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Scriptures used for the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost, July 26, 2015

The Old Testament: 2 Samuel 11:1-15 from the Voice Bible (VOICE)

The Psalm 14

The Epistle: Ephesians 3:14-21 from God’s Word Bible (GW)

The Gospel: John 6:1-21 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

On June twenty-ninth we celebrate Mary and Martha of Bethany.

Click here for a PDF copy of the text for this weeks readings.

Having a Mary Heart in a Martha WorldBy Joanna Weaver / Random HouseThe life of a woman today isn’t really all that different from that of Mary and Martha in the New Testament. Like Mary, you long to sit at the Lord’s feet…but the daily demands of a busy world just won’t leave you alone. Like Martha, you love Jesus and really want to serve him…yet you struggle with weariness, resentment, and feelings of inadequacy.Then comes Jesus, right into the midst of your busy Mary/Martha life—and he extends the same invitation he issued long ago to the two sisters of Bethany. Tenderly he invites you to choose “the better part”—a joyful life of “living-room” intimacy with him that flows naturally into “kitchen service” for him.How can you make that choice? Now updated with a new 12 week companion Bible study, Weaver shows how all of us—Marys and Marthas alike—can draw closer to our Lord, deepening our devotion, strengthening our service, and doing both with less stress and greater joy.