But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’ Matthew 13 : 23

Readings this week Isaiah 55 : 10 - 13; Romans 8 : 1 - 11 ; Matthew 13 : 1 – 9, 18 - 23

Thought for this week

Everyone likes a good story; a story that engages the imagination and makes you think. We may read a cracking good book or watch an amazing film, love it so much that we read or watch several times. As we become familiar with a text or film it’s easy to switch off or discard completely.

The parable of the sower is one such example.

God always invites us into scripture, to hear, see and experience the Living Word. Perhaps we could try reading these familiar passages in some different ways. Reading aloud; reading slowly several times, being open to a particular word or phrase and what God might be saying to us through it. We might try placing ourselves imaginatively into the passage - what might it have been like hearing for the first time?

There are a wealth of good online resources available to study and reflect more deeply if you want to know more about the context and culture of Jesus’ time.

Let’s be open to the power of the words of Jesus in our lives and the invitation He offers to follow him each day.

Rachel

Prayer for this week

O Lord, save us from hardness of heart, where your word cannot take root. O Lord, save us from shallowness of mind, where your word withers away. O Lord, save us from the deceitfulness of riches, where your word is choked by everyday cares. But Lord, grant that our hearts may be fertile soil, where your word flourishes and yields a harvest, bringing salvation to ourselves and those about us. Amen.

~ written by the Staffordshire Seven, in Seasonal Worship from the Countryside. Posted on the http://www.arthurrankcentre.org.uk/

We give thanks for…..

For the end of another school year, for the children and all they have achieved, the ways in which they have grown. For the ways we have been able to speak to them of Jesus’ love and enable them to hear God’s Word.

For those coming to be married in our churches over the summer