I am so excited to be a disciple of Jesus! It’s not something I go around telling people on the street, sometimes it is hard to even tell y’all. But today I am so glad to be on the path with Jesus. Not that walking with him is always all that great. Think about the original disciples tramping around with him. He is more welcome in our church today than back then after all. For the original 12 it wasn’t an easy journey. Sure there were some days when it was pretty awesome – when the 5000 were fed, when he walked on water, when he let them in on what the parables actually meant. But other days were difficult. He walked them back and forth through the land of the Gentiles. It’s really hard to have Jesus, your teacher and master, hanging out with folks you would walk across the street (or the desert) to avoid. While occasionally they were cheered more often they were jeered. It is an easy walk when times are good – more difficult when life is tough.

I just was reminded again that my life doesn’t always have to be going great to walk with him. In fact when I am cruising along I often forget he is even there. It is the tough times that remind me he has been beside me all the way. It is not an issue of me walking with him – for he is always there walking with me. What a great gift to be able to walk with him every day!

This Sunday we remember folks who were ready to walk with Jesus when the walking was good. He came into Jerusalem followed by an odd parade. The youth of the city cut palm branches. Some disciples took off their coats and laid them at his feet. He must have looked comical riding on a donkey. We will be cutting fern fronds to welcome him – it’s what we have. Some of the kids in our Sunday School have also made signs like we might make when someone important comes to town. Sunday we once again will symbolically follow Jesus into the sanctuary to honor Palm Sunday. There were actually two parades people could join coming into Jerusalem that day. It’s an interesting story that I just learned about a year ago. It will give you a new view of the traditional Palm Sunday parade.

Come and join the parade – and find if you too discover that if we are feeling like we want to join in the Palm parade or if we just need to find Jesus walking with us on our journey - we can find him walking right beside us. Let us find ways to welcome him into our life journey, our faith parade!

So in the words of Jesus Christ Superstar:

Hosanna, Hey Sanna!

Pastor Joyce