EVERY DAY QUESTION
What struck you? Challenged you? Inspired you? What questions did it raise?
GOING DEEPER
What kind of king do you really want?
On Palm Sunday, we hold palm branches and recall the cheers that greeted Jesus as He entered Jerusalem. But today’s Gospel tells a much fuller story—the story of why He came, how we responded, and how deeply He loves us.
We begin with the table of friendship—and end with the wood of the Cross. We see intimacy and betrayal, bravery and cowardice, justice and injustice, hope and heartbreak. And woven through it all is this question: Who is Jesus to you?
The principle that most confronts us here is sacrificial love vs. self-protection.
Jesus gives everything. He kneels to wash feet. He speaks forgiveness while bleeding. He gives His body and His blood. He enters the depths of rejection, humiliation, and death. And He does
this not because we earned it—but because He loves us.
How do we respond?
In family life, it’s easy to love when it costs little. But when things get hard—when someone wounds us, or life gets messy—do we serve like Jesus? Do we lay down our lives in prayer, patience, and mercy?
It’s tempting to protect our comfort, our image, our time. It’s harder to bend low and love like
Christ. The Catechism (CCC 609) teaches: “By embracing in His human heart the Father's love for men, Jesus ‘loved them to the end.’” This love was not just emotional—it was a decision. A total surrender. And we are called to the same. This Gospel shows us that crowds can go from cheering to jeering in a matter of days. But Jesus is steady. His kingship isn’t built on popularity, power, or manipulation. It is built on the Cross.
Are you willing to follow a King who carries a Cross—and invites you to do the same?
LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS
Sacrificial love at home: What is one way God is calling you to love your spouse, child, or
friend more sacrificially this Holy Week?
Facing denial and betrayal: Is there a place in your heart where you've distanced yourself from Jesus out of fear, like Peter? What would it mean to turn back?
Preparing for Easter: What part of your heart needs to “die with Christ” so that you might rise with Him more fully?
LIVE IT
Going around, affirm one particular way that person has inspired you by choosing love over
comfort, and faithfulness in the face of difficulty. Encourage him/her.
PRAYER
LORD JESUS CHRIST,
You made me for Yourself—
to know You, to love You, and to live for You now and through all eternity.
I believe in You. I seek You. I trust in You.
Help me recognize that You are my greatest provision for every poverty.
Help me to see Your Hand in every moment of this day, whether joyful or painful.
Grant me the grace to embrace this day
as a custom-designed retreat,
crafted for ever-deepening encounter with You.
May I recognize my unsurpassed mission:
to make You—who are Love—known and present to the world.
Help me Live IT!
DAILY PARENT & GRANDPARENT BLESSING
LORD JESUS CHRIST, let Your holy anointing be upon each of our children, grandchildren, and godchildren this day and week (listed below—please add yours), including all to whom they are called in vocation, and all future generations! In Your Sacred Name we claim them for You! We renounce all whispers, lies, and influences of the Enemy! We pray right now that each know Your loving Presence, be forged in virtue, and be flooded with an abundance of Your Holy Spirit to live fully their identity and mission in You now and through all eternity, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother! Amen.
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