Ash Wednesday begins our Lenten journey as we are invited to look at the Pharisee in the Mirror. The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector reveals how spiritual pride can blind us to grace. This parable invites us to look upon our own lives with sober humility. It's not our goodness that justifies us, but God’s mercy alone. Jesus invites us to drop the comparisons and come before Him honestly as we find freedom not in being “better” but in being forgiven.