We are on the cusp of Holy Week when we begin in the celebration of the triumphal entry of Jesus our Messiah into Jerusalem only to be plunged into mourning the death of our Lord Jesus.  Happily, the week culminates in celebration, in Jesus' victory over death.  I encourage you to use your imaginations this week to ponder how you would have felt and done as a first century believer in this person claiming to be Messiah. Would you have experienced joy and hope when Jesus entered Jerusalem?  Would you have looked forward to celebrating Passover with Jesus?  Would you have run away with the disciples when Jesus was arrested?  You get the idea.  Allow your emotions to enrich your appreciation for what Jesus and his followers went through.  Of course, at the end we get to say, perhaps with renewed fervor, “The Lord is risen!”