As Lent begins

Ash Wednesday 2012

In many ways, my first truly real Ash Wednesday was May 1, 2007 when my surgeon said, “Go home and get your affairs in order.”
I had, of course, led Ash Wednesday services for years…and loved them. Ash Wednesday is one of my favorite of all services of the church year. “From dust you came and to dust you will return” I said to each person who came forward…along with the challenge: “Will you repent and
be faithful to the gospel?”
That late afternoon in May, 2007, surrounded by my family in Dr. Iannitti’s office—in that surreal setting of a sudden, drastic diagnosis-- the mortality reality became personal in a different way.
I took Dr. Iannitti’s advice. I got my affairs in order. I’m pretty sure he was thinking
about the sobering statistics of pancreatic cancer—the deadliest of all cancers—which
often starts with a tumor like the one I had. He could tell me the size of the
tumor (about the size of a grapefruit). But only the after-surgery pathology could tell me if it was benign or the deadly, dreaded news of a malignancy. I had a pre-surgery window of 3
weeks to get my life in order.
I took on the challenge – writing out my funeral service, completing a host of legal
forms and speaking my heart to those I loved.
At the core, Lent is that kind of window--thankfully, grasping this challenge doesn't require a life-threatening diagnosis. Lent is twice as long as my 3 week window. The goal is the same: to get our lives in order. I am grateful that my funeral wasn’t needed in 2007, but—if I do say so myself-- it is going to be a wonderful service! Since then, I have carried a copy in my Bible. On every Ash Wednesday since then, I look it over and make some inspiring additions for what will be read and sung.
To be sure, I like to tell people what to do... But writing out my funeral is so much more
than that! I encourage everyone – no matter what age—to write out your funeral. What
scripture do you love most? What songs would you like sung? What witness of
your life do you hope is shared? ( This can go too far, I guess. So let’s be clear: I have not written the eulogy part! But I am aware that right now, my life is writing what will
be said).
Every Ash Wednesday is a time to remember that life is a gift, that we do not know what is next and that we need to make every moment count while we can. Death
is the one thing that we know for sure will take place. Christian faith prepares us to face the
fragility of life with hope and triumph. We can live honestly in a dangerous world without fear because of the resources of our faith.
I am so grateful that my parents instilled in us throughout our growing up years that we do not
need to be afraid of death. When sitting with my mother through her final days and hours, what a blessing it was to be clear of her great faith! As my father celebrated his 90th birthday, what a gift it is to know his lifelong preaching and personal faith that death is not to be feared – but to
be met as a gateway to new life. Faced with my own drastic and unexpected diagnosis, their lifelong witness of faith gave me a foundation.
That foundation is the core of Christian faith offered to everyone. Lent—of all times—is the time to be honest. The time to have hope. The time to take heart.
My funeral service is looking great. How about yours?
My hope is now to live a life that makes this great joy clear to others.