The Second Reading for the Mass for Ash Wednesday announces a particularly good news:

2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2: “Brothers and sisters: We are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Working together, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says: In an acceptable time I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you. Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”

(Via USCCB.)

Lent is now. It is our time to return to the Lord. No matter what our religious and spiritual life has been, no matter how great our sacramental and prayer life has been, we are still “too far” from God. Now is the season of repentance, of turning our backs on sin and striving to become closer to the Lord.

There is a special reason for this. As the Apostle Paul write in the beginning of this Reading, we are emissaries of God, and His work in the world is accomplished through us. We have a special mission to carry out His will on Earth, we can only do that if we repent and reconcile our lives to the Lord.

We alcoholics and addicts understand conversion. But we can go beyond what is taught in 12 Step Meetings and merely “do not drink” or use and make spiritual progress in that regard.

We can take up our call to be ambassadors for Christ.

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