Like many Protestants, it took me a while to discover the importance of Ash Wednesday.

Until I was in high school, I had assumed it was a "Catholic thing." It turns out that that was a correct assumption: Ash Wednesday is indeed "catholic." It is a tradition of the entire church, not just reserved for our Roman Catholic sisters and brothers. But, as Catholic blogger Greg Kandra notes, Ash Wednesday has a much broader audience.

More and more, however, Christians of many denominations see Ash Wednesday as an appropriate way of faithfully entering the Lenten season.

On a blustery March evening years ago, I discovered Ash Wednesday and its power to evoke change. In the Presbyterian church of my youth, the pastor invited us to write down a confession we wished to make. We brought them forward, placing the strips of paper into a bowl. The minister lit the paper on fire, reducing the sins to ash. I'll never forget the symbolism of that evening.

This Wednesday evening in my church, and many other churches, Christians will join together to begin our Lenten journey. Since Presbyterians are often motivated by food, we'll share a simple meal of soup and sandwiches prior to a time of worship and the imposition of ashes.

The invitation to the spiritual disciplines of Lent is found in the words of the prophet Joel:

 "Return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return the Lord, your God, for God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love." (Joel 2:13)

Lent is a time of returning-and it starts Wednesday. Why don't you join us?