Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. The purpose is to see afresh our need for a Savior, renew our devotion to him through daily repentance, and remember that Jesus has conquered sin and death. In some traditions, an ashen cross is applied to one’s forehead to serve as a physical reminder that you have come from dust and to dust you will return (Gen. 3:19). But it is also a reminder to “consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:11).