Hazelwell Weekly Contact July 16th 2023
15 Jul 2023 • Weekly Notices
Hazelwell Weekly Contact July 16th 2023
(Trinity 6 ) 10.00am
Hazelwell Communion
Please pray for
All who have lost homes and livelihoods in floods in India and elsewhere.
All who live alone and are lonely.
Also The residents of Newlands and Lewis Roads
Parish Update
- Prayers will be requested each week for residents of 2 roads in the parish as we used to do a number of years ago. Thus over a period of time the whole parish will have been prayed for.
Food Bank
The demand for help from foodbanks continues to rise and will be even higher with the onset of Summer Holidays. We continue to collect food for The Spearhead Trust. Please consider bringing donations with you on Sunday and leave on the table at the back of church.
Alternatively, consider donating to a local foodbank in the course of your
weekly shop via local supermarket collection.
Reflection on Matthew 13:vs 1-9, 18-23 from “The Working Preacher”
Extravagant SowingIt is not difficult to find contemporary examples of the various responses to the word depicted in Jesus’ parable. Having the word choked out by “the cares of the world and the lure of wealth” seems to be a particular problem in North America. One should be careful, however, to avoid equating the various types of soil with a particular person or group, and especially to avoid equating oneself or one’s community with the good soil.
If we are honest with ourselves, we can probably find evidence of several kinds of soil in our lives and in our congregations on any given day. It is noteworthy that Jesus does not use the parable to exhort hearers to “be good soil,” as though we could make that happen. If there is any hope for the unproductive soil, it is that the sower keeps sowing generously, extravagantly, even in the least promising places. Jesus’ investment in his disciples shows that he simply will not give up on them, in spite of their many failings. We trust that he will not give up on us either, but will keep working on whatever is hardened, rocky, or thorny within and among us. We trust in his promise to be with us to the end of the age.
As those entrusted with Jesus’ mission today, we might consider the implications of this parable for how we engage in mission. Too often we play it safe, sowing the word only where we are confident it will be well received, and only where those who receive it are likely to become contributing members of our congregations. In the name of stewardship, we hold tightly to our resources, wanting to make sure that nothing is wasted. We stifle creativity and energy for mission, resisting new ideas for fear they might not work — as though mistakes or failure were to be avoided at all costs.
Jesus’ approach to mission is quite at odds with our play-it-safe instincts. He gives us freedom to take risks for the sake of the gospel. He endorses extravagant generosity in sowing the word, even in perilous places. Though we may wonder about the wisdom or efficiency of his methods, Jesus promises that the end result will be a bumper crop.
