March 4, 2025
March 4, 2025
I love having my sins forgiven. More than sinning itself. Sinning is our human condition, universal, we all sin. And God’s forgiveness fills me with such relief, joy and freedom! After so many years of experiencing the grace of God’s forgiveness, I recognize that I still need my sins named, challenged, admitted.
I love that we begin our worship each week with confession and forgiveness. I admit I sin and the presiding minister announces God’s forgiveness. Every week! I often worship more than once each weekend, and I confess like the madman I am and joyously receive forgiveness … every time, at every worship.
Oddly though, I have a love/hate relationship with Ash Wednesday.
Which is tomorrow! We gather to worship with imposition of ashes at both noon & 7:00 pm.
Ash Wednesday is all about admitting, confessing, laying bare our personal and our corporate sin … and repenting of it. It is so needed. By me. And you. This year. And every year.
But the Ash Wednesday worship offers little in the way of forgiveness. We ask God to forgive us … explicitly name some of our sin … but leave without someone proclaiming forgiveness like we do on Sunday mornings. The church makes us wait 40 days to conclude our Ash Wednesday confession with the Easter proclamation that through the resurrection of Christ, not the cross, not the blood, all our sins are forgiven.
Ash Wednesday we admit we all sin.
Easter Day we celebrate we all are forgiven.
If I had confirmation verse, I forgot it and never found it. In college, I took Romans 3:21-23 as mine: “For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” That’s the journey of Lent each year for me. All fall, all justified by grace. I fall short of God’s expectations. God never falls short in God’s love for me. And you. And everyone.
So, let the Lenten journey begin! Tomorrow. I’m not putting my Mardi Gras beads away until I go to bed tonight. But I’ll see you tomorrow as our journey to the empty grave begins.
Pastor Jim
P.S. Tomorrow also begins a 40th anniversary bonus for our 40 day journey. Members and friends of Prince of Peace have been making short testimonial videos of what this church means to them. They’ll be released every day (but Sundays, which are in, but not of, Lent) on our Facebook Page. Even as a late adoptee at Prince of Peace, I made one! But I failed to mention that I love feeling safe here to admit my sin and here to receive forgiveness in both word and sacraments. So, there, I confessed. I know you, like God, will forgive me. I am so blessed.
I love having my sins forgiven. More than sinning itself. Sinning is our human condition, universal, we all sin. And God’s forgiveness fills me with such relief, joy and freedom! After so many years of experiencing the grace of God’s forgiveness, I recognize that I still need my sins named, challenged, admitted.
I love that we begin our worship each week with confession and forgiveness. I admit I sin and the presiding minister announces God’s forgiveness. Every week! I often worship more than once each weekend, and I confess like the madman I am and joyously receive forgiveness … every time, at every worship.
Oddly though, I have a love/hate relationship with Ash Wednesday.
Which is tomorrow! We gather to worship with imposition of ashes at both noon & 7:00 pm.
Ash Wednesday is all about admitting, confessing, laying bare our personal and our corporate sin … and repenting of it. It is so needed. By me. And you. This year. And every year.
But the Ash Wednesday worship offers little in the way of forgiveness. We ask God to forgive us … explicitly name some of our sin … but leave without someone proclaiming forgiveness like we do on Sunday mornings. The church makes us wait 40 days to conclude our Ash Wednesday confession with the Easter proclamation that through the resurrection of Christ, not the cross, not the blood, all our sins are forgiven.
Ash Wednesday we admit we all sin.
Easter Day we celebrate we all are forgiven.
If I had confirmation verse, I forgot it and never found it. In college, I took Romans 3:21-23 as mine: “For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” That’s the journey of Lent each year for me. All fall, all justified by grace. I fall short of God’s expectations. God never falls short in God’s love for me. And you. And everyone.
So, let the Lenten journey begin! Tomorrow. I’m not putting my Mardi Gras beads away until I go to bed tonight. But I’ll see you tomorrow as our journey to the empty grave begins.
Pastor Jim
P.S. Tomorrow also begins a 40th anniversary bonus for our 40 day journey. Members and friends of Prince of Peace have been making short testimonial videos of what this church means to them. They’ll be released every day (but Sundays, which are in, but not of, Lent) on our Facebook Page. Even as a late adoptee at Prince of Peace, I made one! But I failed to mention that I love feeling safe here to admit my sin and here to receive forgiveness in both word and sacraments. So, there, I confessed. I know you, like God, will forgive me. I am so blessed.