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Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A

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Do you want your son... -- Romans 12:1-8 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A -- 1999
Do you want your son or daughter to grow up to be a garbageman, a janitor, a sewer worker?
It was a beautiful Sunday... -- Romans 12:1-8 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A -- 1999
It was a beautiful Sunday morning. The sun was shining brightly.
Did you hear about the... -- Romans 12:1-8 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A -- 1996
Did you hear about the young man who won an award, a pin, for being humble, but they took it away fr
When I was a child... -- Romans 12:1-8 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A -- 1996
When I was a child, our church would observe Temperance Sunday each year.
In an election year all... -- Matthew 16:13-20 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A -- 1996
In an election year all politicians want to know what the people are saying about them.
I will gather all nations... -- Isaiah 66:18-23 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
I will gather all nations and tongues ...
Dr. Charlie Shedd tells the... -- Isaiah 66:18-21 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Dr.
One of the most famous... -- Luke 13:22-30 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
One of the most famous narrow gauge railroads in America runs from Durango to Silverton in southwest
New heavens and a new... -- Isaiah 66:18-23 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
New heavens and a new earth, God says through the prophet.
Being invited to the high... -- Luke 13:22-30 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Being invited to the high school prom was a big deal in my day.
In one way or another... -- Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
In one way or another we often move to isolate people who are saying things we do not want to hear.
Hananiah's prophecy may have been... -- Jeremiah 28:1-9 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Hananiah's prophecy may have been sincere, but it was based more on the will of the people than on t
It was a deep, dark... -- Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
It was a deep, dark hole into which they had lowered Jeremiah, and one senses that he must have felt
Hananiah might be called a... -- Jeremiah 28:1-9 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Hananiah might be called a wishful thinking prophet.
Jodi had been given detailed... -- Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Jodi had been given detailed instructions about how to act at the dinner table while company was pre
Enter by the narrow door... -- Luke 13:22-30 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Enter by the narrow door in this age of accessibility!
E. L. Doctorow has given... -- Luke 13:22-30 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
E. L. Doctorow has given us a strikingly new kind of American novel in Ragtime.
In one of Flannery O'Connor's... -- Luke 13:22-30 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
In one of Flannery O'Connor's finest stories, "Revelation," the central character is Mrs.
There is a type of... -- Jeremiah 28:1-9 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
There is a type of platform courage that is not courage.
Jeremiah was a fearless spokesman... -- Jeremiah 28:1-9 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Jeremiah was a fearless spokesman for the Lord, even when it brought the charge of undermining the s
Everyone has a homeplace whether... -- Isaiah 86:18-21 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Everyone has a homeplace whether it is a town, a house, or a hill.
The ultimate will of God... -- Isaiah 66:18-21 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
The ultimate will of God is to restore all humanity to fellowship with himself.
This entire reading stirs in... -- Isaiah 66:18-21 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
This entire reading stirs in the mind a picture of a giant spiritual Statue of Liberty.
Benjamin Mazar, the famous Israeli... -- Isaiah 66:18-21 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Benjamin Mazar, the famous Israeli archaeologist, excavated the Western Wall in Jerusalem and found
Last Christmas, we heard reports... -- Hebrews 12:18-24 -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - A
Last Christmas, we heard reports of the merchandising of Baby Jesus dolls, complete with glow-in-the

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Proper 10 | OT 15 | Pentecost 5
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Proper 12 | OT 17 | Pentecost 7
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John Jamison
Object: This is a role play activity.

Note: You will need to select six children to play roles in this activity. If you have a smaller group, you might ask some older youth or even adults to play the parts of the two attackers and the man being attacked. I will give suggestions for how they can play their roles, but feel free to help your children make the story as fun and memorable as you can. I have used boys and girls in the various roles, but you can change those however you want to change them.

* * *

The Immediate Word

Dean Feldmeyer
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Christopher Keating
George Reed
Mary Austin
Nazish Naseem
For July 13, 2025:
  • Samaritans Among Us by Dean Feldmeyer based on Acts 2:1-21. Samaritans were despised and dismissed by the original audience who first heard Jesus tell this parable. Who are the Samaritans in our lives and how does this parable apply today?
  • Second Thoughts: The Helpers by Katy Stenta based on Amos 7:7-17.

StoryShare

Frank Ramirez
I say, “You are gods,
    children of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, you shall die like mortals
    and fall like any prince….”
(vv. 6-7)

There have been any number of brother-sister acts that achieved a measure of fame. Take the Carpenters, famed for their singing, musicianship, and songwriting skills. Also worthy of mention are John and Joan Cusack who have acted together in over sixteen films.

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Wayne Brouwer
An ancient legend tells of a remote mountain village where people used to send their senior citizens out into the woods to die. The villagers had an eye to the future; they felt that those beyond a certain age would only slow down progress or use up valuable resources to no economically profitable end. Those who reached a certain age weren’t “put out to pasture” or “put out of their misery”; they were simply put out of other people’s way.
Mark Ellingsen
Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez
Amos 7:7-17 and Psalm 82
The tallest building in the world is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It is more than 2,700 feet high—over half a mile tall. It has 160 floors and is twice as tall as the Empire State Building in New York City. It is home to the world’s fastest elevator which reaches speeds of forty miles an hour. The Burj Khalifa also hosts the world’s highest outdoor observation deck (on the 124th floor) and the world’s highest swimming pool (on the 76th floor).

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Mabel hummed a familiar hymn tune as she made her way to church. She always enjoyed her Sunday morning walk. It was one of the few times she felt safe to walk alone through the inner city, for she knew nobody would be up at 7.45 in the morning. Today was a particularly beautiful morning, with blue sky, warm sunshine, and the song of a few intrepid blackbirds who still inhabited the city.

SermonStudio

James Evans
Often, a distinction is made between the pastoral or priestly work of the church and the prophetic work. Pastoral care has to do with the care of souls, the offering of comfort in times of loss. The priestly character of pastoral work seeks to mediate the presence of God to those who are hurting.

Schuyler Rhodes
Trusting is never easy. Even in the best of relationships, people step into trust slowly. There is wariness -- questioning -- worry. What happens if trust is betrayed? What if this doesn't work? Sometimes it's like a dance. We step in and out of trust, moving to the rhythms of fear. For many, the routine is achingly familiar. Indeed, it's not easy to trust.
John Jamison
It was back in the days when the railroad was the most common mode of transportation. There were automobiles, and some airplanes, but the steam locomotive was the way most folks traveled and the way that most of the goods were distributed around the country. After dinner, people sat in the drawing room and listened to the radio programs, fading in and out from some faraway location, over the magical broadcasting signal.
Robert Leslie Holmes
Not many tourists to Washington, D.C., look for the Federal Bureau of Standards offices. It's the Capitol and the White House, the Supreme Court Building or the Smithsonian most of us want to see when we go there. Yet, at the Bureau of Standards offices something very important is stored, something that impacts your life and mine every single day. Have you ever bought the materials for a new project? When you did, most likely you purchased so many inches or feet or yards. Or, you stopped to buy gasoline for your car and purchased it at a certain price per gallon.
David O. Bales
I have the two best jobs in the world. I teach social studies at Leon Griffith Junior High School (a fairly small junior high) and I am Sunday School Superintendent at Calvary Presbyterian Church (an enormous church school). Each job is my vocation. I tell people that at school they'll find my room where the halls cross. At church they can look but probably won't find me. I'll be in someone's classroom. At each job I practice what I most deeply believe: it's how you see the world that determines how you respond to it. I'll give you an example, actually, two examples.
Erskine White
O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed,
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!
(Stuart K. Hine)

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