February 22 -- Ash Wednesday

Honesty is always good. Even if it hurts.

When I was growing up. I remember clearly my dad correcting me after catching me in a little lie that would have made things easier: "In our family, Dan, we tell the truth." “But Dad!” I'd start my rationalizing..."In our family, Dan, we tell the truth." It was one of our family mottos.

Today, is a day for truth telling. "Now is the acceptable time." Only today they’re not just little lies like 'I didn't eat the last cookie'. They’re the big ones. What big might lie might you be telling yourself or others around you? That you’re happy? That you’re healthy? That you’re fine? That you’re doing all you can for the poor, the needy? That you’re over it (whatever ‘it’ is)? That you really haven’t hurt that many with your choices? That you are really in control? How we can forget and stray and lie to ourselves that we humans are really in control.

Today, is the day for acknowledging our lies.

And today we receive our corrective, not from any earthly loving parent, but from the almighty, who in sternness and love calls us to repentance: “But, God!” we start to rationalize..."No,” says God, “In our family, we tell the truth."

Honesty is always good, even when it hurts.

And the honesty today, the two truths that we really come face to face with today, are about our sin and our death. We are all sinful, and someday we are all going to die. "Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return."

Today is a day for hard truths. "In our family, sisters and brothers in Christ, we tell the truth."

We start there. This tradition of ashes dates back to Christians in the 11th century. Isn't that incredible?!

The Christians of that time would put ashes on themselves, in a gesture of honesty, and they would weep together. Not in a showy sign of piety (like in our Gospel reading), but because it was part of their faith. Telling the truth, was part of their faith. A tiny outward sign of a humungous inward truth: I'm/we're all going to die; I am/we're all sinful and broken.

We start there; it’s a hard place to be. Like in a 12-step program. We can’t go anywhere if we don’t admit there’s a problem. Christianity begins with an ultimate problem: sin and death. And it ends with Christ. Today we begin again by admitting that we are not in control. We are not always healthy. We do hurt others and the earth itself. We could make better choices. We could share more of what we have. We harbor anger and resentment, greed and pride. We like to show off (mostly in covert ways). We don’t want to share. We are afraid to trust in God.

We are sinful.

And while it’s not easy to tell the truth. It is good. Even if it hurts.

There is a load that is lifted when the truth comes out. “Well, now we know.” There is a load that is lifted. And God is there.

And now we can begin on the journey. A journey that’s not easy either, but a journey to the waters of healing. The waters of baptism.

I hope you think about your baptism all the time this beautiful Lent. Put up signs by your faucet, and your sprinkler system, and your umbrella to remind yourself that God makes you holy in baptism. You are loved and your are destined for loving others…even if its difficult right now. And even despite even our worst mistakes God is here calling us back again and again back to those holy waters, to God’s holy embrace…where we are called good, beloved, child of God.

There is healing that comes with telling the truth. And Christ goes with us on this journey. AMEN.