An Invitation to the Lenten Season 2026
Lent invites us into a different rhythm.
Beginning on Ash Wednesday, February 18, we enter a forty-day journey that calls us to slow down, to pay attention, and to return again and again to the heart of God. Lent is not about perfection or spiritual performance. It is about making space for honesty, reflection, and renewal as we walk with Christ toward the cross and, ultimately, toward resurrection.
Throughout the forty days of Lent, our church will share a daily devotional via email and on social media. These brief reflections will follow the lectionary and are meant to help ground us in Scripture, prayer, and faithful living in everyday life. Whether read first thing in the morning or at the close of the day, these devotions are offered as a simple way to stay connected to God, to Christ, and to one another.
Lent does not ask us to escape the realities of the world. Instead, it invites us to bring our whole lives, our hopes, our griefs, our questions, and our longings into God’s presence. As a church and as a community, we walk this season together, trusting that God meets us with mercy, grace, and love at every step.
Wherever you are on the journey of faith, you are invited to join us. May these forty days deepen our relationship with Christ, draw us closer to God, and open our hearts to the work God is doing within us and among us.
Grace and peace as we begin this Lenten journey together.
Pastor Sela
Ash Wednesday — February 18, 2026
Scripture: Joel 2:1–2, 12–17 (NRSV)
Scripture Summary:
The prophet Joel calls the people to attention, not to frighten them but to awaken them. In a time of uncertainty and urgency, God invites the community to return, not with outward displays but with honest hearts. Leaders and people alike are called to gather, to pray, and to trust in God’s compassion, mercy, and steadfast love.
Devotion:
On Ash Wednesday, we come forward to receive ashes on our foreheads, hearing the ancient words, “from dust you came, and to dust you shall return.” These words are not meant to diminish us, but to tell the truth about our lives. We are finite, fragile, and deeply in need of grace. And yet, we are also held by a God who breathes life into dust and calls us beloved. Lent begins with this honest reminder: we do not save ourselves. We return to God because God has never stopped reaching toward us.
Prayer:
Gracious God, as we remember our dust and our dependence, draw us back into the fullness of your mercy and love. Amen.
a journey in existence 