Make way!

"I tell you... if they keep quiet, even the stones will cry out!" Luke 19. 40

So said Jesus to the Jewish leaders trying to quell the crowds in their enthusiasm, as he entered Jerusalem on the day we now celebrate as Palm Sunday. We believe that he foreknew that these same crowds would be chanting a different chorus by the end of the week ("Crucify him!") - that is what crowds are like - but, for the moment, leave them "on message"...

According to my Tearfund Lent booklet, the Chilean poet-diplomat Pablo Neruda wrote: "You can cut the flowers but you cannot stop spring from coming." Thank God that he has sown the triumph of hope into the fabric of creation. The resurrection of Jesus confirms it and points towards the New Creation, which both invigorates us when we are down and gives meaning to our struggles.

Allow the spirit of praise to fill your life today, let the atmosphere of joy pervade your home - whatever your circumstances. Add your voice to those who cried "Hosanna (save now)... blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" This is your witness to the truth of what the church proclaims: however desperate circumstances may feel today, Jesus is bringing a better tomorrow, as surely as spring follows winter...