Ash Wednesday Service

Ash Wednesday was on 13th February, 2013 and service was held at 8.00 pm in the Sanctuary.

An Ash Wednesday time of worship is an ancient practice in the Christian Church. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, not on Sunday, and so a time of worship has often been an integral part of the beginning of Lent. If Lent is to be a time of penitence, discipline and renewal, then in an Ash Wednesday service we are reminded of our sin and mortality, make confession, and experience forgiveness through Christ’s death and resurrection.

The imposition of ashes is usually a central part of the service. Ashes, which often are the burnt residue of last year’s palms from Palm Sunday, are both a sign of our mortality and our penitence and repentance. The ashes are mixed with a little water and carried in a small dish. As the minister goes from person to person, or as they come forward to him, he dips his finger in the ash, and makes a cross on the forehead of each person (“imposition”). He usually says, “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return”, but you may also choose an alternate statement such as, “Consider yourself dead to sin and alive in Jesus Christ”.

It is our prayer that we leave the Ash Wednesday service in confidence and gratitude that Christ has conquered death and we are safe in Him!

The Scripture Reading were taken from Isaiah 53, Psalm 51 and James 1:22-25.

Rev Ting Moy Hong preached on “The Art of Self-Examination”.