Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” They replied, “The Lord needs it.” They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. Luke 19:32-36
Dear HBIC Family,
My wife loves puzzles; our daughters inherited this from her. I think she got it from her mother, who perhaps got it from her mother, and so on, and so on. It’s a bit of an expectation that during any significant break we get in our house (from school or work, for vacation or just extended family time together), a giant puzzle with seemingly hundreds too many of pieces shows up on the dining room table.
I do not enjoy puzzles. They unearth my impatience, frustrate me beyond belief, and they bring added stress that I do not enjoy. I like when the puzzles are done. I like when I can see the whole picture. I don’t enjoy the journey to get there because I like where I am at, and because I’d rather be at the end of the story than doing the work to get to the end.
I believe that my wife and daughters, and the many of you who like the process and piecing together of puzzles, are closer to Jesus in Jerusalem than the disciples and other bad-at-puzzles people like me. When Jesus finally reaches Jerusalem to go to Calvary, to lay down his life for us, the puzzle starts to come together. The frustrated disciples still do not see the full picture. Nevertheless, Jesus marches along, bringing all of us closer to seeing what all God was doing for the world and for us with each step.
This week, as we continue our Good News for the Lost sermon series on the book of Luke, we join Jesus and the disciples in Jerusalem. As our Lord embarks upon what the church has come together to call Holy Week, we are invited into God’s grace and mercy, service and sacrifice, death and resurrection. We join them in our final days of Lent. We have been faithful in waiting in expectation and in repentance, seeking reconciliation. We have been dependent on God’s Spirit to lead, guide, and transform us, and on God’s grace to find us, meet us, and carry us through.
As you prepare for our worships service this week, I invite you to read and meditate on Luke 19:28-44. As you reflect, I would like to ask you to focus on the following questions:
What are markers for you in this passage of God’s plans coming together?
Where do you see faithfulness and trust in God in this story?
Where have you seen faithfulness and trust in God in your own life, and in others’ lives?
How are you preparing your heart and life to welcome Jesus as King this Eastertide season?
What is God asking you to take off or put aside to anoint Jesus as king today?
How is your life singing the praises of Jesus to your world?
I love that Palm Sunday is a unique celebration for us here at HBIC. We join in with the children singing our Hosannas. Our prayers and praises ring out for our God and King. We come to the communion table together – remembering what Jesus’ broken body and poured life means for us. And we see a little more clearly how God’s pieces ultimately fit together – Jesus comes to us for the world. Our blessed King comes in the name of the Lord!
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Sisters and brothers, we may not see the completed picture on this side of heaven, but may we always welcome the glimpses of God’s glory here on earth. In faith, we come together, humbly submitting to the Holy’s Spirit’s light and guidance. In faith, we praise together, trusting the work of Jesus for us. In faith, we celebrate together God’s deep, deep love for us. May God bless what we see and cannot yet see, and may we be faithful, knowing that the pieces are all coming together in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
God bless you all!
Love in Christ,
Pastor Hank (Luke 19:32-36)