This afternoon I am posting a special prayer that has come out of my reflections this week. I love the Palm Sunday parade that will take place in so many of our churches this Sunday, but I am also reminded that this parade is the beginning of Jesus walk towards the cross and his triumphal entry is actually a walk into the most radical and subversive week of his life. My thoughts constantly return to what I wrote in a post a couple of years ago:
Jesus’ ride into Jerusalem was obviously headed for a collision with the powerful Roman empire – a collision that would cost him his life and change history forever. Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem may have begun with crowds shouting Hosanna but it ends with Good Friday and shouts of “crucify him”. It doesn’t end with a gold crown but with a crown of thorns. (Read entire article)
This was the week that literally changed the world. I encourage you to take some time each day this coming week to sit quietly and contemplate the last journey of Jesus life. Immerse yourself in his pain, but look beyond that to the resurrection. Remind yourself that the focus is not death but resurrection. What comes to mind as you think about this? What subversive steps might Jesus ask you to take in order to follow him to the Cross and beyond? Are there ways that you need to resist the wealth and power of our culture in order to follow? Are there new ways that Jesus is calling you to be a change maker?