Passion Sunday

Apr 02nd 2009

An author by the name of Gerald May once wrote,

There is a desire within each of us, in the deep center of ourselves that we call our heart. We were born with it, it is never completely satisfied, and it never dies…Our true identity, our reason for being, is to be found in this desire.

It is our desire for life as it was meant to be. Sometimes we miss it. Sometimes we ignore it. Sometimes we let it creep into the corner of our souls where it sits – quietly loud. Sometimes we grow weary and wonder if it is time to abandon the journey, but the nagging desire – St. Augustine called it “holy longing” – never quite goes away. In fact with a little nurture, that quiet longing can become a roaring passion; a passion which may lead to not only a re-direction of our life-path, but perhaps even a transformation of the very essence of our hearts.

This holy longing, heart-desire, holy discontent draws us forward. Even if it leads through hard days, our hearts sing on the journey. We know that we are aiming our life for the purpose for which we were created. We need to understand that this is how Jesus came into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.  A better name for the day is Passion Sunday.  Jesus came into Jerusalem filled with passion.

If we are not careful, all we see are misunderstandings, disappointment, discouragement, and confusion. But at the heart of the Easter Journey is the heart of a man who knows that he is on his life-path, a path which will change the world. In the end, he would not be denied – his death on a cross would lead to broken tombs – and God let loose!

I’m not suggesting it wasn’t hard.  I can’t imagine how heart-wrenchingly difficult the steps of that week played out.  I’m just saying that Jesus did what he did — on purpose — to unleash the dreams God has prepared for us.  The passion of Christ let loose the passion of God for us.

It’s going to be a good weekend.  Hope you can join us at one of our gatherings.