“Gratitude for the Dust”

Ash WEdnesday

March 5, 2025

Cross in ashes

Isaiah 58:1-12

Someone once suggested that people should walk around with a piece of paper in each pocket. In one pocket, the paper should read, “The universe was created for you.” And in the other pocket, “You are dust.”

Because we live in this paradox of beauty and tragedy—of what is eternal and what is fragile. And both are a gift. I saw an interview of Stephen Colbert recently. He was speaking of his childhood where, at the age of 10, his father and two brothers who were closest in age to him—he was the youngest of 11—died in a plane crash. He said, “I love the thing that I most wish had not happened.” He considers even the difficult things in his life gifts from God. And in doing so, he has unimaginable gratitude for his life.

He went on to say, “It’s a gift to exist. And with existence comes suffering…If you’re grateful for your life, then you have to be grateful for all of it.” Being grateful for even the loss we experience allows us to connect with the loss other people experience. It sows empathy. It helps us accept the reality of being human—not just in ourselves but in others.

We rarely, if ever, talk about gratitude for suffering. We may whine or complain. We may rage in anger or weep in despair. These are all perfectly acceptable and expected. But gratitude? It feels like a hard pill to swallow.

And yet, without our own suffering, we are unable to acknowledge or respect the suffering of others. That’s not to say we go and seek it out. No, there’s plenty to go around. But to be fully human, we are called to embrace the reality of both the beautiful and the tragic in our lives. And everything in between. As gifts.

The universe was created for you. You are dust.

Here’s the thing about acceptance, though. It’s not defeat. It’s not an invitation to roll over and die. It’s simply awareness. Here we are. This has happened. This is real. I feel terrible. AND I’m grateful. What a powerful statement of faith in a good and loving God.

This is the reality we face head-on, as it were, on Ash Wednesday. Our mortality isn’t something bad. It isn’t something good. It is reality. The ashes on our foreheads remind us that this life ends. And they remind us that the same God who created us out of ash and dirt and dust can and will re-create us and bring us into an abundant life. The fragile and the eternal—they are both true at the same time. Joy and struggle. Birth and death. Life and loss. All gifts from the God who loves us more than we can imagine.

The universe was created for you. You are dust.

This is what gets God so riled up in Isaiah’s reading today. Rather than expressing gratitude and worship of God, the people seek to manipulate God. “If we do this right, we’ll get what we want.” And when they don’t, they get angry. “Why do we bother if you’re not going to respond accordingly?” It’s almost like saying, “Look what we’ve done for you. You owe us. You should thank us for our worship.”

Their hypocrisy is born from their inability to trust in God’s mercy. Their inability to trust in God’s goodness. But God’s love isn’t for sale. And God’s grace isn’t a commodity. God doesn’t negotiate with terrorists. God doesn’t negotiate, period. God loves. Deeply. God loves those who don’t deserve it—which is everyone. And rather than insist that God be grateful for the pittance we offer, we are called to gratitude. Not because we get what we want. Not even because we always have what we need. But because life, itself, is a gift.

All of life. Because the universe was created for you. And you are dust.

So, as we worship and as we leave, let us consider the beauty of our lives. The good and the bad and everything in between. The darkness and the light. The many colors that seep into every corner and crevice. All the little things that have made us who we are—that have brought us here to this place, among these people. That have inspired us and taught us love and empathy and kindness and grace. This is our worship—this gratitude for ALL of life and the gifts we have received. Because gratitude always leaks out into the way we encounter the world. As we remember and tell others: The universe was created for you. You are dust. Thank you, God. Thank you, God. Thank you, God.

Pastor Tobi White

Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church

Lincoln, NE