SUNDAY April 13, 2025

HOLY WEEK DEVOTIONALS :
Palm Sunday (Day 1) - A PARADE!

Written by Susan Mettetal

Who doesn’t enjoy a parade? There is enthusiasm among the crowds of people, all ages
gathered to celebrate a special occasion. There is music, cheering, dancing and an atmosphere of joy. As a girl growing up in Urbandale, Iowa (a smallish suburb of Des Moines), we had an annual 4th of July parade. It was a “must attend” event to reconnect with friends we’d not seen all summer. Kids rode their decorated bikes, dads pulled toddlers in wagons, moms pushed bedazzled strollers. The bands marched and played patriotic tunes; clowns tossed candy; floats, vintage cars, and horses with braided manes and tails moved at a snail’s pace down 70th Street.

We kids knew the parade was just the beginning of a great day. The street carnival, picnics and fireworks would fill the special summer day. I wonder if Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem the last week of his earthly life resembled a parade. There were crowds of people alongside the road. He rode through the throng on a young donkey to the cheers and shouts of “Hosanna! Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!”
Many of those in the crowd waving palm branches had witnessed Jesus calling Lazarus out of the tomb and his other miracles. Their praise and adoration were real. This day, that we now call Palm Sunday, reflects the joy when that long-ago crowd honored Jesus with shouts of praise. Little did they know the parade of celebration welcoming Jesus to their town was but a blink of time in the difficult days to come. He would ultimately endure betrayal, arrest, torture, and death. Little did they know that there would be even more cause to celebrate in just seven days, Resurrection Day.

The crowds welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem with praise and adoration. How do you
welcome Jesus into your life? Is Jesus worthy of your praise? How do you welcome
Him into home? Into your workplace? Will you praise Him if/when the tough times come this week? Your days might be discouraging, dark and uncertain. But Resurrection Day is just a few days away. Praise Him! Hosanna in the highest!

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