A few months back I was diagnosed with a medical condition that required urgent surgery. A date was set, then cancelled, then reset. It seemed like an eternity until the day finally arrived. The only benefit was that I was able to use to time to make all the arrangements so I could be off work for a few weeks although, in my mind, I was thinking that when I woke up from the surgery, the problem would be fixed, and after a short recovery I would be back to life as normal. It turns out, that’s not how most operations work.

I don’t meet many people who are opposed to the things that Jesus taught - value others above yourselves, aways act with honesty, integrity and compassion, treat others in the same way that you would have them treat you, seek to resolve conflicts without resorting to violence… Most agree that acting like this would make the world a better place.

I’ve recently been challenged to think about the nature of hope. Looking at the challenges that are facing our community at this time - increasing violence, especially against women, cost-of-living issues, the despair of many who feel they will never be able to buy a home, lack of access to the resources needs to assist people struggling with mental health and well-being - we are certainly in need of hope, the hope that there are better days ahead.

On the morning of the first Easter Sunday, Mary Magdalene went to Jesus’ tomb while it was still dark. Just two days earlier, the earth was shaken and the sky turned dark as the Son of God died. Mary knew something about darkness. She had been there with Jesus through the darkness of Good Friday.

Yesterday was Palm Sunday. In our Services, we gave everyone a small cross made from a palm leaf. These crosses have no intrinsic worth. They are, after all, just a dried up leaf. But what they symbolise, and the challenge they hold before us, is significant.

Last Wednesday, Ash Wednesday, we entered the season of Lent. Lent is a period of 40 days, not including Sundays, leading up to Easter. There's a Christian tradition that people should give up something they like for Lent.