Lent is a journey to Easter. St. A’s has been journeying through the story of Jesus’ life. Each day is a journey, from waking to sleeping to waking again.

So I suppose it should come as no surprise that I have has the thought of traveling, of journeying, on the brain recently. Tonite I watched a movie called One Week, which was about many things, but the plot revolved around the road trip the main character took after being diagnosed with Stage Four cancer. It reminded me of the movie The Way which is also all about the journey that its characters take.

There is this thing about journeying – you start out and you are so far from your destination that it is hard to imagine actually getting there. But you put one foot in front of the other, or you turn the ignition key, or you buckle the seatbelt on the plane, and your journey begins. And slowly, inexorably, the steps or days or kilometers begin to pile up. For a long time you feel the emotional equivalent of the cliche question: “are we there yet?” It feels like you may forever be stuck in the endless act of getting there (wherever there may be).

And then, suddenly, sometimes surprisingly, you look up and realize you are just about there. You got distracted by something and the miles flew by.

If you are honest with yourself (and take the time to think about it), you realize you are not the same as you were when you began the journey. Journeying has changed you. The journey matters as much as the destination.

Tomorrow is Palm Sunday. The beginning of Holy Week. For the last 40 days Christians all over the world have been traveling toward this week. Sometimes we have been weary, sometimes it has felt endless. But here we are. About to spend a week remembering what Jesus said and did in the last week of his life.

What has your journey through Lent taught you? What has changed in you during this time? What will you bring to this week that will make it different than the last time?

Every Holy Week is a chance to experience the sacrificial love of Jesus in a new way. To hear the story and to be transformed by it once again. You haven’t made it here by mistake. Jesus has something new to say to you this week. May all of our ears be open and tuned to His voice.

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
John 10:27 NLT