Goodness! How we’ve changed!

   Being raised in denominations which did not emphasize Ash Wednesday or Lent, Al and I recently experienced an Ash Wednesday service for the first time in our lives. It was a special opportunity to worship God as well as a time of self-examination, asking God to reveal areas that need to be changed and confessing shortcomings to Him.

   Towards the end of the service, the congregation was invited to come forward to receive the “impartation of ashes.” Two of the youth stood at the front of the sanctuary, each holding a small bowl containing the ashes. We formed two lines and as we reached the young people, they dipped their thumbs in the ashes, traced a cross on our foreheads, and recited the words “ash to ash and dust to dust.”

    Ashes and a cross on the forehead…  a humbling experience which was a good reminder of the temporal nature of all flesh, as well as the hope we have in Christ of eternal life.  During the service, the congregation was encouraged to continue the process of self-examination, confession and repentance during the next month in preparation for the celebration of Easter

    A few weeks after that service, the singles Bible study group which I attended for about six years before meeting Al, decided to have a little reunion in Bakersfield. The singles group met weekly to study the Bible during the school year and had many fun adventures together during holidays and the summer months, when some of us had time off or could take time off from work. Strong friendships were formed and many good marriages came out of it, including that of my brother and his wife, Peggy.

   It had been over thirty years since some of us had last seen each other. Voices were the same and personalities hadn’t changed; however, appearances were quite different. It was as though my friends, whom I had envisioned as still looking the same way they did before, had been plunked into some old, frail and bent bodies! We were all shocked!

   Our conversation that evening naturally went to aging. The host of the evening, Mike, commented that aging is waking up every morning and lying there awhile assessing what hurts, where it hurts and how much it hurts, before trying to get out of bed!

   Another friend said, “I realized how much I’ve aged when I looked at this group!”

   We reminisced about the good times we had during those years together, talked about how quickly time had flown by and remembered those in our group who had passed away. One person who couldn’t make the reunion, called from Los Angeles and talked to us collectively over the speaker phone. She related how much we meant to her and what wonderful love she had felt from the people in that group. “Unconditional love” she called it, an acceptance which she had rarely experienced in her life. 

    In spite of looking and feeling older, it was a joy to see those who had gathered together still strong in their faith, undaunted by life, and blessed abundantly by the Lord throughout the years. It was encouraging to once again feel their support and love.

    Yes aging is hard as a friend told me recently. “Don’t go there!” she warned with a grin. Too late! I’m already well on my way. If we didn’t age though, if we didn’t go through this difficult process, we would never want to let go of our hold on the earth. There are better things ahead! Hurray! Let’s keep our focus on the Lord and not let anything get in our way as we journey along the road to eternity.

“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” John 5:24 NIV