It's Tuesday, all right- but not just any Tuesday. Today is Shrove Tuesday, also known as Fat Tuesday, and of course, everyone knows the name Mardi Gras. All over the world today, people will be holding celebrations such as festivals, parades, and feasts to mark the last day before Lent begins.

Lent begins tomorrow, with Ash Wednesday marking the beginning of a forty-day journey to the cross. Lent takes us all the way through the end of Holy Week (Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday) and focuses on Jesus' temptation in the wilderness over forty days. In many Christian families, some decide to give something up for the season of Lent- a modern-day fast, just as Jesus fasted for forty days.

The day before Lent begins, it is customary for folks to feast before their fast. Thus, many churches host Shrove Tuesday Pancake Dinners on this day. Tonight, we will join our church family for a pancake feast, don our purple, green, and gold (Mardi Gras colors), put on our beads, and fill our tummies. Tomorrow, we will return to church to receive ashes on our foreheads and to hear the words 'remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.' 

I often say that I dislike the season of Lent because it seems to last forever and can feel sort of depressing. The older I get, however, I realize just how humbling the season of Lent truly is. From the moment I receive those ashes in the form of a cross on my forehead to the moment I drop a nail at the foot of the cross on Good Friday, I am reminded of Jesus' humanity, and my own. I am reminded of how deep the Father's love for me (and for all) is, and how great a gift God has given.

I hope and pray that you are able to begin your own Lenten journey tomorrow. Perhaps you'll spend less time on your phone scrolling through Reels (like I intend to do), and will spend more time with those you love, serving others, or simply spend more time soaking up the Word. However you spend the next forty days and nights, I pray that you are filled with the love of Christ, and share that love with others.

Today, we feast. Tomorrow, we fast. 

Will you join me?