“Be Reconciled to God” (02/18/2026)

Today, Ash Wednesday, we begin our Lenten journeys in faith, full of hope that we can be reconciled to God and fueled by love for our LORD.

In the second reading for today, Paul reminds us of what is essential for our earthly journey. It is a message I plan to ponder throughout the Lenten season. He writes in 2 Corinthians 5:

Brothers and sisters:

We are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

Working together, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says: In an acceptable time, I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you.

Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

While today’s gospel recounts Jesus’ teaching on the appropriate and humble way to do service or pay alms, to pray, and to fast, the second reading focuses on the purpose of it all, to “be reconciled to God. This morning as I begin this season, I pray to the Spirit to guide me, to allow me to experience fully the season of repentance for that divine reconciliation. And I pray that the Spirit helps me to recognize fully that every moment of Lent is “a very acceptable time” to turn to the LORD fully. My hope is that this Lent will bring me closer to my loving and every present LORD.

As I ponder in advance this journey of six plus weeks, I am still trying to decide if this is a year where I give something up, a year where I add something I should be doing, or a year for both. As a child, I always gave up candy. As a middle-aged person, I stumbled upon the thought that in faith, we must add like with the Hanukkah candles, and I started doing extra service during Lent, working harder to grow all my relationships. I’m wondering if this year I should try doing both.

I know the Lenten journey is for me, not our LORD. It is me who has moved or turned or cooled in my love. I see this season as a time to get my spiritual ducks in a row again. Tradition tells me it is a season for prayer, fasting and almsgiving. I see it as a time for more prayer and meditation and longer prayer and contemplation. I see it as a time for more giving of myself because in doing so I have usually found myself. I see it also as a time of focusing on the essential by eliminating the non-essential.

As we begin our Lenten journeys to Easter, may the Spirit guide us to a joyful Easter celebration and a closer relationship with Father, Son, and Spirit and one another.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.