Thursday, July 24, 2014

July 27, 2014 - Pentecost 7


Greetings,

 Sunday Worship
This Sunday I am going to give the story of Jacob a rest.  Instead, I will be looking at the Gospel reading which is a collection of short parables.  Jesus uses these parables as a way of talking about what he calls “the kingdom of heaven.”  Each of the parables starts with “the kingdom of heaven is like...”   In describing the “kingdom of heaven,”  Jesus uses images and situations which would have been familiar to those around him but, even in his day, Jesus’ use of parables was both instructive and confusing.  On more than one occasion Jesus had to explain parables to his followers.  So on Sunday we will look at some of these parables, see what the images may have suggested in Jesus’ day and see what they teach us in our day.

The readings are: Romans 8: 26-39 and Matthew 13: 31-33, 44-52;

In the Time for All Ages, I will be focusing on one parable, the Mustard Seed, from the seed perspective with “I’m just little.”

My sermon is entitled, “It’s like this...”

 Weeding Bee
July 31 at 10:00 am. Come help weed the flower beds and beautify the church. Bring a lunch and enjoy the fellowship once the work is done.  Everyone welcome!

 Memorial for Carole Hommersen
Some of you will know John and Carole Hommersen.  You may also know that Carole passed away on July 11.  John has been in touch with me and we are planning a memorial for Carole on Saturday, August 30 at 3:30 pm in the Lower Hall of the church.  The memorial will not be a “service” in the traditional sense.  Carole made a plan which John, their sons and I are going to follow as best we can.   John and Marian Tannahill are creating some “words of remembrance” which will be shared during the memorial.  If you have any stories about Carole that you think might be shared (no guarantees) please contact Marian.  Keep John, Paul and Sean in your prayers.

 Children’s Activity Packs in Church
Although there is no Sunday School Program during the summer, we do hope that you and your children still find the time to join us for worship on Sundays.  We will try to make the summer Services as “all age friendly” as possible.  But as a minister and father, I know that all people (and this includes adults and children) are different and we won’t hit the mark with everyone all the time.  For the kids who may become a bit bored or restless, we have activity packs available (ask a greeter.) These packs can be explored either in the sanctuary or in the lounge.  I am sorry we don’t have activity packs for the adults, maybe you can share with one of the children.  In the Activity Packs there will be colouring pages based on the Sunday’s Bible readings.  These can be taken home.

 Spirit West Prayer Chain
Spirit West has a Prayer Chain, a group of people who have committed to continue our prayers of concern from Sunday through the week.  To be part of this ministry, email your request to spiritwest.prayerchain@gmail.com .  You may also email a request for prayer to the same email address.  If you would prefer to talk to someone, you can call Marian T. at 780-487-2851 or Bonnie C. at 780-444-2230.

This Week in the cycle of prayer of Edmonton Presbytery we pray for
Ø   A renewing and safe summer for all

Office Hours
Ø  Monday to Friday 9:30 – 2:30
    Ø  Norma => 9:30 am to 2:30 pm, Monday to Thursday
    Ø  Larry => 9:30 am to 2:30 pm, Tuesday to Friday

 Vacations
Ø  Norma => July 31 – Aug 5
Ø  Larry => Aug 7 – Aug 26

 Hope to see you on Sunday,

  Larry
 
(Rev.) Larry K. Wright, CD, BA, MDiv
Minister
Spirit West United Church
780-481-1406
Spiritwest.org

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