I grew up attending a very small country baptist church. We had Sunday School but it was not an ongoing resource that was offered. If anyone has ever attended one of these small churches you understand that it is hard to keep “teachers” and the need for youth classes comes and goes as the number in the congregation changes. I remember attending Sunday school and enjoying it when it was offered. I am also sure that there were times it was offered and also times that I didn’t get out of bed early enough to go. Im also sure that our church probably did not have a large fund dedicated to buying church curriculum and those were long before the days of Pinterest and on-line church curriculums also. Everyone did their best and we learned as much as we could.
Even though I attended church my whole life, I was an adult before I heard about “Palm Sunday.” When my oldest daughter was about 2 years old I taught my first church class. I somehow ended up teaching the nursery VBS class which is another story for another time. If you have taught a nursery VBS class or even helped you know that it is easier to herd cats than teach much to 10-15 toddlers. After that our daughter M was in love with youth church classes and found out about Sunday school. She couldn’t believe that we could go every week. This was a significant point in our family’s religious path. This is when we became more devoted to not only attending church but also we became more devoted to our Lord. We have grown so much since we started attending “extra” church and we now try to teach and attend as much as we can. Back then we could have never imagined that God would call us to start a Children’s Church and also for my husband to be the Youth Group Director. It’s amazing how God can use our children to lead us in the right direction if we let them!
Back to where I first learned of Palm Sunday. I would sit in Sunday school with M, she was 2 or 3 at the time and I learned as much as her about the Bible if not more in those years. Her Sunday school teacher had taught that class at the time over 20 years. This was when I first learned of Palm Sunday and heard the words Hosanna! Mrs. B had the children make palm leaves out of construction paper and then had them march around the room saying, “Hosanna, Hosanna, Lord Save us!” I was about 28 or 29 at the time and I remember thinking, “How did I not know about this?” I have been intrigued with this special day ever since.
Palm Sunday:
Palm Sunday is always the Sunday before Easter Sunday. The first day of Holy Week. Th week leading up to Jesus’ resurrection. This marks the day that Jesus came to Jerusalem as King. Jesus was entering Jerusalem riding on a donkey and had traveled with his disciples to celebrate Passover. I will let scripture tell you what happened that day:
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
“Say to Daughter Zion,
‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”Matthew 21:1-9 NIV
You can also read about this event in Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:29-38 John 12:12-15
Hosanna means “save, rescue, savior”. http://www.wikepedia.com
Can you imagine?
Can you just imagine how excited the people on the streets were? They got to see our Savior in person! They understood He was here to save us and they would not even let the hooves of His donkey step on the dirty streets. They took their cloaks off and threw them on the ground and grabbed branches to cover the street! What an amazing welcome He had that day! I hope that each of you have welcomed Him into your life and into your heart. He came to save us. Hosanna, Hosanna!
Here is some music to enjoy while celebrating this great day! This one is more of a praise and worship song:
Here’s some fun children’s song to get everybody excited about God!
Celebrate with some activities:
For the last few years I have been celebrating Holy Week with my girls starting with Palm Sunday and each day we read scriptures and do a craft or coloring sheets to better understand the importance of each day and the story of Easter. We usually hang up a piece of yarn or small rope across our fireplace and hang our crafts from each day. This year we may do a display some other way. Whatever works for your family will be great!
I am going to try to post a short explanation each day, scriptures and some activities that you can do with your family. I have made sure that each of these are free printable and that the sites work. I am also trying to include some sheets for different ages so you can pick and choose for your own littles. I have also included the original sites so you can check out their other activities!
Printables and Crafts:
- God’s Shining Stars: Palm Sunday Activities
- Printable Palm Sunday Card Matching Game | Flame: Creative Children’s Ministry | Bloglovin’
I found a lot more. Here are some more on my Pinterest Board for Holy Week. I will be adding links for the other days of Holy Week also to this board:
Pinterest Holy Week Activities Board
Thank you I hope that you enjoy these with your family. Have a blessed day!
Tiffany Shepherd 