A life of repentance embraces the ashes placed on our own foreheads and the coals we feel heaped upon our heads, for these ashes and coals bid us to join in the refreshment and restoration that comes on the road of repentance.

Can we fully experience the joy of the Festival of the Resurrection if we do not seriously stare boldly into the sad state of our own faithlessness to Him who promises to be faithful even when we are not?