FAITH.....

Today is Palm Sunday.

This is the official start to Holy Week.  

It saddens me to know how many years I let this time slip by me not totally involving myself in the magnitude of the meaning of this week.  I had the knowledge, I think.  I was educated in Catholic schools.  Maybe I daydreamed through all of my religious education, maybe I forgot it, or maybe I just missed the impact of it all somehow.  

Friday night I went to a living portrayal of the Stations of the Cross by the eighth grade students at school.  It was a representation of the Stations unlike anything I have ever seen.  These kids get it.  Thirteen year olds tend to not want to share such deep feelings in Christ publicly.  Not these kids.  They were strong and unintimidated as they shared the journey of Christ to His crucifixion.  They congregation was in total awe.

This week changed the history of Christianity.  We have been told that life is a journey, not a destination.  I think the opposite is true.  I believe life is a destination, and that destination is eternal life with the Lord.  It is how we navigate that journey that determines our destination.
That destination that we all hope for...heaven...is possible only because of this week.
Christ arrived in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to celebrate the Passover and was hailed as a King.  Our King was subsequently arrested, sentenced to death, crucified, died, and was buried....all for our sins. His glorious resurrection on Easter Sunday insured our ability to join with Him in heaven.
It is a week filled with emotion, sadness, thanksgiving and a wide range of other feelings.  It is mostly a time of gratitude for the gift we have been given.

"God so loved the world that He gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life."

John 3:16

"........In the world you will have trouble, but take courage.  I have conquered the world"
John 16 :33