ABC PARISH: OUR WEEK — AUGUST 30

REMINDERS —
SCHOOL HAS BEGUN!

WATCH FOR ALL OF THOSE MARVELOUS LITTLE
PEOPLE DARTING ABOUT!
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26TH —
NAOMI WILL BE WORKING 9 A.M. TO NOON THIS
WEEK.
AD COUNCIL MEETING AT CASEY U.M.C. - 7 P.M.
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SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 2009 —
Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Our Guest Speaker today is Jerry Neal,
Chief Administrator of Guthrie County Hospital,
and Southwest District Lay Leader for Iowa UMC.

Jerry's chosen Scripture Readings are:
PSALM 23 (New American Standard Bible) NASB

A PSALM OF DAVID.
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the
shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence
of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil;
My cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and loving-kindness will follow
me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
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MARK 4:3-9
(New American Standard Bible) NASV
3 "Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow;

4 as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road,
and the birds came and ate it up.

5 "Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did
not have much soil; and immediately it sprang up
because it had no depth of soil.
6 "And after the sun had risen, it was scorched; and
because it had no root, it withered away.
7 "Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns
came up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.
8 "Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they
grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and
produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold."

9 And He was saying, "He who has ears to hear,
let him hear."
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MARK 4:30-32
(New Living Translation) NLT
PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED
30 Jesus said, “How can I describe the Kingdom
of God? What story should I use to illustrate it?
31 It is like a mustard seed planted in the ground.
It is the smallest of all seeds,

32 but it becomes the largest of all garden plants;
it grows long branches, and birds can make nests
in its shade.”

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THE LAST SCRIPTURE READING IS
THE SONG OF SOLOMON —
Mr. Neal did not choose this but, it is part of
the UMC Lectionary for this day. In my
reading I see it will not come around again
for three years, so I ask you to bear with me.
Whether you interpret this as love between
God and his people, or love between a man
and a woman, it is a beautiful song.
SONG OF SOLOMON
SOLOMON 2:1-18
(21st Century King James Version)
1 "I am the Rose of Sharon, and the
Lily of the Valley."

2 "As the lily among thorns, so is my love
among the daughters."

3 "As the apple tree among the trees of the
wood, so is my beloved among the sons.
I sat down under his shadow with great delight,
and his fruit was sweet to my taste.

4 He brought me to the banqueting house,
and his banner over me was love.

5 Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples;
for I am sick with love.

6 His left hand is under my head, and his
right hand doth embrace me.

7 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem,
by the roes and by the deer of the field, that
ye stir not up nor awake my love till he please.

8 The voice of my beloved! Behold, he cometh
leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the
hills.

9 My beloved is like a roe or a young hart.
Behold, he standeth behind our wall; he looketh
forth at the windows, showing himself through
the lattice.

10 My beloved spoke and said unto me,
`Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.

11 For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over
and gone.

12 The flowers are in blossom all over the earth;
the time of the singing of birds is come, and the
voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.

13 The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and
the vines with the tender grape give a good
smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.'"

14 "O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock,
in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy
countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is
thy voice, and thy countenance is comely."

15 "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the
vines; for our vines have tender grapes."

16 "My beloved is mine, and I am his; he feedeth
among the lilies.

17 Until the day break and the shadows flee away,
turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young
hart upon the mountains of Bethern.
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COMMUNITY PICNIC TODAY - CASEY, RUTT PARK
BEGINNING AT 6 P.M. — — —
Our games will be Miniature Golf, Volleyball,
Basketball, Kickball, Croquet, Frisbee and
maybe some we have not yet thought of.

Our food will be Grilled Hot Dogs, Baked Beans,
Marshmallows and Iced Tea. We will also
provide paper products. You may bring a side
dish, dessert, chips, or other snacks to share
with the group.