21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year C: August 25, 2013

First Reading: Jeremiah 1:4-10

Not So Tall for Six by Dianna Hutts Aston (Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you…” This is a great text to explore with children, discussing the idea that God calls us to particular ministry, not just as adults, but as kids, too. Often kids hear, “you can do that when you’re bigger,” but todays text is about what they can do now. Aston’s book is a fun twist on the things a person can accomplish, even when they’re small. Kylie Bell is not not tall for six, but her family has helped her to see that she is brave, smart, and big at heart. She lives into this calling when she befriends the school bully. Using this text and story, explore the ways the children of your church have been encouraged in and lived into their own callings.

Second Reading: Hebrews 12:18-29

Don’t Squish the Sasquatch by Kent Redeker (Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: “See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking…” This is difficult text to unpack, but it opens up the possibility to discuss and explore the purpose of warnings and what happens when we do or do not follow them. Don’t Squish the Sasquatch is a silly story of bus riders who fail to heed the bus driver’s warning. Their actions lead to an explosion and a flattened Sasquatch. Fortunately the characters find a way to repair the situation. Wonder together about your own experiences of being warned. How are warnings meant to protect us? What have been the results when people in your church did or did not heed warnings?

Gospel Reading: Luke 13:10-17

Goose’s Story by Cari Best  (Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: In his commentary of the text, Charles E. Raynal states, “This unnamed woman becomes a testimony to the freedom of the people of God from demonic oppression and the crippling burden of disease and anything else that robs God’s people of full life.” (Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 3, p 386) This freedom, Raynal suggests, is the true sabbath of God. Explore this concept further with children through Goose’s Story. Goose is crippled because of an accident that caused her to lose a foot. In the beginning, she is unable to do much and ostracized by her community. With time, practice, and encouragement from a little girl, Goose is able to live a full life. Wonder together about the ways your community participates in Jesus’ desire for people of different abilities to live full lives.

The Lectionary Links this week were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 25, 2013 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.