Check back each Monday for a short devotional with Chaplain Art Pace to help you start the week off well.
And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David. Hosanna in the highest!”
Mark 10:9-10
The people who saw Jesus ride into Jerusalem that first Palm Sunday were excited! They publicly praised God in word and in action for the arrival of Jesus, the King of kings. What a wonderful reaction, and what a great example for us!
Praising Jesus should be a natural response for each of us as well. What a difference it would be if every Christian every day praised the Lord verbally every time we saw the hand of God! And what a difference this would make when we find ourselves in a difficult place in life, when we are not very happy in our current circumstances, when we are experiencing a dark night of our soul! What a reassurance to see the hand of God, to behold His face, and hear his words of comfort.
This is what Palm Sunday reminds us. We should begin each day by praying, “Jesus, I can’t wait to see you today! When you speak, let me hear. When you touch, let me feel, and when you act, let me see.” So we begin by anticipating that we will encounter our risen Lord somewhere in our day. Then, we praise Him, out loud if possible, but most certainly immediately. When we can praise His name, and fall down before Him, we find our burdens getting lighter, and our broken spirits beginning to heal.
In what ways has God shown himself in your life today? When was the last time you praised the Lord out loud for who is and what he has done for you?