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Why Won't They Listen?
By Pr. Lisa Rygiel

Why won't they listen? Why won't they turn back before it is too late? Don't they see what they are doing to themselves? We ask ourselves these questions when we see those we love committed to a course that can only lead to heartbreak, which could be prevented if only they would listen to us! Nothing in life is more frustrating.

An aging mother begins shutting herself off from her family and friends. She refuses to care for herself or to get out for social occasions. She becomes obsessed with her physical aches and pains, consigning herself to a rocker which she rarely leaves. Her friends remain active, yet she seems committed to a downward spiral to loneliness and depression. You want to tell her that her life is not over. Why won't she listen?

A young woman of 16 has started to struggle in school. After years of A’s and B’s, her course work is slipping. She has lost interest in anything except following influencers on the internet. She constantly frets that she isn’t pretty enough, thin enough, or dressed well enough. She can’t see how beautiful she really is! When you try to tell her, she doesn’t listen. Why won’t she listen?

Your 16-year-old nephew has changed. He has lost interest in sports and in his appearance. He spends most of his time in his room. When he emerges, he is hostile and negative. However, if you bring up the slightest deviation in his behavior. He denies that he is involved with drugs. Yet you know something destructive is bringing him down. Why won't he listen? Why can't you get through to him? Only yesterday, you bounced him on your knee. You watched him grow. Now, he is a stranger. You pray that someday he will understand, but what if it is too late? Why won't he listen?

Jesus experienced the same kind of frustration with those who came to hear him teach. A sower went forth to sow, he said. Some of the seed fell by the wayside and the birds devoured it. Some fell on hard ground and withered because the young plants could not put down deep roots. Some fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked them. But some there were that fell on good ground and they brought forth fruit in some cases a hundredfold. See you at church on Sunday to hear more!

The 7th Sunday in Pentecost, July 12

Announcements

  • Fellowship: Join us after worship Sundays in the Fellowship Hall for coffee & conversation. All are welcome.
  • Wednesday Book Club: Book Club meets Wednesday, July 8. You can join at any time, why not consider doing so now.
  • Summer Supper Gatherings: At 5:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each summer month, we gather in the Fellowship Hall for food and fun. The next supper is at 5:30 p.m. on tonight, with hamburgers, ice cream sundae, and an art event planned. We could still use some condiments and side dishes for dinner, if you are willing to help. If you have questions, please let Julie Wersal or Jo Moss know.
  • Church Council: The Zion’s church council meets next Sunday after worship.
  • Time of Prayer and Coffee: We are invited to join our siblings in Christ from the Methodist church for a time of prayer and coffee at 10:30 a.m. each Thursday at Kangaroo Coffee -in the Marketplace on Commercial Street.
  • Celebration of Life: We will share a celebration of life for Pr. Lisa’s mother Carolyn Schatzman at 10 a.m. on Saturday, July 18, at Zion’s. A reception will follow in the Fellowship Hall.
  • Youth Guests: On the weekend of July 18, Boy Scouts from Troop 540 in Houston will spend the night in our Fellowship Hall on their way to camp. Through the years, Zion’s has served as host to various church and scouting groups on their way to summer camps. We are happy to have Troop 540 return for an overnight stay.
  • Annual Garage Sale: The annual Zion’s Garage Sale will be Saturday, Aug. 1. If you have items to donate, please let Julie Wersal know. We will begin accepting drop offs beginning July 24. Remember that, while Zion’s can accept most items for the sale, we cannot take electronic or computer items and we do not accept clothing and shoes.
  • Save the Date: God’s Work Our Hands Sunday for Zion’s will be Aug. 30 details will follow in E-Formation, the Bulletins, and the Newsletter.
  • We’re Here for You: For pastoral care, call Zion’s at 719-846-7785 or send an email: zionsluth@gmail.com.

E-formation

The parable we hear this coming Sunday likens the word of God to seed that Christ sows into the field that we are. Come to worship, to receive the seed of the word, and at the table, to be nourished for a fruitful life.

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
Matthew 13 is the gospel’s third discourse, a collection of parables. Here Matthew developed Mark’s seed parable—an enigmatic story in which the sower carelessly sows seed on different kinds of soil—into an allegory about the church. Jesus later explains the parable to the insider disciples. The allegory suggests that the Matthean community included varying levels of commitment among its members and that its leaders hoped for positive responses to their instruction.

Isaiah 55:10-13
This sixth-century poem from Second Isaiah likens the return from the exile to the growth of grain and to the strength and beauty of evergreens, the cypress and the myrtle.

Romans 8:1-11
Chapter 8 of Romans culminates Paul’s argument begun in chapter 1. Life “in the flesh,” by which Paul means actual human life convoluted by sin, gives way to life “in the Spirit,” that is, an indwelling of the divine Spirit of Christ’s resurrection made available through baptism and available to all who believe. Although Christians are not sinless (chapter 7), Christ’s death ensures a new life for believers. Careful attention is be paid to what Paul means by the words flesh, law, sin, death, Spirit, and life.

Zion’s Lutheran Church
zionsluth@gmail.com
719-846-7785