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June 14, 2026 * Third Sunday After Pentecost
Scripture Readings
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition
Genesis 18:1-15
18 The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. 2 He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them and bowed down to the ground. 3 He said, “My lord, if I find favor with you, do not pass by your servant. 4 Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5 Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” 6 And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah and said, “Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes.” 7 Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. 8 Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared and set it before them, and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
9 They said to him, “Where is your wife Sarah?” And he said, “There, in the tent.” 10 Then one said, “I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him. 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I be fruitful?” 13 The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too wonderful for the Lord? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son.” 15 But Sarah denied, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
Romans 5:1-5
5 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access[b] to this grace in which we stand, and we[c] boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we[d] also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
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Reflection
“We Laugh and We Hope”
You Who Question Souls
Where have you been? Do you remember who you are?
How can I assist you? What led you to get lost?
Will you listen to my voice? How did you forget your joy?
When will you let go? Can you give yourself to love?
The questions you pose are endless.
And so is my soul’s need for you.
Today: I listen for the question.
From the book Fragments of Your Ancient Name by Joyce Rupp
Worship this Sunday will consider values of Hospitality and Hope.
In Genesis 18, we have a wonderful ancient story - one where God came to Abraham in an unexpected way. Abraham begs the travelers to be his guests, and then works to make them welcome. In conversation while they are eating, a promise is spoken: they will return to Abraham in a year's time, and he will have a son. This, to Abraham, is not just impossible but crazy: he is ancient and so is his wife, Sarah. Sarah, for her part, overhears the conversation and the promise - and laughs out loud at how ridiculous it seems. In fact, however, what has been promised comes to pass and Sarah brings forth a son whom they name Isaac, which means laughter.
2,000 years later, in his letter to the fledgling church at Rome, Paul writes about how difficulty can teach us perseverance, and courage can transform into hope.
So how can we be people of Hope in impossible and crazy times? How can we consider God's promises to sustain and to uphold and to redeem when the world seems so impossible and crazy?
I think Hope is not a fuzzy feeling; it is an attitude and a choice and a source of strength.
Like Hospitality, it is a practice. The mystery is that when we engage in that practice, the Spirit draws near and things that used to make us laugh out loud, cause us to rejoice and be glad.
The Rev. Dr. Sandy Tice
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