By the Way: The King in the minivan

By Scott Raible on March 28, 2026.

Palm Sunday is God’s way of reminding us that He rarely shows up the way we expect.

Imagine you’re waiting for a VIP to arrive; maybe a celebrity, a billionaire, or even the prime minister. You picture a sleek black limousine, tinted windows, a security detail, maybe a police escort with sirens blaring. Red carpet rolled out. Cameras flashing. The whole dramatic entrance.

Instead, up pulls a dusty, slightly dented minivan. You know the one: sliding doors that stick, Cheerios crushed into the carpet, a couple of soccer balls rolling around in the back, and a “Baby on Board” sticker peeling at the corners. The driver? Not in a suit, but ordinary clothes, waving one hand while his other is firmly on the steering wheel.

That’s Palm Sunday.

Jesus, the King of kings, rides into Jerusalem not on a warhorse or chariot, but on a young donkey, the ancient world’s equivalent of that humble minivan. The crowds expected a conqueror who would crush the Romans. They laid down their cloaks and waved palm branches like they were rolling out the red carpet for a political saviour. “Hosanna! Save us now!” they shouted.

But Jesus came in the family minivan of humility. No fanfare of military might. No polished image. Just a simple, borrowed ride that said: “I’m here for the ordinary people. I’m here to serve, not to be served.”

The humour hits when we realize how often we still miss it. We want God to show up in the limo, fixing all our problems with power and flash. Instead, He keeps pulling up in the minivan of everyday grace: through a kind word from a friend, a quiet moment of prayer, or the unexpected help from a neighbour. He arrives in the humble, the messy, and the ordinary.

Palm Sunday invites us to celebrate the King who chooses the minivan. He came not to impress us, but to save us. Not to rule with force, but to win our hearts with love, mercy, and grace.

Yet here He is, Christ Himself at the wheel of the minivan, honking the horn and calling out, “Hop in! There’s room for you.”

He invites us into His journey. Not as passengers who get to dictate the route, but as those who trust the Driver. His path leads through the cross, but it ends in resurrection and eternal life.

This Palm Sunday, lay down your pride like cloaks on the road. Wave your palms of surrender. Open the sliding door, climb into the minivan, and let Christ take the wheel of your ordinary, everyday life.

He’s already driving. Will you get in?

Scott Raible is a licensed lay minister serving at St Ambrose in Redcliff and at St Barnabas Church in Medicine Hat. Scott started Christian radio in Medicine Hat with Alive 99.5 and was an announcer and music director with 93.7 Praise FM. Scott can be reached at scottraible@gmail.com

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