Summer Begins

Next Sunday is July 4th. In spite of the fact that the "summer season" more often than not begins with Memorial Day weekend, this is the first true summer holiday. And as with most three-day weekends, we can pretty much be guaranteed it will be a low Sunday, and this one may be lower than most. From now until Labor Day, our churches will be emptier than usual. And most congregations will provide no formation or education opportunities beyond Vacation Bible School. Since our program year usually runs from September to June, do we really need lesson plans for July and August? In spite of our program year, the church calendar runs from December to November. There are congregations that use Lesson Plans That Work year round. I know of several folks that use them as part of their sermon preparation. A couple of people have told me that they've used the Lesson Plans as the basis for planning their Vacation Bible School. Formation and education happen year round in a variety of ways--both formal and informal, personal and communal. Isn't it nice to have a resource that continues through the entire year? By the time you read this, I'll have been on vacation for three days already. The wonders of technology allow me to write ahead of time and schedule publication for a future date. Hmmm... perhaps that's a topic for a future post or two. Technology and the Lesson Plans.

Where do we go when we follow?

Here is the Notation for the Gospel reading for the June 27 Lesson Plans (Luke 9: 51-62):

Rejection. To the disciples' horror, the people of the village did not receive Jesus. Retribution, they insisted! “No,” said Jesus, moving on. Follow, they decided. But what would follow mean? Maybe to follow is to hold focus. Staying on focus involves choosing the important and not getting bogged down in the urgent. What is the important that we follow?

The theme for Sunday's Lesson Plans is "Where do we go when we follow?" There are two distinct issues in this passage from Luke: (1) What do we do when someone rejects us because of our faith? (2) What does it mean to follow Jesus? These are not easy concepts for adults, let alone children. And there will be questions. What are some ways to handle these questions? With adults? With older children? With young children? Are we willing to follow where the questions lead?

Wonderings

The Notation for This Week's Gospel (Proper 7, Luke 8: 26-39):

Demons. Not a likely topic for a meeting of psychiatric medical professionals. And the prescription — tossing demons onto the back of pigs and subsequently driving the pigs off a cliff — is equally unlikely. Yet who among us has not been taunted by a demon in some other disguise? ("I am not qualified, I can't do it, it is too hard." etc.) And, oh, the delicious relief when the wind blows the demons away.

This is one of those passages that always makes me wonder about whether or not Jesus thought beyond the immediate results of his actions. I wonder what became of the swineherds who watched the livestock in their care run over the cliff and drown in the lake. I wonder about the people who owned the pigs and lost most or all of their livelihood. I wonder about their children.

The children we teach will come up with these wonderings on their own, so we need to in our own wondering to be prepared to encourage their wonderings and their conversations.

Forgiveness

The Notation for This Week's Gospel (Proper 6, Luke 7:36 – 8:3):

Luke's Gospel accompanies us on the rest of our journey this year. Luke fleshes out the parables and adds rich details not found in the other gospel accounts. Today, it is the story of the woman who is self-convicted of sin. Her relief at encountering forgiveness flows out of her in an extravagant display of gratitude. Are we so able to confront our transgressions, confess them, and then believe they are truly forgiven, that we, too, can dance our gratitude?

Who are the Pharisees in our lives? When are we the Pharisees? Is it easier to forgive others, or forgive ourselves? What does it mean to "dance our gratitude"? As we wind down the "school year," if we haven't already, are we focusing on what went wrong? Or are we celebrating the moments of grace? What would happen if we planned next year in the context of dancing our gratitude?

Healing

The Notation for This Week's Gospel (Proper 5, Luke 7: 11-17) reads:

Luke focuses on the powerful gentleness of Jesus. A young man is about to be buried. Jesus knows the devastation this man’s death will bring to the man’s widowed mother. A stunned crowd watches as Jesus gives the now obviously alive son back to his mother.

Yet the theme of the lesson is "Unexpected Healing." How does this connection of healing with bringing someone back to life affect how we think about healing? Or death? What are some of the things we need to think through when talking about healing, especially healing and prayer? Are Healing and Curing necessarily the same thing? What does it mean when we pray for someone to be healed and they die? How will you discuss these questions if they come up in your group on Sunday?

Entering Ordinary Time

Our church program year is winding down, though some formation and education activities continue through the Summer, mostly in the form of Vacation Bible Schools. But our formation as Christians never stops. The preface to the Season after Pentecost-Early Summer lesson plans says:

We remain Easter people, now with the wind of the Holy Spirit in our sails. Our task for the months ahead in this season of Ordinary Time, which extends to the end of November, is to look at what Jesus so tenaciously taught his disciples and see what is in these teachings for us as we carry out the work we have been given to do. Jesus promised his disciples a helper, an Advocate, who would stand with them making the work possible. This same helper, the Holy Spirit, hovers over us still eager to quench the fire of fear and replace it with the powerful energy of love.

Most of you will spend time this summer reviewing the past year, looking at what worked and what didnt' work. And many will be planning for the new program year that begins in the Fall. How have Lesson Plans that Work worked for you over the past year? Any changes you might make? Things you plan on doing differently in the Fall? And what went well? We are always looking at ways to make Lesson Plans that Work more effective for those of you who use them.

Easter to Pentecost

We're moving from Easter to Pentecost. College seniors have mostly all graduated. High school seniors are about to graduate. The weather--somewhat haphazardly this year--is moving toward summer heat. This Sunday around the world our churches will celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit. Here is the Notation for This Week's Gospel:

In today's Gospel passage we find Jesus gently preparing his disciples for the coming of the Advocate who will continue the teaching Jesus has begun and reminding them of all they had done together. In today’s passage from Acts the disciples are waiting huddled in the upper room fearing that the authorities would come and get them before the Advocate showed up. What might they have been expecting? Sure enough, God remains true to form: God is a surprise. What they get is a wind that blows into the room, chases away the cobwebs of fuzzy thinking, and fills the disciples with fire. How is that same wind blowing in our lives as we look at the work we have been given to do?

Before we can ask that question of our students--of whatever age group--we have to answer it for ourselves. What's your answer?