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. . . As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord . . . Joshua 25:15b
Proper 7 Year B
Editor's note: During the season of Pentecost, churches that use the Revised Common Lectionary have two options. One, often called "semicontinuous" or "Track 1", provides more detail about the Old Testament stories. The other, called "complementary" or "Track 2", more closely marries the Old Testament lesson to the gospel reading.
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June 16, 2021: This one always makes me feel better. The disciples know they are in the presence of god and yet they are still doubtful and afraid.
Introduction
Introduction
Mark clearly tells us that Jesus was speaking to the sea when he said, "Peace! Be still!" But do you ever wonder whether Jesus was actually speaking to his disciples, who were crying for Jesus to rescue them from the storm. Sometimes I do. There's an old hymn "Stand by me" that begins "When the storms of life are raging, stand by me." [Here's a soulful rendition by Elvis Pressley.]So perhaps Jesus was speaking to the sea (as Mark writes) AND to the disciples who had succumbed to their fears. When life is getting to you, do you hear the master's voice? Feel free to comment.
Mark 4:35-41
Mark 4:35-41
When evening had come, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!”
From sermon4kids.com: “. . . Sometimes, there are sudden storms in our life. Perhaps it is an illness, a family problem, or the death of a friend or loved one. . . . He [Jesus] doesn’t always take away all of the problems, but if we will trust in him, he will give us peace in our hearts even in the middle of a storm.”
Scripture: June 20, 2021—1 Samuel 17: (1a, 4-11, 19-23), 32-49 (image); Psalm 9:9-20 (image); 1 Samuel 17:57-18:5, 10-16 (image); Psalm 133 (image); Job 38:1-11 (image); Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32 (image); 2 Corinthians 6:1–13; and Mark 4:35-41 (image). A visual/audio journey through the scripture.
Collect: O Lord, make us have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name, for you never fail to help and govern those whom you have set upon the sure foundation of your lovingkindness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Reflection: The passage from 2 Corinthians urges us to be reconciled, to engage in the ministry of reconciliation, and to be ambassadors for Christ. How can you join in a ministry of reconciliation as an ambassador of Christ?
(excerpted from Feasting on the Word Worship Companion: Liturgies for Year B, Volume 2 © 2014 Westminster John Knox Press)
Symbols of the Church
Symbols of the Church
The anchor is a Christian symbol for hope and steadfastness. The source for this symbol is Hebrews 6:19, "Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast." Anchors are found in many inscriptions in the catacombs of Rome. They were also often carved on old Christian gems.
excerpted from "James Avery Symbols of Faith" website.
Click here for a page of symbols described in this publication.
Eye Candy: “Christ on the Sea of Galilee” by Rembrandt; “Calming the storm” by James Janknegt; “Jesus calms the storm” by Laura James. Calming of the storm, Peter Koenig, https://www.pwkoenig.co.uk/Portfolio/calming-of-the-storm
Casting out evil spirits, Peter Koenig, https://www.pwkoenig.co.uk/Portfolio/casting-out-evil-spirits
Ear Worm: “In paradisum“, in Gabriel Faure’s Requiem; “In Christ there is no East or West“, congregational hymn; “Seek ye first“, sung by Patty LaBelle; "Fierce was the wild billow" by T. Tertius Noble.
Brain Food: “Be still my soul“, poem from aimhappy website; “Power over a storm” by Janet Hunt; “Shaken, not stirred” by Melissa Bane Sevier.
Parables: “Wesley” (2009), an example of faith during the storm; “Music of the Heart” (1999), “standing tall is more than standing on your legs”; “Contact” (1997), faith in the midst of science
For families: Study guide, group activity, snacks—Have gold fish crackers, gummy worms, and juice for the children to enjoy inside the pretend boat!!!; kid video
For children: activity; bulletin games; craft—a boat full of disciples (instructions here)
For middlers: activity; bulletin games; craft—a wind sock (instructions here)
For youth: For the summer, we are exploring how faith and science fit together—or do they? The third video in our summer series talks about lobsters, among other things. So what do lobsters have to do with faith? For this week, print your worksheet from here. How do you react to this video? What do you like & dislike? Write it on your worksheet or share it on Friends of SSSJ facebook page.
Our theme today is Jesus’ Lordship over the natural world and over the forces of evil in the universe. Jesus commands a storm to cease. The result of this event was amazement and wonder. Mark withholds the answer to their wonderment until the end of his Gospel when Jesus’ death and resurrection reveal him as the Son of God, hence the Lord of the universe.
I Samuel: While David has been designated king by God, Saul continues to rule. The Philistines attack Israel, led by the giant, Goliath. This, probably the best known of the stories of David, tells of the boy’s courage in facing and destroying Goliath. David will now become the hero of Israel and soon Saul will begin to resent David’s popularity with the people.
Job: In the Old Testament reading from the Book of Job, God responds to Job’s questioning by asking how Job dare think himself competent as a creature to question the Creator. This magnificent poem occurs in today’s liturgy as an Old Testament witness to God’s power over the universe which was revealed in Jesus’ ministry and power.
We continue to read through II Corinthians. The Corinthian church has been resisting Paul’s leadership. He warns them to take seriously the grace of God which they have received and to emulate Paul’s ministry, seeking not worldly greatness, but the greatness of those who are being saved now.
In Eucharist, the People of God find themselves joined together in Christ as the new Creation. For a brief time in prayer and Sacrament, we are revealed as his Body and as the instruments of his redeeming love in the world. That revelation is to continue in our ministry of love and reconciliation toward all people.
From The Rite Light: Reflections on the Sunday Readings and Seasons of the Church Year. Copyright © 2007 by Michael W. Merriman. Church Publishing Incorporated, New York.
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