Ash Wednesday Services – March 5, 2025 - Noon & 6 pm
As we begin the season of Lent, we invite you to join us for our Ash Wednesday services on Wednesday, March 5, 2025. This day marks the start of our 40-day journey of reflection, repentance, and renewal leading up to Easter.
To accommodate our congregation, we will hold two services: noon and 6:00 p.m. Both services will include the imposition of ashes, a symbol of our repentance and mortality, as we acknowledge our need for God's grace in this Lenten season.
Ash Wednesday is a solemn day that holds deep significance, both historically and spiritually. It calls us to reflect, repent, and prepare for the journey toward Easter.
The tradition of Ash Wednesday dates back to the early centuries of the Church. It was established as a day of repentance and humility, symbolizing the Christian understanding of mortality and the need for God’s mercy. The imposition of ashes on the forehead, which we receive during Ash Wednesday services, is a powerful visual reminder of our earthly impermanence. The ashes, made from the palms of the previous years’ Palm Sundays, are marked in the shape of a cross, signifying both our mortality (“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return”) and the hope of resurrection through Christ.
Ash Wednesday is a day for self-examination. We are invited to confront our sins and shortcomings and seek reconciliation with God. It’s a day of repentance and a day to renew our commitment to live out our faith through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving during the season of Lent.
This day also sets the tone for the 40 days of Lent, a time for reflection and spiritual discipline, during which we prepare our hearts and minds for the joy and celebration of Easter. It’s a time to reconnect with God, reflect on His sacrifice, and draw closer to the life-transforming power of His resurrection.
We encourage you to attend our Ash Wednesday services at Noon and 6:00 p.m. on February 26, 2025, as we begin this sacred journey together. Let us enter this season of Lent with hearts open to God’s grace and transformation.
Peace,
Pastor Burt
Christ Church Gastonia is a steadfast Christian community, a part of the Global Methodist movement. We strive to give glory to God our Creator; to be His hands and feet through service to others; and to connect with the local and global communities through witness of Jesus' love. Our strategy is to prepare people for ministry through dynamic worship, vital community outreach, life-changing small group study, and joyful Christian fellowship.