Year C Ash Wednesday 2022 The Tell of our Hearts

 Year C Ash Wednesday, 2 March 2022

St. James the Less Epsicopal, Ashland, VA

“The Tells Of Our Hearts”

Collect: Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Matthew 6:1-6,16-21

Jesus said, "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."

In a suspense story, if someone mentions something hidden, like when a bad guy breaks in and tries to get people to tell where the thing they want is, it is human nature to glance in that direction. The “good guys'' give it away, in a vain attempt to check on its safety. I remember when I had opportunity to travel to Europe and see the beautiful cathedrals, some of them used to have signs out saying, “Beware of pickpockets.” What people did is pat their wallet to see if they were okay, and inevitably the pickpockets would notice and know right where to go when they pickpocket you. We have tells, giveaways to others, of what we truly treasure.

We all have tells, a term from poker that transmits to those who pay attention to what you have, or a revealing gesture, expression, etc. My wedding ring is a tell that I am married. My collar is a tell that I am a priest. You may have a lapel pin that proclaims a club, a fraternity or sorority, or political party or stance. It could be your national flag. At the State of the Union address last night, I was surprised to see Ukrainian flag pins instead of the usually ubiquitous American flag pins. Surprised, and pleased.

Tonight we have some warnings from Jesus. He tells us to beware of our tells. He warns us not to give away our secret devotions. I have Lenten devotions every year, and sometimes people ask what I give up. I tend not to say these, because of the spirit of Jesus teachings. My devotion is my business with God.

So whether I give money away, or I pray, or I fast, I try to keep that between me and God. It is not that it is a secret, but there are intimacies that we share with those closest to us. I share things with God, and I do things for God. No one else needs to share in that. Same is true for my wife, my kids, and other members of my family.

Tonight, though we have another tell, for those of us who chose to receive the imposition of ashes. We take on the sign of the Cross along with members of the Church around the world, as a reminder to us and to the world that “we are dust, and to dust we shall return.” Like my wedding ring, and my collar, I take on this public declaration to boldly claim my part in the Kingdom of God as well as my sonship in the family of humanity. I am the son of a father and a mother. They gave me life, through the Grace of God, and I also will claim my spot in that family in death.

We are all born. We all die. On our grave is our birth date and our death date. And that hyphen in the middle, that all too short hyphen in the middle, is where all our thoughts and feelings, all our loves and hates, all our weeping and victories, are contained in that hyphen.

While I was over in England, I was talking with a friend. He heard me mention that our death gives us purpose and it is a driver and our motivator. He did not let me finish, and began to argue that love is our driver and our motivator not a fear of death. He was not in a mood to argue, and I did not want to get into it in that context in which we were. It is not a fear of death, at least not for me, that motivates me. As you may have heard me say, one of my favorite quotes is “We are put on earth but a little space to learn to bear the beams of love.” Knowing that this space, this all too small hyphen, is a knowledge that we only get one ride on this merry-go-round so we make the most of this time which we are given. Death could arrive for us, at any day, at any hour. Live your life in such a way that if you are claimed today you would have no regrets. 

As a Christian, death is not a fear. Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. I believe that in the core of my being. Fear of death is not a motivator, but knowing that I am dust and to dust I shall return gives a fire in my belly to get on with it. Do not put off to tomorrow what we can accomplish today. Or as we say in a favorite blessing of many of us, “Life is short, and we do not have much time to gladden the hearts of those who travel with us. So be swift to love, and make haste to be kind.” (Henri Frederick Amiel)

Our expiration date is what gives us some gumption, and LOVE, Love is the means to do what we have to do.

We love what we love. We love who we love. We are beloved of God, each and every one of us.

As we make our way in this life, we have free will. We have the choice to decide “this day whom we will serve.”

In the same way, we find what we look for. As Father Richard Rohr says on this, and our point of view, “It’s heaven all the way to heaven. And it's hell all the way to hell. Not later, but now.” [Everything Belongs, p. 165]

Later he says, “...when we fall in love, we risk pain and we will always suffer for it. The cross is not the price that Jesus had to pay to talk God into loving us. It is simply where love will lead us. Jesus names the agenda. If we love, if we give ourselves to feel the pain of the world, it will crucify us.” [p. 169]

If you think that you can love and not have it weigh on your soul, you may never have been in love. It is the highest height and deepest depth, and it makes life, this space in the hyphen, worth living.

And when we love, truly love, we do not count the costs. A story is told…

An eight-year-old boy had a younger sister who was dying of leukemia, and he was told that without a blood transfusion she would die. His parents explained to him that his blood was probably compatible with hers, and if so, he could be the blood donor. They asked him if they could test his blood. He said sure. So they did and it was a good match. Then they asked if he would give his sister a pint of blood, that it could be her only chance of living. He said he would have to think about it overnight.

The next day he went to his parents and said he was willing to donate the blood. So they took him to the hospital where he was put on a gurney beside his six-year-old sister. Both of them were hooked up to IVs. A nurse withdrew a pint of blood from the boy, which was then put in the girl’s IV. The boy lay on his gurney in silence while the blood dripped into his sister, until the doctor came over to see how he was doing. Then the boy opened his eyes and asked, “How soon until I start to die?”

Friends, that is love. Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. The boy loved, and he determined it was worth the price, even when he thought the cost was all he had. And he gave it freely, no strings attached, but curious when the final cost would come.

Loving has a price. Loving is the cross. 

“Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?” Matthew 16:24-26

In claiming our cross, we embrace our love. In claiming our love, we tell what we truly treasure. And Jesus says it best of all…

"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." 

We come today to begin this holy Lent, admitting to ourselves and declaring to the world, our first love, what we truly treasure. Amen.