Prayer: Jesus, you fill me with wonder when I behold you in my mind. Let the excitement of the Good News propel me into sharing that joy with others. Amen.
Reading: Matthew 21:1-11 (Click to read text) Stop and GROW: After reading the text, discuss/ponder the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's Book of Faith questions, which are part of Camp Mount Luther's GROW Time with campers. QUESTION 1: What scares, confuses, challenges, or doesn’t make sense to me in this text? QUESTION 2: What delights me in this text or is my favorite part of the story? QUESTION 3: What stories or memories does this text stir in me? QUESTION 4: What is God up to in this text? Reflection: When I was young, I lived in a small town in upstate New York where every major holiday was celebrated with a parade down Main Street. My dad carried me on his shoulders so I could see the fire engines gleaming into sight, the clowns juggling their bright red balls, the old-fashioned cars carrying beautiful girls dressed like princesses, waving with white-gloved hands. On those special assemblies, my sister and I were treated to more sugar than we usually got in a month: cotton candy, dripping ice cream cones, crunchy candied apples. When I look at a photograph from those parades now 40-plus years in the past, I can again smell the sweetened kettle-cooked nut and corn mixture and hear the cheering of the crowds. Imagine the excitement of the followers of Christ, as they all lined the streets and paraded en masse into the city, celebrating the coming Passover holiday. And there was Jesus. He knew what would follow, but for that day alone, He joined in the festivities, fulfilling prophecy and assuming center stage in a rare moment of shining glory and triumph. So many of the pictures we have of Him are solemn. I love to imagine this great parade and the son of God smiling, waving, and greeting everyone with such joy! Surely, it was a memory few would forget in the decades to come. I love it when we reenact this procession before worship on Palm Sunday. We sing and wave our palms as we march happily into the sanctuary, and our Hosannas ring out with the church bell! --Heather LeBlanc
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