Lectionary Links: Sunday, June 30, 2013
Year C: June 30, 2013
First Reading: 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14
Thank You, Grandpa by Lynn Plourde
(Written for ages 5-9)
Comment: This text invites us to think about the ways our gifts for ministry are nurtured within us by those who go before us. Sometimes the process of grieving and saying good-bye can be paralyzing. At other times, it inspires us to remember and embody the things we’ve learned from the one we now mourn. After Elijah ascends into heaven, Elisha picks up his mentor’s mantle, and moves forward in his journey ready to follow his own path as a prophet. In response to this passage, Carrie N. Mitchell asks, “how has [a favorite mentor] nurtured us in our callings?” (Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 3, p 172) In Thank You, Grandpa, a little girl learns about the process of saying thank you and goodbye in the time she spends with her Grandpa. These lessons shape her, and help her to say thank you and goodbye to Grandpa once he is gone. Use this text and story to wonder together with your congregation about the people who have mentored and shaped them along their life journeys.
Second Reading: Galatians 5:1, 13-25
Zen Ties by Jon J. Muth
(Written for ages 5-9)
Comment: “[The] fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control… If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.” This text presents a wonderful opportunity to explore the ways we experience the fruit of the Spirit at work in our world. In Zen Ties, the panda Stillwater plays a role not unlike the Spirit’s. He inspires children and his nephew in acts of love, generosity, and kindness for a mean neighbor. In time, she becomes a beloved friend to the children. See how many fruits of the Spirit your children can identify in this story and wonder together about the ways they live out these fruits in their own lives.
Gospel Reading: Luke 9:51-62
Otter and Odder: A Love Story by James Howe
(Written for ages 5-9)
Comment: This text serves to remind us that great commitment and difficult choices are required when one chooses to follow Jesus. Richard J. Shaffer Jr. comments that “Those who choose to follow in his path may find that they have no place to call home, either physically or culturally.” (Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 3, p 194) He goes on to explain that following our path can put us at odds with the world we live in, requiring us to make a choice and live in a way that might even be considered odd by those who have loved and raised us. Otter’s experience is not unlike the one described by Shaffer. When he falls in love with Myrtle the fish, his community goes on about how odd and abnormal he’s become. It is difficult for Otter to choose a different life, but in the end, he realizes that his relationship with Myrtle is his priority and he embraces being an odder otter.
This week’s Lectionary Links were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.
Lectionary Links: Sunday, June 30, 2013 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.