Palm Perspective

Sunday at church one of pastors preached about Palm Sunday. And I guess I have never really thought about it too much. Growing up this was just the day that somewhere during the service there were palm leaves waved.
But this week Russ walked us through all the events leading up to that day and eventually Easter. He brought a profound meaning to it for me: he said, Jesus is always doing more than you think. He knew so much more than all the people involved in the story and the details and how everything needed to happen at what time. All the people welcoming him with palm leaves wanted him to save them from the political situation of their time. And later in the week when he couldn't, they turned on him. The showy entrance Jesus made that day stirred up the people and as the people were believing and following, the priests and other authority figures were trying to figure out how to kill him. They were afraid of what he meant and how he would disrupt their world.
As I have been thinking about all this since then and reading more scripture about the week (or really mostly Sunday and today because the past 2 days at work I have mostly only thought about work and sleep) I have thought how much I am like all the people in the story. They are afraid and selfish and act out of those places...they want their situation to change or to follow the in person, or to kill him, or for their externals to be fixed, whatever it is, they are all acting out of fear and what they think they need. Fear and selfishness are the driving forces behind a lot of my thoughts and sadly actions.
But Jesus knew and was doing so much more than they thought or than I think. I like sitting in that hope.