Ash Wednesday came with a cold steady rain that seemed to fit the mood of the day. "Almighty God, you have created us out of the dust of the earth: Grant that these ashes may be to us a sign of our mortality and penitence, that we may remember that it is only by your gracious gift that we are given everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Savior." The bulletin for the service is here as well as the sermon.
For such as night we had a good crowd at 21. People appreciated being there. Certainly one highlight was Nancy’s solo on "The Glory of These Forty Days. " The words are attributed to Pope Gregory in the 6th century. "The glory of these forty days We celebrate with songs of praise; For Christ, by Whom all things were made, Himself has fasted and has prayed." While we remember our sins and misdoings, the mood is not dwelling on the past but on improving the future. Ash Wednesday sets us on our course during Lent.
The main call of Ash Wednesday is call us into a way of discipline for the next 40 days as the Prayer Book indicates – "I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word. And, to make a right beginning of repentance, and as a mark of our mortal nature, let us now kneel before the Lord, our maker and redeemer."