Ash Wednesday signals the beginning of Lent - a time of preparation leading up to Easter each year. In 2024, it falls on Wednesday, Feb. 14.

Ash Wednesday is about refocusing and realigning ourselves in relationship to God and one another. We must encounter our sinfulness and frailty not with shame and blame but with honesty and truth, trusting that God receives our confession.

Below is a collection of resources offered by the United Methodist Church to aid in planning services for the observation of Ash Wednesday.  

There Your Heart Will Be

Depths of Love

ASH WEDNESDAY, YEAR B

• Preaching Notes

• Liturgical Resources

• Hymn Suggestions & Music Notes

• Offertory Prayer

• Graphics

• Youth Lessons

REFERENCES

•  Joel 2:1-2, 12-17

•  Psalm 51:1-17

•  2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10

•  Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Water and Ashes Do Not Mix!
http://www.gbod.org/resources/water-and-ashes-do-not-mix
 
Making Ash Wednesday Accessible for Children
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/making-ash-wednesday-accessible-for-children

Oración Comunitaria de Confesión para Miércoles de Cenizas (Basada en el Salmo 51.3)
http://www.gbod.org/resources/oracion-comunitaria-de-confesion-para-miercoles-de-cenizas

When Did United Methodists Start the “Imposition of Ashes” on Ash Wednesday?

Prayers for Ash Wednesday
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/prayers-for-ash-wednesday
 
Prayer for the Days Between Transfiguration and Ash Wednesday
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/prayer-for-the-days-between-transfiguration-and-ash-wednesday
 
Music for Ash Wednesday
http://www.gbod.org/resources/music-for-ash-wednesday
 
Contemporary Service for Ash Wednesday
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/contemporary-service-for-ash-wednesday
 
Ash Wednesday Reflections: The Acknowledgement of Sin
http://www.gbod.org/resources/ash-wednesday-reflections-the-acknowledgement-of-sin
 
Smudges on the Soul: A Meditation for Ash Wednesday
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/smudges-on-the-soul-a-meditation-for-ash-wednesday

A Corporate Prayer of Confession for Ash Wednesday
http://www.gbod.org/resources/a-corporate-prayer-of-confession-for-ash-wednesday
 
Ash Wednesday Litany of Reconciliation and Litany Leading to Prayer
http://www.gbod.org/resources/ash-wednesday-litany-of-reconciliation-and-litany-leading-to-prayer
 
Brief Form for the Burning of Palms
http://www.gbod.org/resources/brief-form-for-the-burning-of-palms
 
Reflections on Ash Wednesday
http://www.gbod.org/resources/reflections-on-ash-wednesday
 
Reflection: The Acknowledgement of Sin
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/ash-wednesday-reflections-the-acknowledgement-of-sin
 
Smudges on the Soul: A Meditation for Ash Wednesday
http://www.gbod.org/resources/smudges-on-the-soul-a-meditation-for-ash-wednesday
 
A Corporate Prayer of Confession for Ash Wednesday
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/a-corporate-prayer-of-confession-for-ash-wednesday
 
Worship Resources for Ash Wednesday
http://www.gbod.org/resources/worship-resources-for-ash-wednesday
 
“Dust and Ashes”
http://www.gbod.org/resources/dust-and-ashes
 
Changer:  A Prayer Poem for Ash Wednesday
http://www.gbod.org/resources/changer-a-prayer-poem-for-ash-wednesday
 
Lent 101 Worship Planning Series
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/worship/lent-2018-worship-planning-series
 
Video: Chuck Knows Ash Wednesday
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFAmmlezot4