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It’s The Small Things

By Pr. Lisa Rygiel

Children like to collect things: rocks, sticks, and more. Adults tend to pretend-love the items that are brought to them: “Oh, how beautiful!” “Oh, that’s a good one.” Children, encouraged, continue their collections, finding the smallest of things and displaying them like they are the most valuable items in the world.

Jesus’ parables in last Sunday’s gospel reading teach the disciples about things that are so small they are often overlooked: a mustard seed, a little bit of yeast, a tiny pearl, and even a net that is quite small until it is filled with fish. These little things in his parables are treasures important for understanding the reign of God.

Adults tend to overlook the small things while seeking larger things, heavier things, shinier things. We walk right past the tiny flower in the crack of a sidewalk which once would have caught our eye. One pearl? A full necklace is better. A shrub that provides creatures a home? It’s now in an inconvenient place.

But Jesus teaches that in God’s reign all things, large and small, matter. All people matter. It is a wise disciple who recognizes this. Even King Solomon, with all his wealth, prayed for wisdom. Wisdom helps us see more clearly and begin to understand the depth of God’s grace.

And that grace Jesus displayed immediately. “Have you understood all this?” he asked. The disciples answered simply, “Yes” (Matthew 13:51). What a bold answer! They were too worried to admit they did not understand. A little yeast, though, goes a long way. Jesus knew this. Each parable would build on another until the disciples understood the entire collection.

For us today, understanding God’s grace takes study, prayers for wisdom, and walking the path while looking for the small things that matter. The reign of God is like a rose among a bramble bush? A child’s picture of their home? However you visualize it, it is a treasure to cherish and to share.

Devotional message based on the readings for the week of July 26, 2026 reprinted from sundaysandseasons.com.

The 10th Sunday after Pentecost, August 2

Announcements

  • Special Meeting: Voting members are asked to remain in the sanctuary after worship on Sunday for a brief congregational meeting (see announcement below).
  • Fellowship: Everyone, please Join us in the Fellowship Hall for our first Sunday Potluck too. All are welcome.
  • Wednesday Book Club: Book Club is on hiatus in August and will resume in September.
  • Summer Supper Gatherings: Our next summer supper is at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12. There is a sign-up sheet in the Fellowship Hall for food and activities. If you have questions, contact Julie Wersal or Jo Moss. We look forward to seeing you there.
  • 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. Volunteers still are needed for set up. The sale starts at 8 a.m. on Saturday, see you there.
  • 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.

A Special Congregational Meeting is called for Sunday, August 2, 2026, to authorize the Church Council to withdraw $11,000.00 from Zion’s Lutheran’s trust fund. This $11,000 amount is needed to pay for materials and labor to replace the Fellowship Hall's carpeting with new, skid-resistant Commercial Grade Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring & trim.

The meeting will be held in the Sanctuary immediately following Sunday's service. During discussion, all points of view, whether for, against, or neutral, will be provided an opportunity to be heard.

As defined in our constitution (Chapter 8), voting members are confirmed members of Zion’s who, during the current or preceding calendar year, shall have communed in this congregation and shall have made a contribution of record.

E-formation
In the gospel reading for this coming Sunday, Jesus feeds the multitude with only a little bread. He is still doing this: come to worship; to hear this blessing and to eat the food that our Savior gives to us.

Matthew 14:13-21
The gospels recount many of Jesus’ meals. In this the first of Matthew’s two narratives of the feeding of the multitude, Jesus fed the crowds in the desert, just as God had done through Moses. The twelve baskets of leftovers may signify either a parallel with the twelve tribes or the on-going task of the apostles in the early church.

Isaiah 55:1-5
In the sixth-century poem from Second Isaiah, written to console those who were living in exile, believers were invited to continue to accept the covenant that God established and renewed. The prophet likened the covenant to food freely given.

Romans 9:1-5
Paul’s letter to the Romans now turned to the question of the place of Israel in the salvation won by the death of Christ. Paul, himself a Jew although dedicated to a Gentile ministry, stated his confidence that since God is faithful, God’s promises to Israel continue.

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