Dust & Lent - A Reflection for Children on Ash Wednesday

(Thanks to Fr Derek Larson for material and inspiration on dust & Pope Francis for inspiration)

Hello students! Good morning parishioners.

Today is a very important day. It’s “Ash Wednesday,” the first day of Lent. So today, I want talk to you about Dust and Lent. 

Let’s begin with dust.

You know what dust is right? Dust is the collection of fine particles that fill the air and settle on things like tables, shelves, and ceiling fans in our homes. Dust.

Here are some facts about dust.

Some of the dust around us and the dust in your home came all the way from Africa, or from a volcano in the middle of the ocean or a fire in China.

That’s right, it came all the way from Africa. Because in the Saharan Desert sand storms blow sand high into the sky and travels across the world and even ends up in your house gets in your house. It gets on your clothes and pets through open doors and windows. 

So there’s a little bit of another part of the world right beside you all the time. Dust is strong enough to travel all across the world.

Another fact is that dust makes sunrises and sunsets beautiful. 

When dust fills the air and sunlight touches it in just the right way you get beautiful shades of pink and orange and red. And it’s all because of dust. Dust is beautiful.

A 3rd fact is that scientist estimate that the average household produces 40 pounds of dust a year. That’s the size of a kindergartner. So even when you clean up the dust more dust comes back. There will always be dust to clean up. Dust can go on forever.

The last fact I want to share is that dust is made up of all kind of things. It’s made of dirt, sand, pollen, clothing fibers, dead bugs and dead bug poop! But probably 1/2 the dust in your home is made up of dead skin cells. Little bits of skin shed from your body goes into the air and becomes dust. Dust is made of you.

But did you know that dust isn’t just made of you, you are made of dust? 

The Bible says in the book of Genesis that God formed humans from the dust of the ground and breathed into their nostrils the breath of life and they became living beings. The first person’s name was Adam and in the Hebrew language, Adam is the word for dust.

It all started with dust. 

Today, we remember that God made us from the dust of the ground. 

And to help us remember, we put a little bit of dust on our foreheads. (Don’t worry though, our dust is made of the ashes of burnt palm leaves, not dead bugs). 

The dust on our heads in the shape of the cross. It is to remind us that we are connected to the earth. It is to remind us, we are connected to each other and are connected to God. And, it reminds us, we are all made of dust.

We are made of the same stuff that is strong enough to travel around the world, even all the way from Africa. We are made of the same stuff that makes the sunrises and sunsets beautiful. We are made of the same stuff that God picked up in his own hands to make people. 

We are dust! 

It’s pretty cool when you think about it. All that God has given us in dust and the fact that dust is so cool. Remember that you are dust, and dust is strong and beautiful. God made each of us strong and beautiful in our own way. Like dust, with Jesus we can live forever.

The next thing is Lent. This is not the lint (L-I-N-T) that catches in your family dryer when your parents do the laundry. Lent (L-E-N-T) is the time that we prepare for Easter. 

Lent is also the time we give things back to God.

Remember when I was reading earlier. I read about fasting, almsgiving, and prayer. Maybe you don’t know exactly what those are but they are ways to show God how much we love Him. These are the ways we can show God that we are strong and beautiful.

Fasting is giving up up something we love and giving back to God a love that is better.

Maybe we fast by giving up cookies. Maybe we can fast by not drinking sugary drinks and drinking water instead.

But there are other ways to fast.

Don't talk bad about others; instead pass on kind words. Don’t be unhappy; instead fill yourself with hope. Don’t get angry; instead fill yourself with happiness. Don't worry; instead trust that God is with you.

Almsgiving is a way to love others as a gift to God. Your parents may give to charities or help those who are homeless. But there are other ways of almsgiving.

Say hello always and everywhere - say hello to someone in the hall, your next door neighbor, your teachers, the ladies in the office. 

Say hello your neighbors and to people your know. Greet others with great joy like the people you see every day. Smile at your friends. Be happy when you get to school and see your friends.

Say thank you even for the smallest things. Tell your teachers thank you. Say thank you to the ladies in the cafeteria, the secretaries, librarians, and even say thank you to the person who waits on you at McDonalds. Tell your friend who hands you a pencil or holds the door open or even just smiles at you, thank you.

Remind others how much you love them. Tell your parents you love them. Tell your brothers and sisters you love them. Tell your aunties, uncles, and grandparents you love them. I am a papaw that is very special to us. Tell those you love how much you love them.

Help someone who needs help. Help your little brother and sister learn to tie their shoes. Help them get dressed. If they learn to do it themselves, Celebrate their wins. 

Help your parents or grandparents in simple ways. Take the garbage out. Clean up after yourself. Clean you room. Pickup your clothes and put your shoes away. 

Always pray. Say thank you to God and tell Jesus how much you love him. Prayer is talking to God like a friend. It is telling God how much we love him. Thanking him for all he has given us, like making us from dust. 

That is what Lent is about. That is the way we prepare for Easter.

I said today “Ash Wednesday” we were going to talk about Dust and Lent. But we haven’t talked much about ashes yet.

In a little while, each of us will have the opportunity to come to the front or rear of the church. And, someone will take some dusty ashes and mark a cross on our foreheads.

The person marking us with ashes will say some words from the Bible: Remember that ‘you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

Then we’ll each go back to our seats. Some people will leave the ashes on. Some will wipe the ashes off.

But those words from the Bible should remain in our hearts and remind us all of something very important. It’s something about who we are. 

Remember that you are dust, and dust is strong and beautiful. God made each of us strong and beautiful in our own way. By believing in Jesus, like dust we can go on forever.

Ash Wednesday - Welcome to Life

(Thank you Fr Karsh for inspiration)

In Genesis we hear how God formed humans from the dust of the ground and breathed into their nostrils the breath of life and they became living beings. The first person’s name was Adam and in the Hebrew language, Adam is the word for dust.

We were meant to live forever with God. But something happened and things changed. That is why later in Genesis - God told Adam - Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.

On Ash Wednesday, we wear across of ashes to remind us that we are dust. These ashes remind us of our humanity and mortality. 

Why do people have to be reminded? Well, welcome to life.

Whether it’s fear, arrogance, pride, delusion, ignorance, denial, wounds and pain, the illusions of success and accomplishments, or a thousand other things, something happens. People forget their dustiness. They forget that they are dust and to dust they shall return. 

In forgetting their dustiness, people forget their mortality and human nature. The church in its wisdom gives us these ashes on Ash Wednesday to battle that fault. Ashes bring people back to reality.

Ashes on our forehead remind us that human life has limits, that it comes to an end, and that everyone dies. Pope Francis said, the imposition of ashes “reminds us of who we are.”

Ashes remind us that our lives are fragile and insignificant: we are dust, from dust we were created, and to dust we shall return. The ashes speak of the virtue of humility, of knowing human limits, of knowing fragility and mortality. 

The ashes speak of knowing we need God. 

Ashes remind us of our mortality, but why ashes in the sign of a cross? Why not a heart or our initials? Why a cross in ashes? 

The cross of ashes reminds us of several important things. 

First, it reminds us of human sin and that brokenness and injustice are a part of life. The cross reminds us that our innocent friend and savior Jesus was abused and tortured and executed. The cross reminds us that Jesus loved us—and is loving us still—even unto death.

The cross in ashes is the counterpart to the cross that was traced on our brow when we were baptized, when the words— “You have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever.” 

So, the ashes in the shape of a cross is to remind us that the cross is not the last word—the resurrection lies beyond it. 

The cross in ashes reminds one of all these very important things but it also signifies that we are marked for discipleship. Marked to be servants of God—as Paul states in his letter to the Corinthians to live in such a way that others will experience the love of God—which is salvation—through them—through their knowledge, their patience, their kindness, their holiness of spirit, through genuine love, truthful speech. 

All of this, Paul says, comes about not by their own honor or good reputation or righteousness and power but by the power of God’s grace.

The cross in ashes on our for heads, reminds us, we are connected to each other. It Reminds us, we are connected to God. It reminds us of our humanity. It Reminds us, we are all made of dust.

The cross in ashes on our brows is the "yes" to the kind of Lent Jesus desires for each of us. He wants us to accompany him boldly, saying "no" to that which would slow our steps and saying "yes" to that which would fill our hearts and actions with love for him and others. 

The kind of Lent, the kind of life Jesus desires is the kind that prepares our hearts for a Savior who rises from the ashes of death and injustice to bring a new life of justice and joy. 

Our new life begins with the cross on our brows and the promises of God fulfilled in our lives by faith.

It’s Ash Wednesday. Welcome to life.

Homily 8th Sunday: Pilgrims bearing Good Fruit

https://p.feedblitz.com/r3.asp?l=349490052&f=1093293&c=20275080&u=73884139

May All I do & All I teach give glory to God, in Jesus’ name. Amen 

Praise God! Praise be to Jesus Christ, forever and ever. 

My bonus granddaughter Lillian comes out of Children's Church last Sunday and says, “We are God’s Chosen people.”

My daughter asked, “Did you learn that in Children’s Church?”

Lillian says “No, we learned you are supposed to love those who are mean to you.”

So Sarah asked her, “How do you know we are God’s chosen people? The Bible says God’s chosen people are the people of Israel.”

Lillie answered in a matter-of-fact way, “God told me.” And she added “ They are God’s chosen people from Israel. We are God’s chosen people from Louisiana.”

 

Jesus says, “You did not choose me, but I chose you so that you might go and bear fruit.”

In this jubilee year of Hope, we are called to be Pilgrims of Hope. Pilgrims that go out and bear the fruit of Hope to those around us.

Jesus teaches, “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.” What message do we bring to the world, bad fruit or good fruit? The fruit is in what we say to others. The fruit is the examples we set for others to see and follow.

Over a century earlier, the Jewish sage Sirach shared the same message inspired in him by God. Sirach and Jesus teach this truth: the words we speak and the things that we do reveal our hidden thoughts and the secrets of our hearts. They taught this message in a lesson of everyday life. Everyday life where words and deeds are plant seeds that bear fruit in this physical world. The honesty of who we are is the fertilizer for all the fruit we bear in this world. 

The way we communicate who we are, can be compared to a sieve, a kiln, and a fruit-bearing tree. When a sieve is shaken, the husks appear, just as one's faults are revealed when one speaks or their actions. 

The fruit of a tree shows the care it received. What we say or do discloses our heart. What we share with the world is a direct reflection of our inner character. 

Like a tree bearing fruit, our words and deeds reflect the qualities we cultivate within ourselves. That is the fruit we bear. Is it bad fruit or good fruit? The fruits of the virtues of faith, hope, and love (charity) bring hope to a world that needs hope.

To know the truth of our character is like a potter's kiln testing the quality of a vessel; our conversations test our character. Our actions show who we truly are. 

Words and actions of good character have power. We should use that power to build up and uplift others. This is what it is to be Pilgrims of Hope. “For no good tree bears bad fruit, and a bad tree bear does not bear good fruit." 

It is our character that comes "out of the abundance of the heart” and Jesus says this is shown by our words and actions. He also tells is that “By your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:37). 

The words that come out of our mouths, the actions of our hearts matter. St. Paul reminds us that to share in God’s victory over death,“we must give our hearts and lips to what is good.”

We are in a time of change. Words and speech that come from despair and sadness can be hurtful. That same despair and sadness can unintentionally hurt ourselves and others. 

It is understandable, change is hard. Nothing was harder than what Jesus had to do.

And by his words and actions, Jesus gave hope to the world. The Hope of salvation. The Hope of eternal life, and the Hope that comes from knowing that He chose us. 

There is a saying that we reap what we sow. How true when what we say and what we do tells others who we really are. Our words and actions can build us up or tear us down. In the same way, they can build others up or tear them down as well.

Lillian was so right. We are God’s chosen people.

We are God’s chosen people not just because we are from Louisiana. Not because we are the Diocese of Shreveport. Not because we are part of Our Lady of Fatima Parish. Not because we are here at St Lawrence/CCM. 

We are God’s chosen people, because Jesus chose us for himself. We are God’s chosen people because we love even those we think that have been mean to us. We are God’s chosen people, his church.

In faith, hope, and love (charity) as God’s chosen people we choose Jesus. We choose hope. And, we are transformed by God. 

We are transformed to go and bear good fruit. Our good words and good actions are those of Pilgrims that bear good fruit in the world. 

Pilgrims of Hope even in times of change.

Friends, as Pilgrims of Hope, be good, be holy and preach the good news of Jesus Christ by the way you live your life and love one another.

Praise God! Praise be to Jesus Christ, forever and ever. Amen.