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Hello Reader!

Hello beloved one.

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Announcements:

*Office hours are happening at LITTLE BIRD (613 S College Ave) on Thursday from 10 to 12. We have been having rich conversations--come be a part of it.

*CP Youth - the teen types are going to Fort Fun after church this Sunday! Please plan to come and pick-up will be at 2:30 at Fort Fun.

*Family Housing Network next week!! It's once again time to host some unhoused families in the building. Our week is September 15th - 22nd. Please sign up to provide a meal or spend the night! ​

*Supper Clubs! A lovely simple way to build community. Please sign up!​

*Our next church potluck will be on September 29th, right after church. Please come!

*Also, on September 29th, during the potluck, we'll have our second annual Do Justly Fair. Are you involved in a non-profit? We'd love to talk with you about representing your organization at this event (we promise it's lowkey and fun). Email me (katrina@thecommonplacechurch.com) or Darren (darren@thecommonplacechurch.com) to learn more.

*Enneagram Book Club! If you know me (Katrina), you know I have a long and deep love for the enneagram. It's a wonderful tool for spiritual growth and connection. Would you please join me in reading Self to Lose, Self to Find by Marilyn Vancil? Then, we will gather together on October 21st to discuss!

*Fall Retreat: One other date for your calendar...we are going to offer an opportunity to rest on November 9th. This will be a daylong retreat in the building. More details to come!

*Wondering about other events? Look at website​

Does Jesus Play Favorites?

We usually follow the Revised Common Lectionary. Click on the link if you want to see what we'll be exploring in the weeks to come.

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INVOCATION

O God, Wisdom of the universe,

you bear the pain of your people.

Grant us the gift of wisdom,

that we may discern your way

and live justly and graciously

amid the struggles of this world.

Amen.

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SONGS

Jubilee Te Rautini PREVIEW   ​

Reckless Love Cory Asbury PREVIEW   ​

Future / Past John Mark McMillan PREVIEW   ​

SCRIPTURES & READINGS

​James 2:1-4​

​Mark 7:24-30​

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TAKEAWAYS & COMMUNITY QUESTIONS

• Because it’s Jesus, we think we need to explain, understand, take the awkwardness out of it. But…if it was anyone else, we wouldn’t excuse it.
  In Luke 2:52, we read that Jesus “grew” physically, spiritually, and intellectually. What if this story isn’t a story only of a person with a need and the son of God as the resourcer of the need. What if this is the story of Jesus growing…more inclusive?
• Gregory Boyle is a Jesuit priest who has worked with current and former gang members in Los Angeles for over 30 years. Mostly minorities. Mostly cons or ex-cons. Once he was asked by a gang intervention worker in Houston, “How do you reach them?” And Father Boyle famously answered, ““For starters, stop trying to reach them. Can you be reached by them? Can you let them take you to their hovel and show you the view from there? Otherwise, it stays distant—service provider, service recipient.”
• Jesus encounters a person we mistakenly profile as the one who needs to be reached by Jesus...and he is reached by her. He is reached by the one we think he and we are supposed to bring the truth…supposed to reach. May we learn the lesson that no matter how certain we are that people out there need what we have...everyone we meet has something we lack. May we be open. The woman in this story — a Canaanite woman — is thrice marginalized. By her gender. Her ethnicity. And her religion. She is a woman, she is a pagan, and she is a foreigner.
• O Lord, we confess In our need to be heard, we have not listenedIn our desire to reach, we have not been reached. May we make room…for everyone
• How to be people who make room: Be humble. Take everyone seriously. Let the people you want to reach, reach you. It’s okay to repent. It’s okay to change. It’s okay to grow.

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ARTWORK

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BENEDICTION

You are God’s Child

Gifted with dreams and visions.

Upon you rests the grace of God like flames of fire.

Love and serve the Lord in the wildness of your being.

Practice Resurrection.

And may the deep peace of Christ be with you,

The strong arms of God sustain you,

And the glory of the Holy Spirit shine upon your face.

Amen.

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Resource: Field Recordings This is just a delightful album by musician, Paul Zach. Hymns out in the fields, with birds and bugs? Okay! Let these songs be an invitation to experience God's love within all the world. Click here to listen to the album

Practice: Make a small change Whether we want to admit it or not, we are creatures of habit. It gives us order and structure. These are not bad things at all! But, sometimes, we are asked to get out of our comfort zone. We are asked to make a change in order to make room for something else, or someone else. What could you change this week? Maybe your route home from work...Maybe you go to a different grocery store...be creative. Let it translate into an embodied prayer.

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Grace and Peace,

Katrina and Darren

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