I traveled the new bypass around Greensboro last week on my way to Chapel Hill to visit my new grandson. This new route allows one to completely miss the congestion at what has been known as "Death Valley", the merging of interstate 40 and 85 and Highway 29 in Greensboro. It reminded me of when interstate 40 opened around Winston-Salem, making it possible to avoid the "Hawthorne Curve". We like bypasses. We want to get where we are going and get there as quickly as possible. We do not like anything to slow us down and creat obstacles in our way. In the 1960s it took approximately five hours to travel to Lake Junaluska. You would have to go through the towns of Mocksville, Statesville, Hickory, Morganton, and Asheville. Now it is just over a three-hour direct trip to Junaluska. When faced with the choice, I believe most of us are thankful for highway bypasses.

But sometimes there are disadvantages to taking the bypass. In the past on my way to Junaluska I always enjoyed going through the tunnel in Asheville or riding by the Hickory Motor Speedway along Highway 70. I have not been that way in years. Traveling 65 and 70 miles per hour I spend less time looking at scenery around me but as I arrive sooner and with less trouble.

Is this the kind of temptation we will experience next week? For many, we celebrate the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem with the waving of palm branches and shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord". Then we quickly jump to Easter morning and victorious proclamation that "Christ is Risen, Christ is Risen indeed". We tend to bypass Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. We want to hear the glorious message of the empty tomb without experiencing the agony and pain of the cross. We just want to get from Palm Sunday to Easter by way of the bypass.

This year I invite you to take the old way to Easter morning. On Thursday evening, March 20, we will observe the Maundy Thursday Tenebrae Service. This is a time to remember the agony of those last hours that Christ spent with his disciples and his trial and crucifixion. It is a time of darkness that only the light of Christ can overcome. So, take a detour to Easter. Take the old road and I believe when we arrive at the empty tomb on Easter morning, it will be even more glorious.