Palm Sunday, 365 days a year

I need to use today and this Family Ministries blog, to do a little bit of public confession. This Lent season, I have not slowed down. I have sat very little and reflected of the great sacrifice of Christ. I took on a lent discipline, I've been planning, over committing, meeting, working, going, filling my sparse void moments with noise, with screens, with phone-calls, and with great unease. 

It wasn't until last Thursday evening that I had the realization that I was absolutely exhausted, and I was entering into the holiest of weeks with little enthusiasm, little rest, and little recognition of the weight and significance of Christ's final days of public ministry on earth. So, Thursday after I got home from work and a late meeting, I turned off my phone (which I never, ever do), had some cereal for dinner, and went to sleep... for 13 hours. It was the kind of exhaustion, that felt familiar. The exhaustion I felt after taking college exams. Hibernation ensues after that kind of exhaustion, and it did. 

Sunday I was a lot less exhausted as I spent the whole weekend outside in the sunshine, which in my life, always, always lifts any exhaustion. 

After hearing one of our sweet kids Sunday morning asking for her "Pom-Pom" to process in with, my vision and outlook on worship- and holy week changed. Bless you, Lilly Cobb, for reminding me of this great celebration- the celebration of the King of Kings, the Son of God processing into Jerusalem. I pray that I would have the attitude of being hopeful and expectant, just as the people in Jerusalem were when Jesus entered on the donkey. 

As Mickey described yesterday, in great celebration, the rocks would have cried out if the people were going to be silent. The presence and recognition of Jesus Christ is something that we cannot deny- and if we do, creation will proclaim it. We should be proclaiming it every day. Do we? No. Honestly, that's what they were doing that Palm Sunday years ago. They were calling upon Him, recognizing that they had enough belief that they could say and speak the name of the Son of God. "Hosanna! Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!" They were calling, proclaiming and shouting the name of their Savior. They were able to speak the name of God- because He was present and wanted relationship with them. 

Some days, we do the exact opposite of celebrating and proclaiming, we ignore Him and stifle our faith. Why is it that when it would be so easy to have a conversation about what Christ has done for us, we choose not to, and talk about the weather? If we choose to be the hopeful and expectant people like Mickey talked about yesterday, instead of the cynical, we would have the attitude and expectancy of Palm Sunday... every day.

The beauty of living in 2014 and not 29 A.D. is that we know what happens! We KNOW that He comes back, we know that He is the Son of God, we know it through scripture. We have this beautiful account of Jesus' life, and why we still choose to be cynical and "standoffish"is beyond me. We have the knowledge of Christ's last week of ministry, his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, His final words to His disciples and His prayers on OUR behalf, and we back away.

We have the great privilege to celebrate and proclaim Palm Sunday because we know that He is coming back. We know that He took on our Sin and we are forgiven. We know that He still reigns. We know that He sends the Holy Spirit to intercede with and for us. We know that He calls us dearly loved. We know that "Sunday is coming." And because of that, we should have great hope and great triumph!

That, my friends, is a great reason for celebration- and a reason for proclaiming His name. This week as we enter into a week of Christ thinking of you and me, and taking on our shame and guilt, we have reason to celebrate because He comes back. We have the gift of being able to proclaim, shout, praise, honor and glorify who He is and what He has done. Sunday's celebration is going to be so sweet. I challenge all of you to talk to your children about the beautiful revelry, talk to them about Christ's sacrifice and the events of Holy week. Talk to your kids about Jesus' last days, the great sacrifice, the thought of us all and the sin, shame and pain he took on our behalf. I am looking forward to celebrating, and basking in Christ's gift to us with you on Sunday, the day of resurrection! 

(Took this photo two weekends ago, enjoying the late afternoon sunshine on the campus of PC.)