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I have a vivid memory of a colleague doing Children’s Time one Palm Sunday. She settled the children around her, as we did every week. Then she opened a story book and read “Once upon a time…” Just as the kids were looking very interested in the story, she turned all the pages straight to “…and they lived happily ever after”. Then she snapped the book shut and said, “That’s what it’s like to go from Palm Sunday to Easter”.
It might have been a little forward, but that pastor had a point. In Holy Week we tell a long continuous story. You may have noticed there was no postlude on Sunday. That’s because the service doesn’t finish, the story isn’t done. Both continue Thursday, and Friday, and Easter.
I encourage you to participate in that story this year. If mid-week services aren’t an option, you could take time on your own to read John 14-19 or another gospel account of the passion of Christ. You could listen to the replay of services when you have time. You could look up the stations of the cross and spend some time reflecting on images artists have created. The important thing is to engage the story because this story is important.
This week we tell our most important story—the foundation of our faith. It is long, it is inconvenient, it is tragic in places, and at times downright uncomfortable. It is also joyous and triumphant. But to appreciate the triumph, you have to understand the battle.
As someone who watches very little sportsball I can tell you this with absolute certainty. I know plenty of sports fans and when their team wins championships they are on the top of the world. They throw parades and parties. It’s a big deal…for them. For someone who hasn’t followed the story, it’s a Tuesday and traffic is blocked.
Easter should be more than just another Sunday with a snazzier wardrobe. It is the culmination of the greatest work God has ever done and the marker of what God is doing in us right now. It’s a big deal. If you want a deeper experience of Easter, engage the story this week, however you can.
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