Do you have a hole in your heart, left behind by the loss of someone or something you dearly loved? They say time heals all wounds, but time has done nothing for me. 16 years ago I lost the most precious person, my beloved mother. I've often said the downside to having an incredible mother is losing her.
My mother was ill for several years before she died and our hearts were heavy with uncertainty over how long she had with us. I was always wondering if the doctor had said something that she wasn't telling me. I remember finally getting up the courage to ask her, "Mom, are you dying?" And she replied "Myra, we are all dying." My mother was right, none of us know how long we have.
The anniversary of her passing happens to fall this year on Ash Wednesday, a day we receive ashes and are reminded that from dust we come and to dust we shall return. It is also the beginning of the journey toward Easter, the day we celebrate that our story does not end in the grave. Time has not made me miss my mother any less, but the promise of eternal life has healed the pain and Christ's love has filled the void along the way.
Do you know the depths of Christ's love for you, a love that can heal every hole in your heart? In these troubled times, it’s impossible not to feel the brevity of life. Our world needs hope and the ashes are a symbol of the hope we have in Christ. As we journey through the season of Lent, I challenge you to fast from anything that is keeping you from feasting on Christ's unconditional, sacrificial love for you. There is no substitute for the healing power of Christ's love.
"And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen" Ephesians 3:17-21 (NIV).