "leave the abuser" you don’t have to stay with them, this deep sadness, this depression is not the only way. there are people here in the church and the world that love you and want to help you.

jesus creates this community so that we can care for one another, so that we can experience god’s love through each other. so that we can support each other. jesus answers the devil with all the confidence of the son of god and with god's own love.

we don’t have the strength to fight every devil that we encounter, but we don’t need it because we have jesus. jesus has the power and loves us and wants us so much that he would do anything—even be killed on the cross—to conquer our devils, to deliver us from evil.

thanks be to god.

may you be covered in the dust of jesus: ash wednesday

the psalm with which we began the service was psalm 51.
the first reading was joel 2:1-2, 12-17.

the holy gospel according to matthew, the 6th chapter.  glory to you, o lord.

“Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. ²“So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ³But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

⁵“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.⁶But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

¹⁶“And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ¹⁷But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, ¹⁸so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

¹⁹“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

the gospel of the lord.  praise to you, o christ.

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remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

just as joel sounds the trumpets for a solemn assembly, much of our lives are marked by funerals and loss.  sometimes i find myself keeping track of the events of my life in relationship to those who have died.  it’s not necessarily every year that someone close to me dies, but it’s often enough that they can be time markers.  my uncle in third grade, my grandfather at the end of eighth grade, my high school classmate my second year of college, and my grandmother this past year.

you are dust and to dust you shall return.

death is all around us and yet the world that surrounds us does not like death or mortality.  it does not want to be reminded that we will all die in the end—you can see it in commercials most clearly.  denying mortality, the underlying message is that you will be more alive, more immortal, further from death—or, at least, that is how you will appear.  you will look younger, more alive, vibrant if you would just by this one product.

but we were created out of the dust to be a dusty people.  god formed the first human from the dust of the ground.  it’s even in the hebrew of the words.  adam from adamah.  we are dusty people,    from dust,    and when we die, we will return to the dust of the earth. 

as god has provided us with nourishment from creation for our living, so, in our dying do we respond with nourishment for creation.  returning to the earth at the end of our lives, continuing the cycle for generation after generation.

you are dust and to dust you shall return.

we come today to put ashes on our foreheads, to proclaim the good news of our mortality to the world.  we come today to stare death in the face,   to face our mortality    in the grace of god because even as we embrace mortality, we know that in jesus christ, death does not have the final word. so we can come to join the solemn assembly of joel to honor that life is precious and short—even when it lasts for over a century.  we come to say that yes, we will die, we will get sick, we will be sad and lonely and angry, we will mess up and sin and hurt, and,   even in all of that,   we have a god who loves us.

a god who loves us in all our messiness and a god who knows not only our shadow sides, our sinfulness, but also our original goodness.  this is the god who creates us, the god who comes to dwell with us, to be the Dusty One among the dusty many.  a god who comes to us, even knowing the path ahead.

you are dust and to dust you shall return.

that is what these long 40 days are about.  we begin our lenten journey marked by dust—the dust of the cross.  we know this road.  we have traveled it before.  this is the road to jerusalem.  the disciples walked it so many years ago, not knowing how it would end.  we know where the road leads, to the top of the hill, to the cross.  yet our call is to discipleship.

in high school sunday school, we talked about discipleship in jesus’ time and learned that in jesus’ day, disciples were the people who tried to be just like their rabbi.  they would try to follow the rabbi so closely that the saying for disciples was, “may you be covered in the dust of your rabbi.”

you are dust and to dust you shall return.

we are covered in the dust of our rabbi, marked with the cross of christ.  looking forward to these 40 days as a time to deepen our discipleship—to be covered in the dust of jesus not just today, but every day.

it is in light of our dusty situations that we hear jesus’ words to us that in our alms giving, in our praying, and in our fasting we are to do it not for the recognition that the world gives, but for our own growth.  we do it as a way of helping our hearts to get to the right place.  jesus says, “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

my heart does not always go where i want it to.  psalm 51 makes it clear, requesting, “create in me a clean heart, o god, and renew a right spirit within me.  cast me not away from your presence, and take not your holy spirit from me.  restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain me with your bountiful spirit.”

jesus’ promise that where we decide to store up treasure will help our heart to go where we choose gives me hope that even when i am struggling in my heart, my mind and intentionality matter and they can guide my heart in the long run.  it is a promise that says i have agency and i get to choose where i lead my heart. 

my heart, though very much influenced by it, is not bound to evil or consumerism, spite or fear.  i get to help my heart live into its original goodness, which came before and is stronger than any original sin, and part of how i get to do that is in how i respond to what god has provided.  i get to store up my treasures where i choose.

and lest i get too full of myself, believing my salvation might depend on me rather than on god, i am reminded:

you are dust and to dust you shall return.

even as i get to choose where to store up my treasure, where i want to lead my heart.  here on ash wednesday it is clear.  i am not dependent on my own heart or my will or my actions.  even as i seek to be covered in the dust of jesus, i am not jesus and i am not the one with all the grace. 

even as i store up my treasure, as i come for repentance, for forgiveness, for comfort, i am reminded of my favorite definition of grace: there is nothing you can do to make god love you any more and there is nothing you can do to make god love you any less. 

because although we are dust and to dust we shall return, that is not all we are.  in our baptisms we are claimed as god’s beloved children.  so when we come seeking clean hearts and right spirits, we know that god will cleanse us as with hyssop and make us clean because god has already cleansed us with the waters of baptism, where we were joined to jesus in his death so that we might be raised with him in the resurrection.

so i come to be covered in the dust of jesus, trusting that god’s grace, poured down at baptism and made known in jesus christ, covers me long after the dust of ashes has been washed away.

you are dust and to dust you shall return.