Ash Wednesday is the day when we enter into an annual pilgrimage that takes us from the grave that none of us can escape to the surprising gift of an empty tomb that changes everything. No doubt some of you may have already entered into some sort of Lenten discipline, like increasing your Bible reading or, God forbid ... giving up chocolate. Before we travel too far on our Lenten journey, let's look for some guidance from the scriptures.

The Lenten verse from Joel that we sing in our Lutheran liturgy serves as a good summary for the focus of this season: "Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and abounding in steadfast love" (Joel 2:13).

Lent is not about losing weight, or denying yourself, or taking on a new project.…