February 25, 2004 Ash Wednesday	Read Revelation 21:1-5
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals.  He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes.  Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”  And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.”
Two small and vaguely human figures with furry feet are running desperately through the forest night trying to escape horrors unseen, but urgently sensed. They are running for their lives. They reach the top of a hill, and what they see in the moonlight terrifies them.  Orcs!  They must hide.  Hide in the darkness of tall grass!  Too late.  They’ve been spotted.  The Orcs are coming -- lumbering, powerful, without pity.  Suddenly, the night air is split by the shrill screeching of giant eagles swooping down from their mountain perches. Elves show up to join the fray, then fierce Dwarfs.  The horrific sounds of warfare clash and echo as each group claws, beats, screams, stabs, and mutilates the others in efforts to win the victory. Trolls, Dark Riders, Goblins, and Wizards arrive, adding their weapons and their voices to the cacophony.  The carnage is awesome!  The little ones hiding in the tall grass freeze, hunkering down, hoping to be invisible.  Will those defenseless Hobbits survive the night, or will the forces of the Dark Lord have their way? ********************* We, my friends, are the little Hobbits hiding in the tall grass.  We are trapped in the battle between the Dark Lord and the True Lord, helpless and often hopeless.  Somehow we must be rescued, Some One must help, because we cannot rescue ourselves.  Without rescue, we will perish. This isn’t a movie.  This is our faith:  that the True Lord has asserted his dominion over the Dark Lord and all his forces. The sacrifice of the True Lord himself has saved us when we could not save ourselves. As we begin our period of Lenten self-examination and repentance, let us remember that, through the resurrection of Jesus, the True Lord changed the rules of battle.  There are still Orcs out there, and Trolls, Dark Riders, even Oliphants.  They will be waiting in ambush to grab us whenever they find opportunity to use us for their own purposes. But all things are new because of Jesus, who is the True Lord.  We are no longer helpless and hopeless and afraid.  We are marching in the Light of God. We pray to you, True Lord:  save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.  The Kingdom is yours, now and forever. DALLAS CRONK

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