It’s All In How You Look At It (a Palm Sunday reflection)…

If you look at this picture from a distance, you might just see a cloudy day, but are the clouds foretelling rain and trouble coming? If you look deeper, you can see the rainbow (a sign of God’s promise to never destroy the earth again by flood).

Joy or distress? It’s a matter or perspective.

Two people go to a party. The first person has a blast. They see friends, dance, eat snacks, and thoroughly enjoy themselves. The second person goes but has had a difficult day. They sit on the sidelines, avoid talking to anyone, find the party boring, and leave the party miserable.

How was the party? It depends on who you ask…

Our Bible plan has us reading Matthew chapter 2 (which I read on Palm Sunday instead of Friday), and what amazing parallels between the time of Jesus’s birth and death.

The Magi saw the star and went to see Jesus, the One born King! When they saw Jesus, they were overjoyed (Matt 2:10). Those in power were disturbed (Matt 2:3). Were those living in that day right to be overjoyed or overwhelmed and disturbed? It all depends on how you look at it.

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the people were overjoyed (Luke 19:37), but the religious leaders were incensed. Who was right? Again, it depends on how you look at it.

And in the end, unfortunately, many of those who were overjoyed just went back to their lives unchanged. And those who thought they won (Herod by killing the children and the Pharisees by killing Jesus) ultimately lost. But some had their lives transformed!

And where do you find yourself in life right now?

When you look around, are you rejoicing in the blessings, or struggling with the challenges?

Every day is a gift from God. We can choose to be bogged down by the challenges we face, or we can choose to see God walking with us through them, rejoice at His presence with us, cling to the salvation He has paid for, and look forward to the future He has promised. Which are you going to choose?