Ash Wednesday: “Yet Even Now, Return To Me With All Your Heart”

A Musical Meditation For Ash Wednesday. (Musical ambience) by Fr. Rob Lord+

Ash Wednesday Reflection (Listening with ear phones or auto speaker is best)

Today is Ash Wednesday. “Come let us be still. Feel the weight of the ashes upon your forehead, the dust of the earth from which we came, the dust to which we shall return. In this moment, we are reminded of our frailty, our fleeting days, and yet also of the breath of God that sustains us.” (Words from Celtic author David Adam, former Vicar of Lindisfarne.)

“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” These words are not meant to cast us down, but to wake us up—to strip away illusion, to bring us back to truth.

And what is the truth? That we live in troubled times. Wars rage, voices shout, trust is broken, and fear is sown like seed upon the wind. Even our own hearts can be restless, caught between the call of God and the noise of the world.

Yet, here, in the hush of this holy day, we are called back to something deeper. Listen to these words of invitation from the Prophet Joel:

“Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love” (Joel 2:13).

To return is not simply to feel sorrow for the state of the world or for our own failings—it is to turn toward the light, to seek the face of God, to walk in mercy and truth.

“ Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart.” (Joel 2:12). This is the essence of Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent: God is always longing for us, drawing us into deeper friendship and confidence in God’s loving mercy.

Repentance is not despair; it is hope. It is the grace of beginning again. And so, as we bear this mark of ashes, let us not wear it only upon our skin, but upon our souls. Let us walk with humility, not in condemnation of others, but in a spirit of healing. Let us be peacemakers in a time of conflict, truth-tellers in an age of deception, bearers of light where shadows fall.

For we are dust, yes—but dust breathed upon by the Spirit of God. And that, changes everything.

May we embrace the invitation to a Holy Lent and with all the love of our heart, follow Jesus on the Journey and The Way,

Blessed Lent my friends,

Rob+