Ash, Sin and God

I am sorry God.
I am a sinner.
I repent.

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of lent. The start of 40 days (Sundays don't count) of repentance for Christians. And we mark this with a service, a beautiful service of Ashing. Last years palm crosses are burned and the ash is placed on the forehead in the sign of the cross. Ash is a symbol of mourning and repentance, and so we mourn our losses and our sins and we repent. And God forgives us, again and again and again.

I love the Ashing service, it starts lent perfectly for me. I need to feel forgiven and today I get a very physical reminder that I am.