Has the enneagram craze hit your life yet? I'm an enneagram 7. That means that I like to have fun. A lot of fun. That's usually a good thing, but the down side is that I can be all too eager to skip over negative, painful realities in order to get to the fun stuff.
I think there's some 7 in all of us. David Crowder has a song called "Everybody Wants to go to Heaven." The punchline comes after the "but." But "nobody wants to die."
Most of us can relate. We want to get to the fun, but avoid the negativity along the way. We want to get to the point, but avoid the process. We'd run full speed to resurrection, but when it comes to death, we'd rather find a work-around.
Ash Wednesday reminds us that there's no work-around for death. There was no work-around for Christ, and there's no work-around for us. Death is coming for each of us. For some it will be painful and long, for others it will come silently in the night. But make no mistake, death is coming.
As we enter into the season of Lent, I'm betting there are lots of people in the Donelson neighborhood of Nashville who have never experienced an Ash Wednesday service. You're invited to share your this time with us. We promise it will be a restful, quiet evening, and that you'll leave with a renewed understanding of the Gospel of Jesus.
Even if you're a 7 like me, and you'd prefer to find a work-around for difficulties of every kind, you may find this reminder to be exactly what you need.
Ash Wednesday is February 14th. Our service will be at 6:30pm at 400 Donelson Pike. Join us!