This is a season of reflection; a time of repentance, preparation, prayer and fasting. An opportunity to focus our sights on true discipleship and becoming who God created us to be in the midst of being our most real and authentic selves.

As you begin this journey of prayer and seeking a deeper relationship with God, you may be uncertain as to where you to begin. Praying this prayer wherever you are in this journey of faith is never a bad place to start.

Lord,

Here and now, I confess my sins and failures to You and I am heartfully sorry for having sinned against You.

Grant me the strength to seek and accept Your forgiveness.

Lord Jesus, on the cross on Calvary, You poured Yourself  out completely for me and I claim that wonderful and indescribable gift of salvation.

Lord, create a clean heart in me.

Transform me and renew me in every way; mind, body and spirit.

Be the Lord of my life and guide me in Your ways everlasting.

I consecrate myself to You Lord and ask that You use me according to Your Holy Will.

I pray in the name of Jesus.

Amen

 As we begin the process of self reflection for the next 40 days,  we see a new opportunity of changing direction through prayer, fasting and acting upon what God reveals to us. In Old Testament times, greiving was displayed by wrending their garments or physically tearing their robesand donning sack cloth and ashes. All were used as avisible sign of loss, mourning and despair. In the book of Job Job was so dispondant over his affliction that he covered himself in ashes because of what he may have done that brought about God's righteous anger and judgment. "I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:6). 'Daniel turned to God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting, in sack cloth and ashes' (Daniel 9:3)

Prayer, fasting, ashes and attitude; all of these are the first step of your journey into the wild places of your heart.

Today the sign of ashes on our head is an outward acknowledgment of the need for an inward converstion and and outward and upward focus.

Today we commit ourselves to the process of allowing the Holy Spirit to convict us. A journey that begins in the dim light of this day and goes into the blackness of Good Friday. Like Jesus, we will be tested on these forty days, beginning today and ending on Palm Sunday. When we have to come down from the high places in life that we have ascended and be healed and nourished by the Holy Spirit in the valley by the still waters. As long as we hold onto our sin and cling to it, there is nothing we are willing to let God do for us in our lives. But when we allow ourselves to be undone, God's healing grace takes over.  

Read: Daniel 9:1-22,  Matthew 6:1-13