God of Love, Thank you for every teacher who notices a child’s special gift. Thank you for teachers who are listeners and gentle guides. Thank you for teachers who expect much and love enough to demand more. Thank you for the special teacher each one of us remembers.

God of Mercy, Sustain teachers who give everything they have and feel abandoned when society expects too much. Strengthen teachers who assume the blame for so many problems beyond their control. Help exhausted teachers rest.

God of Strength, Encourage teachers to care and inspire them to nourish. Motivate teachers to keep on learning for the fun of it and to make learning fun for children.

We wonder at teachers who know how to quiet a class of five-year-olds or help fourth grade girls be empathetic. We admire teachers who enjoy middle school writers, or teach physics or math or civics. We cannot even imagine how to help every single student achieve yearly progress. Bless the people who are expected to accomplish these miracles and who know how to comfort children when miracles don’t happen.

God of Justice, help our nation find a way to steward our vast wealth to support teachers in their special calling, wherever they teach and whatever the race or religion or gender or wealth of the children.
We pray these things in the name of our great teacher, Jesus Christ. Amen
​
(Photo shows my daughter Mary who is teaching 2nd grade this year. Prayer from https://www.ucc.org/justice/public-education/pdfs/Prayer-for-Teachers.pdf)

“He was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3Give us each day our daily bread. 4And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial.”

5And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ 7And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ 8I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

​9“So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. 10For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? 12Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? 13If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Some of the best young pianists in the world will be playing at PCPC Sunday July 28th at 6pm.

Honor and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
Psalm 96:6

Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival Ambassador Concert Series
​https://palmaceia.org/events/rebecca-penneys-piano-festival-july-28

“Be present, O merciful God,
and protect us 
through the silent hours of this night,
so that we who are wearied
by the changes and chances 
of this fleeting world,
may rest upon your eternal changelessness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Amen.

Reflection by Thom M. Shuman:

Other than the one about the wayward son, perhaps no story Jesus told is more familiar than the one which is the gospel reading for tomorrow morning. So familiar, so beloved, so often preached on, that we all know the direction the sermon should take. Even the title we have given it - the GOOD Samaritan - sets us up for the old dichotomy of the good guys and the bad guys. The good guy is lying in the ditch, tossed and left there by the bad guys who beat him up and robbed him. The priest and the Levite, though they had an obligation to stop and help (according to Torah) pass on by - thus, they are bad guys. The Samaritan (who just by that title is seen as bad by the audience) suddenly becomes good in rescuing the victim and getting him the care he needs. The fellow who asks the original question is of course bad, since he doesn't get it; and Jesus is good because, well, he's Jesus. And thus, we know we are supposed to be good, because we are told and do likewise.

Yet, if the Old Book is accurate that we are all created in God's image, then we should, we must find God in each of these people - in the questioner as well as the story teller; in the people who pass by; in the one who stops; in the inn keeper (who does have room); in the outsider who steps into the ditch; in the victim as well as in the doers of violence. So, maybe the challenge is to see that in this story we see ourselves in every person. For there are those times when we have knocked people off their feet into a ditch, as well as those times when we have been ditched. There are those times when we know we should stop and help but, for whatever excuse we use, we just keep walking by. And there are those moments when we instinctively step into help, even though folks may not expect us to be the helper. There are those questions that we ask God, to justify our lives and choices, and there are those stories we tell others to help them see God in their lives.

So, it's not so much a matter of going and doing likewise, and only be the 'good guy' but to recognize that we are in every part of this story, in every character, in every moment, in every ditch, in every choice. More importantly, God is in every part of this story, in every character, in every moment, in every ditch, in every choice. To recognize that next time, we can make a different decision, a different choice, a different response, because we are able to see God in a different way.

(And, if one thinks this story is about how to find eternal life, well, maybe it is eternal life lying there in the ditch, just waiting for us to jump in)

​Thom M. Shuman