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James Evans

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Epiphany 4/Ordinary Time 4 -- Psalm 71:1-6 -- James Evans -- Epiphany 4 | Ordinary Time 4 - C -- 2006
(See Proper 16/Pentecost 14/Ordinary Time 21, Cycle C, for an alternative approach.)
Christmas 2 -- Psalm 147:12-20 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Second Sunday after Christmas - A -- 2006
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; for an alternative approach to vv.
Advent 3 -- Psalm 126 -- James Evans -- 2006
There is perhaps no greater challenge to the life of faith than suffering.
Proper 7/Pentecost 5/Ordinary Time 12 -- Psalm 9:9-20 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Proper 7 | Ordinary Time 12 - B -- 2006
Psalm 9 was probably once joined with Psalm 10, for the letters of the Hebrew alphabet appear in ord
Epiphany 5/Ordinary Time 5 -- Psalm 138 -- James Evans -- Epiphany 5 | Ordinary Time 5 - C -- 2006
Attempting to use mere language to discuss and describe the workings of God is not an easy task.
The Baptism Of Our Lord/Epiphany 1/Ordinary Time 1 -- Psalm 29 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- The Baptism of our Lord | Epiphany 1 | Ordinary Time 1 - A -- 2006
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; see The Baptism Of Our Lord, Cycle B, and Trinity
The Baptism Of Our Lord/Epiphany 1/Ordinary Time 1 -- Psalm 29 -- James Evans -- The Baptism of our Lord | Epiphany 1 | Ordinary Time 1 - B -- 2006
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; see The Baptism Of Our Lord/Epiphany 1/Ordinary Ti
Proper 7/Pentecost 5/Ordinary Time 12 -- Psalm 133 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Proper 7 | Ordinary Time 12 - B -- 2006
This little gem of a psalm celebrates the joy of unity among comrades in the faith.
Lent 5 -- Psalm 126 -- James Evans -- Fifth Sunday in Lent - C -- 2006
There is perhaps no greater challenge to the life of faith than suffering.
Easter 4 -- Psalm 23 -- James Evans -- Fourth Sunday of Easter - C -- 2006
(See Lent 4, Cycle A, and Easter 4, Cycle B, for alternative approaches.)
Advent 2 -- Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Second Sunday of Advent - A -- 2006
(See The Epiphany Of Our Lord, Cycle A, and The Epiphany Of Our Lord, Cycle B, for alternative ap
Epiphany 2/Ordinary Time 2 -- Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18 -- James Evans -- Epiphany 2 | Ordinary Time 2 - B -- 2006
(See Proper 4/Pentecost 2/Ordinary Time 9, Cycle B for an alternative approach; see also Proper 1
The Ascension Of Our Lord -- Psalm 93 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Ascension of the Lord - B -- 2006
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; see The Ascension Of Our Lord, Cycle A, for an alt
Easter 6 -- Psalm 67 -- James Evans -- Sixth Sunday of Easter - C -- 2006
The opening verse of this psalm echoes the blessing of Aaron found in Numbers 6:24-26: "The Lord ble
Advent 4 -- Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Fourth Sunday of Advent - A -- 2006
(See Advent 1, Cycle B, and Proper 15/Pentecost 13/Ordinary Time 20, Cycle C, for alternative app
Lent 3 -- Psalm 19 -- James Evans -- Third Sunday in Lent - B -- 2006
Psalm 19 celebrates two different media through which God is revealed: nature and the law.
Easter 7 -- Psalm 1 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Seventh Sunday of Easter - B -- 2006
Psalm 1 has long been considered as a possible prologue to the rest of the psalter.
Proper 7 / Pentecost 5 / Ordinary Time 12 -- Psalm 42 and 43 -- James Evans -- Proper 7 | Ordinary Time 12 - C -- 2006
Though numbered separately in almost all texts, Psalms 42 and 43 are actually one psalm.
Christmas Eve -- Psalm 96 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- The Nativity of our Lord - A -- 2006
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; see Christmas Eve, Cycle B, for an alternative app
Proper 7/Pentecost 5/Ordinary Time 12 -- Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Proper 7 | Ordinary Time 12 - A -- 2006
Some psalms display a clear context, a human situation that has led to the writing of the hymn.
Good Friday -- Psalm 22 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Good Friday - B -- 2006
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; see Good Friday, Cycle A; Lent 2, Cycle B; and Pro
Proper 8 / Ordinary Time 13 -- Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20 -- James Evans -- Proper 8 | Ordinary Time 13 - C -- 2006
There is nothing quite as unsettling as being lost.
Advent 3 -- Psalm 146:5-10 -- James Evans -- Third Sunday of Advent - A -- 2006
(See Proper 26/Pentecost 24/Ordinary Time 31, Cycle B, for an alternative approach.)
Proper 9/Pentecost 7/Ordinary Time 14 -- Psalm 45:10-17 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Proper 9 | Ordinary Time 14 - A -- 2006
(See Proper 17/Pentecost 15/Ordinary Time 22, Cycle B, for an alternative approach, emphasizing v
Lent 5 -- Psalm 119:9-16 -- James Evans, Stan Purdum, Carlos Wilton -- Fifth Sunday in Lent - B -- 2006
The reason for this alternate lectionary selection, culled from the longest of the psalms, is undoub

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In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
Proper 10 | OT 15 | Pentecost 5
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29 – Worship Resources
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Proper 11 | OT 16 | Pentecost 6
29 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
27 – Children's Sermons / Resources
20 – Worship Resources
29 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
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Proper 12 | OT 17 | Pentecost 7
34 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
32 – Children's Sermons / Resources
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31 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
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John Jamison
Object: You may present this message as a simple story, or have the children act it out as a role-play. I will show the role-play version, but you can ignore the acting pieces and just tell the story if you prefer.

Note: For the role-play version, you will need to select two girls and one boy to play the roles. You might also have a broom and a dust rag if you want to.

* * *

Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Great! Let’s get started.

The Immediate Word

Mary Austin
Dean Feldmeyer
Christopher Keating
Thomas Willadsen
George Reed
Katy Stenta
Nazish Naseem
For July 20, 2025:

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Mark Ellingsen
Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez
Bonnie Bates
Amos 8:1-12, Psalm 52
Amos proclaims the word from God that punishes the people. The people are to be punished for their lack of faith, for their focus on practicing deceit, betraying honesty to their neighbors, and being impatient for the time after the Sabbath when they can focus on profit and selling their crops and wares. Oh, my! What a terrible message for people. You have been unfaithful so I will punish you. And then in the psalm, God is proclaimed to be the olive tree, that which brings blessing.
David Kalas
I have tried to find different ways of saying it so that my children don’t tire of hearing it. But the basic principle remains the same, and my kids have heard it a ton. “First things first.” They ask if they can do this or they start to do that, and I will endeavor to redirect them, saying, “Why don’t we make sure we’re doing first things first!”

StoryShare

John E. Sumwalt
I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. (v. 24)

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
One of Martha's earliest memories was of her little sister Mary singing and dancing in the middle of an admiring crowd of friends. Mary had always been a dancer, from the time she could walk. Privately, Martha thought she'd always been something of a show-off and ought to go on the stage, for Mary loved an audience.

SermonStudio

John E. Sumwalt
Jeanne Jones
Several years ago, before we moved to Wisconsin, I was an honorary nanny for our pastor's son, Jonathan. I took care of him from the time he was able to walk until our pastor moved, when Jonathan was about five. We had wonderful times together. One time, when I was at their house, and we had been doing some spiritual direction together, Pastor Michael asked me if I knew the name of my guardian angel.
James Evans
We are not surprised when we learn about crooks and robbers boasting about "mischief done against the godly" or "plotting destruction" all day long. The image we have in our minds about who "bad" people are, and how they conduct themselves, make such accusations completely plausible. We are less inclined to believe such things about leaders, especially respected leaders among us. We have difficulty believing someone with wealth and power would deliberately plot to do someone else harm.
Arley K. Fadness
Today's gospel from Luke 10 follows the parable of the good Samaritan. Luke positions the good Samaritan and the Mary-Martha story back to back for good reason. The parable and the story are examples of the Great Commandment "to love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself." The good Samaritan parable illustrates "love to neighbor," whereas the Mary-Martha story illustrates "love to God."
Kirk R. Webster
In the early 1990s, Wesley Nunley of Dallas completed a project he had dreamed of for decades. "I tell you, this could be a big thing," he explained. Wes then walked out to a concrete octagon in the middle of his backyard. With a beaming smile, arms raised up in excitement, the energetic retiree said, "This welcomes the UFO to land, which has never been done before."
John W. Wurster
It was the best of times. A time of prosperity and confidence, a time of relative peace, a time when most everything looked pretty good, a time when most everyone felt pretty good. It was a time maybe not unlike our own time.
H. Burnham Kirkland
Words Of Assurance
Our God is both wise and caring: afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted.

Pastoral Prayer
God, we bow before you this morning, knowing that you hear every prayer. We know that in all of Creation, you are the source of life. You are the one who set the light swirling between the galaxies. The breath of your Spirit pulses through all life. You have even become flesh among us. We praise you, Lord, that in all your wonder, you have not forgotten us.

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