A Service of Prayer for the Beginning of Day for February 17, 2021

 By the sweat of your face

you shall eat bread

until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken;

you are dust,

and to dust you shall return.”

Genesis 3:19 

Today is Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent. Today we will focus on todays readings and the meaning of the ashes.

DIALOGUE

O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall declare your praise.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

PSALMODY

Give glory to God, our light and our life.
Oh, come, let us worship him.
Oh, come, let us sing to the Lord; let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth; the heights of the hills are also his.
The sea is his, for he made it; and his hands have molded the dry land.
Oh, come, let us bow down and bend the knee, and kneel before the Lord, our maker.
For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen

Give glory to God, our light and our life. 
Oh, come, let us worship him.

Psalm 51:1-17

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
 in your great compassion blot out my offenses.
Wash me through and through from my wickedness,
  and cleanse me from my sin.
 For I know my offenses,
 and my sin is ever before me.
Against you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight;
   so you are justified when you speak and right in your judgment. 
 Indeed, I was born steeped in wickedness,
 a sinner from my mother’s womb.
 Indeed, you delight in truth deep within me,
   and would have me know wisdom deep within.
 Remove my sins with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
 wash me, and I shall be purer than snow.
  Let me hear joy and gladness;
  that the body you have broken may rejoice. 
 Hide your face from my sins,
 and blot out all my wickedness.
  Create in me a clean heart, O God,
  and renew a right spirit within me.
 Cast me not away from your presence,
 and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
  Restore to me the joy of your salvation
   and sustain me with your bountiful Spirit.
 Let me teach your ways to offenders,
 and sinners shall be restored to you.
  Rescue me from bloodshed, O God of my salvation,
  and my tongue shall sing of your righteousness.
 O Lord, open my lips,
 and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
For you take no delight in sacrifice, or I would give it.
   You are not pleased with burnt offering.
 The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit;
 a troubled and broken heart, O God, you will not despise. 

HYMN
Restore in Us, O God

1. Restore in us, O God,
the splendor of your love;
renew your image in our hearts,
and all our sins remove.

2. O Spirit, wake in us
the wonder of your pow'r;
from fruitless fear unfurl our lives
like springtime bud and flow'r.

3. Bring us, O Christ, to share
the fullness of your joy;
baptize us in the risen life
that death cannot destroy.

4. Three-personed God, fulfill
the promise of your grace,
that we, when all our searching ends,
may see you face to face.

Text: Carl P. Daw Jr., b. 1944
Text © 1989 Hope Publishing Company, Carol Stream, IL 60188. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

READINGS
Isaiah 58:1-12

Shout out, do not hold back!
   Lift up your voice like a trumpet!
Announce to my people their rebellion,
   to the house of Jacob their sins.
Yet day after day they seek me
   and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness
   and did not forsake the ordinance of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments,
   they delight to draw near to God.
“Why do we fast, but you do not see?
   Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?”
Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day,
  and oppress all your workers.
Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
   and to strike with a wicked fist.
Such fasting as you do today
   will not make your voice heard on high.
Is such the fast that I choose,
   a day to humble oneself?
Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush,
   and to lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Will you call this a fast,
  a day acceptable to the Lord?

Is not this the fast that I choose:
   to loose the bonds of injustice,
   to undo the thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
   and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
   and bring the homeless poor into your house;
 when you see the naked, to cover them,
   and not to hide yourself from your own kin?
 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
   and your healing shall spring up quickly;
 your vindicator shall go before you,
   the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
   you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.

 If you remove the yoke from among you,
   the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,
 if you offer your food to the hungry
   and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,
 then your light shall rise in the darkness
   and your gloom be like the noonday.
 The Lord will guide you continually,
   and satisfy your needs in parched places,
and make your bones strong;
 and you shall be like a watered garden,
   like a spring of water,
 whose waters never fail.
Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
   the restorer of streets to live in.

Silence for meditation.

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets,
but in these last days God has spoken to us by the Son.

GOSPEL
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

[Jesus said to the disciples:] “Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

“So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

“And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Silence for meditation.

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets,
but in these last days God has spoken to us by the Son.

MESSAGE
Why Ashes?

So, what’s up with the ashes? As a child we never received ashes in church. Only the Catholic kids came to school with the black smudges on their foreheads. 

Today I chose the alternate reading for Ash Wednesday because it questions the piety of the people. The problem is not that the people are unreligious, but over-religious. They delight in exhibiting their piety. And yet, they miss the point of why they are doing what they are doing. They serve their own interests on their fast day, while oppressing others. So, why ashes? Is it a display of piety or something else?

According to an article in Sundays and Seasons, since the eleventh century ashes were made from burning the previous year’s palms. Many churches still do this today. The palms remind us of the cycle from Jesus triumphant celebration of his entry into Jerusalem to the humiliation of sinners covering their heads with the burnt greens. Ashes also bring to mind the fire of the Easter Vigil. 

The ashes of Ash Wednesday are a symbol of mortality and burial in the earth, yet the day is also filled with images for sin related to dirt. For most people today, ashes have connotations of uncleanliness, which probably leads many to feel as though they are being “dirtied” by the imposition of ashes (perhaps as a mark of sinfulness). 

However, ancient associations with ashes suggest seeing the imposition as a cleansing act. Ashes were the main ingredient in many ancient soaps and were often used in ritual cleansing. Numbers describes ritual cleansing with ashes (Num. 19:9-10), which the book of Hebrews then relates to the cleansing power of Christ’s blood (Heb. 9:13-14). So, what if we perceived the imposition of ashes as a “cleansing.” During the season of Lent we often sing the words of Psalm 51: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with your free Spirit.”

In today’s gospel Jesus cautions us against public acts of piety. When we allow the pastor to impose ashes on our foreheads and leave church with a visible smudge on our foreheads, are we doing so to remind everyone we see that we have been to church? Should we wipe it off as soon as we step out the door? Or, do we leave them on only to have the people we encounter in the world say to us,“Did you know that you’ve got something on your forehead”? Jesus does not tell us refrain from all acts of public piety. But, what he is concerned about is the Why? Why do we wear ashes? Why do we pray in public? Why do we give alms? Why do we fast? If it is about building ourselves up before others, then it is not about faithfulness but rather hypocrisy.

As the season of Lent begins each year, we are invited to take on three great disciplines: prayer, fasting, and alms-giving. And, we begin with ashes. Why ashes? It is because it remind us that our acts of faithfulness always come as a response to God’s gifts. Remembering this gives a note of humility to all we do. Piety is an acknowledgment of the one who first gave us everything.

THE GOSPEL CANTICLE

Refrain:
In the tender compassion of our God the Dawn from on high shall break upon us.

Blessed are you, Lord, the God of Israel,
you have come to your people and set them free.
You have raised up for us a mighty Savior,
Born of the house of your servant David. Refrain

Through your holy prophets, you promised of old
to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all who hate us;
you promised to show mercy to our forebears
and to remember your holy covenant. Refrain

This was the oath you swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship you without fear,
holy and righteous before you, all the days of our life. Refrain

And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
to give God's people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins. Refrain

In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Refrain

PRAYERS

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Let us pray,
Mighty God of mercy, we thank you for the resurrection dawn, bringing the glory of our risen Lord who makes every day new.
specially we thank you—
for the sustaining goodness of your creation . . .
for the new creation in Christ and all gifts of healing and forgiveness . . .
for the gifts of relationship with others . . .
for the communion of faith in your church . . .

Merciful God of might, renew this weary world, heal the hurts of all your children, and bring about your peace for all in Christ Jesus, the living Lord.
Especially we pray—
for those who govern nations of the world especially our president and governors . . .
for the people of our country, for the restoration of peace, and for justice . . .
for the people in countries ravaged by strife or warfare . . .
for all who work for peace and international harmony . . .
for all who strive to save the earth from carelessness and destruction . . .
for the church of Jesus Christ in every land . . .

Almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us in safety to this new day. Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor be overcome in adversity. In all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

LORD’S PRAYER

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. 
Amen

Let us bless the Lord
Thanks be to God.

BENEDICTION

Almighty God, the Father,  ☩  the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve us. Amen.

HYMN
Savior, When in Dust to You 

(Words in video vary from our hymnal.)

1. Savior, when in dust to you
low we bow in homage due;
when, repentant, to the skies
scarce we lift our weeping eyes;
oh, by all your pains and woe
suffered once for us below,
bending from your throne on high,
hear our penitential cry!

2. By your helpless infant years,
by your life of want and tears,
by your days of deep distress
in the savage wilderness,
by the dread, mysterious hour
of the insulting tempter's pow'r,
turn, oh, turn a fav'ring eye;
hear our penitential cry!

3. By your hour of dire despair,
by your agony of prayer,
by the cross, the nail, the thorn,
piercing spear, and torturing scorn,
by the gloom that veiled the skies
o'er the dreadful sacrifice,
listen to our humble sigh;
hear our penitential cry!

4. By your deep expiring groan,
by the sad sepulchral stone,
by the vault whose dark abode
held in vain the rising God,
oh, from earth to heav'n restored,
mighty, reascended Lord,
bending from your throne on high,
hear our penitential cry!

Text: Robert Grant, 1779-1838, alt.

Copyright © 2021 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SB125183