Palm Sunday– a day of joy, celebration, and praise as Jesus is welcomed into Jerusalem. The anticipation and excitement would have been amazing. They had recently witnessed Jesus performing miracles—healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, calming storms, and teaching with an authority they had never seen before.

Now, they were waiting for their new King.

Are you like me and find the story of Lazarus frustrating? For those of us who have lost family members or loved ones, everything in us - our prayers, dreams, desires, plans, pleas, and cries - longs for Jesus to bring our loved ones back to life, just like he did with Lazarus. Or perhaps you feel like Martha, crying out to Jesus to change a particular situation, to heal a hurt/pain, mend a broken relationship or to lift you from despair.

As our Lenten journey continues, the readings are intensifying towards the crescendo of Holy Week where Jesus will be arrested and crucified for his claim to be the Messiah. In today’s Gospel, we see the chaos and confusion of the people who are unsure whether to believe Jesus’ claims and follow the way he is teaching.

While reflecting on today’s Gospel, I could not help but think of the life story of one of my sisters in our community before she joined us. She believed she was living her best life—surrounded by great friends, completed her degree, and had a boyfriend. However, her perspective began to shift when she attended a Catholic event. There, she and her friends engaged in a deep conversation with a priest, asking many questions about faith and Church teachings.

One of the things about living a radical vow of poverty is that it’s not uncommon that I find myself in a position where I have to beg.  I find it a deeply humbling and usually uncomfortable experience to be in a position where I know that there is no real reason for the other person to help me except for the generosity of their own heart.

Well, well, well, (pun intended)—isn’t our God an adventurous God? In Week One, we were led into the desert with Jesus. Week Two, we took to the mountains with Peter, James, and John to encounter the transfigured Christ. This week we meet Jesus and the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well.

As breakfast finishes after the miraculous catch of 153 fish, Jesus asks Peter, ‘Do you love me?’ In fact, as the story continues, we learn that Jesus asked Peter this question three times. He then invites Peter to ‘feed my sheep’. Many scholars suggest this happens three times to mirror Peter’s three-fold denial during Jesus’ passion. It helps Peter to know he is forgiven and loved and helps him to look forward to where he is now being called.

Scripture does not tell us why Peter decided to go fishing not long after Jesus’ resurrection. Did he know it to be an activity which would enable him to think, process and ponder what had happened in recent days? Was he wanting to get in touch with the many experiences he had with Jesus, even miraculous encounters on the very lake where he was now out fishing? How was he feeling when he spent a long night out and caught nothing?