Ash Wednesday: Mortality

Children’s Message

February 18, 2026

Have you ever built a sandcastle at the beach?

Maybe a tall one with towers, or one with a moat.

Sandcastles are so fun to make.

But what happens if you try to build a sandcastle with dry sand?

It just falls apart. It crumbles right through your fingers.

So what’s the secret ingredient? Water!

When you add a little water, something amazing happens.

The sand sticks together.

It becomes strong enough to build walls and towers.

The water helps the sand hold its shape.

Our bodies are a little like sand too.

They don’t last forever.

That’s what the big word mortality means.

Mortality means our bodies don’t stay forever.

It's just like sandcastles don’t stay forever.

And we’ll hear that word mortality a lot during this church season called Lent.

It's just like we hear a lot about flowers blooming in spring, or snow falling in winter.

We begin the season of Lent on Ash Wednesday.

On Ash Wednesday, we use ashes to make a little cross on our foreheads.

Ashes are kind of like dry sand.

They don’t stick together on their own.

So we mix the ashes with a little olive oil.

The oil helps the ashes stay.

It's just like water helps sand stay together.

The oil reminds us of how God holds us together with love.

God’s love is what makes us strong.

Even though our bodies don’t last forever like sandcastles,

God’s love lasts forever.

So when you think of that little cross of ashes, you can remember:

We are like dust… but God’s love holds us.

Our bodies don’t last forever… but God’s love keeps us forever.

Repeat‑After‑Me Prayer

Dear God,

Thank you for making us.

Thank you for loving us.

Help us remember

that even though we are like dust,

your love holds us strong.

Stay with us today and every day.

Amen.