The Fast We Choose – February 22, 2023

Scripture: Psalm 51:1-17;  Isaiah 58:1-12  Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?    –Isaiah 58:6-7 NRSV

Ash Wednesday is an inside-out act of worship. We come and confess and are reminded of both our sinfulness and our mortality. And yet we are given a visible mark in the imposition of ashes, a way of letting the world know that we are people of faith. Our hope is that such a symbol is a welcome sign, a sign of acceptance and hospitality. Indeed, our pledge to God is that we will live in such a way that we bring honor to the name of God and glory to Jesus the Christ. We live outwardly the inner beliefs that we hold.