Wednesday Words for July 11, 2012
from Pastor Carrie Smith
Thought for the Day: A Prayer of St. Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen.
***
In our prayers: We pray for Connor Priesz and his family. Connor (who graduated high school in May) suffered from a near-drowning accident on Monday, and is (at this writing) gravely ill.
We also pray for Don Barkley at the death of his mother, Mona; for Mike Bagby at the death of his mother, Peggy; for Betsy Baldwin as she recovers from knee surgery; for Kaylie Quindel, who is home now after brain tumor surgery; and for Alice McDonald.
Sunday at Bethany: This week’s prescribed lectionary readings are, shall we say…ODD. I am just not eager to preach on the beheading of John the Baptist this week! Therefore, come to worship Sunday for a message that speaks to the difficult questions with which we struggle, especially: Why do young people suffer and die? How can we trust God in light of the tragedies we’ve seen in our own community recently? I don’t promise all the answers, but I hope we can together look to Scripture and the promises of God for the way forward.
Next week at Bethany: It’s VBS time! Bethany will be teeming with children between the hours of 9 am and noon next week. Pray for the children—and the volunteers!
It’s also ice cream time! Next Wednesday, July 18th at 6:30 pm is the Annual Ice Cream Social. Tickets are available in the church office. We will be celebrating Pr. Erik’s 9 years of ministry that evening as well.
(For those who are wondering, Pr. Erik suggested this date and event for his ministry celebration, and it fits well into the Bethany schedule for a variety of reasons. Please come out to help celebrate!)
Come to hear what it’s like to be Young, Palestinian, and Lutheran! A group of 6 teen members of the Sahiroon Youth Leadership Program from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land will be here on Tuesday, July 24th at 7 pm. Please plan to join us in Luther Hall for their program, followed by desserts and time for conversation with the youth. Learn what it’s like to grow up as a Christian in the land where Jesus walked!
To learn more about a few of the students who will be joining us, check out these short videos:
And…An excellent sermon on fear, if you need a little extra inspiration this week:
***
This Week’s Texts: July 15, 2012, 7th Sunday after Pentecost
In case you really did want to read about the beheading of John the Baptist, here is the appointed Gospel lesson for the week:
Mark 6:14-29
14King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’ name had become known. Some were saying, “John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him.” 15But others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”
17For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because Herod had married her. 18For John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. 21But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. 22When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.” 23And he solemnly swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” 24She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the baptizer.” 25Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. 29When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
***
But here are a few other texts I’m working with, which may make it into the sermon for Sunday:
Isaiah 43:1-3
Restoration and Protection Promised
But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour.
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour.
Psalm 90
God’s Eternity and Human Frailty
A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.
Lord, you have been our dwelling-place
in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Lord, you have been our dwelling-place
in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
You turn us back to dust,
and say, ‘Turn back, you mortals.’
For a thousand years in your sight
are like yesterday when it is past,
or like a watch in the night.
You sweep them away; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning;
in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.
For we are consumed by your anger;
by your wrath we are overwhelmed.
You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
For all our days pass away under your wrath;
our years come to an end like a sigh.
The days of our life are seventy years,
or perhaps eighty, if we are strong;
even then their span is only toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
Who considers the power of your anger?
Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due to you.
So teach us to count our days
that we may gain a wise heart.
Turn, O Lord! How long?
Have compassion on your servants!
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
and for as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!
Song of Solomon 8:6-7
Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm;
for love is strong as death,
passion fierce as the grave.
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
a raging flame.
Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can floods drown it.
If one offered for love
all the wealth of one’s house,
it would be utterly scorned.
as a seal upon your arm;
for love is strong as death,
passion fierce as the grave.
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
a raging flame.
Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can floods drown it.
If one offered for love
all the wealth of one’s house,
it would be utterly scorned.
Peace,
Pastor Carrie Smith
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