Ashes to Ashes

Among the images shortly after the school shooting in Parkland one has stood out to me: A woman, perhaps a mother, is consoling someone. In the midst of her anguish, we can clearly see that she has a cross marked in ash on her forehead. Obviously, she didn’t pose for the photo, and in that moment probably didn’t know the picture was being taken.

This is a poignant aspect of wearing the mark of Christ on our forehead: everyone sees it except ourselves. And our faith is often exactly like that: our attitude may stink to everyone else, but we don’t smell anything. We think we’re speaking words of truth, but sometimes they come across abrasive and offensive. More positively, we may never realize the impact that our words and actions of love have on the people around us.

Moreover, sometimes our failure to speak or act courageously is also more obvious to others than to ourselves. We might feel frustrated about school violence, for example, but we convince ourselves that there’s nothing we can do about it. But all United Methodists accept the freedom and power that God gives us “to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves.” If we are, indeed, willing to accept that, it will change the world!

Blessings,
Pastor Paul Cook