Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost- Week of September 5, 2021

Begin your devotion time by praying this prayer: Holy God, through your Son Jesus we better learn the ways of your love. Open our hearts to turn toward you and love other people. Amen.

Reflect on the Way of Love together: This week’s practice on the Way of Love is TURN. Where have you experienced Jesus’ love this week, and how has it helped you turn toward loving others more?

Adult and Small Child

Read: Mark 7:24-37

Reflect: The woman in this story is wonderfully bold. First, she approaches Jesus even though she is a foreigner. Then, after Jesus refuses to help her daughter, she doesn’t give up. When he says something rude and compares her to a dog, she argues with him and says that even dogs deserve to get what they need. Her boldness changes his mind.

She reminds us that our prayers should be honest and direct. It’s okay to tell God anything. In fact, it’s required, since part of turning to God is telling the truth. If we’re sad or upset, we should say so. If we’re happy, or grateful, or excited, we should say that too. And we can pray with whatever words we want. If we like the traditional words we say in church, we can use those. If we’d rather talk to God like we do to our friends at school or work, that’s great too. What matters is that we’re communicating with God, and being honest.

Respond: Sometimes it’s easier to help others do something before doing it yourself, so try acting out some honest prayers using stuffed animals or dolls. Talk about the feelings or desires that a particular toy might have (What does a bear want? What makes a monkey sad?) Act out scenes of the characters praying, telling God the truth. After that, think about what you could say to God right now, and pray together in whatever way you like.

- Drew Bunting

Adult and Elementary

Read: Mark 7:24-37

Reflect: I imagine the Syrophonecian woman feeling frustrated with Jesus, when he tells her he won’t cast the demon out of her daughter. If someone refused to help me, I might cry or walk away angry. Instead, the woman reminds Jesus that there is always enough for everyone.

Respond: Jesus teaches us that there is always enough for everyone, if we share. Look for extra things to share this week! Are there crumbs leftover when you eat? Do you have clothes or books that you aren’t using anymore? Find someone who needs some of your extra things and share with them.

- Lindsay Gottwald

Adult and Youth

Read: Mark 7:24-37

Reflect: In this passage, we see Jesus continuing to minister to the outcast (those seen as unclean and impure.) Jesus entered a house and wanted to be left alone. Even Jesus sometimes needed rest! However, his fame was spreading. He cannot escape the demands for his healing power. Immediately upon arrival, an uninvited woman whose daughter was considered unclean appeared. This woman was an outsider, a Gentile. She begged Jesus to heal her daughter. People were shocked by his response. It was harsh. Jesus says, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.� (Mark 7:27, NRSV) How does this Gentile woman respond? She says, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.� (Mark 7:28, NRSV) Wow! She is not asking for a seat at the table. All she is asking is for a crumb or two from the table. For her child to be healed. And so, with this amazing response Jesus heals her child immediately.

Respond: This passage talks about outsiders. Do you welcome outsiders in? Do you make room for them in your life and heart? For example, this might include kids at school, neighborhood families, people of different faiths and races. Spend this week actively looking for ways to engage and welcome those outsiders that might exist in your life.

- Lauren Wainwright

Adult and Adults

Read: Mark 7:24-37

Reflect: What’s in the power of an experience? When Jesus heals the deaf man with a speech impediment, he instructs the people who witnessed the healing to “tell no one.� And yet, they continue to share the marvel of Jesus with others. The more he orders them to be quiet, the more they talk. I can only imagine what they must have been thinking, witnessing these miracles - wondering why Jesus would want them to NOT talk about them, but disobeying them because they are compelled by what they have seen. They have experienced Jesus’ work in the world, and it is so astounding they cannot help but tell the world about it.

Our encounters with Jesus in our everyday life might be more mundane, but they are no less wonders to proclaim. With each rising and setting of the sun, we are called, again and again, to turn to Jesus, experience Divine Love and proclaim it to the world through word and action.

Respond: We might be witnessing miracles like Jesus healing a deaf man each day, but recognizing where Jesus is working in the world is sometimes much simpler. Start by pausing at lunch each day and asking “where have I seen evidence of Jesus at work in the world so far today?� You might choose to share this insight each day with a trusted friend, or even on your social internet accounts as a witness to the world.

- Regina Heater