Reading Plan for July 26 - Aug. 1

July 26, 2026 | Luke 7:36-50
Reflection:
The ending of this passage reads, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” Knowing this, reread the passage and look for signs of the woman’s faith. Notice that she doesn’t speak in this story. How does Jesus identify her faith? Is it her devotion? Her actions? She doesn’t articulate faith in words: “Jesus, I admit that I am a sinner and am sorry for my sins. I trust that you are God’s Son sent to save the world.” She comes in humility and compassion and washes Jesus’ feet. When Jesus says, “Your faith has saved you,” know that this word can also mean “made whole.”  Jesus is telling her that she is made whole, that is, restored to herself and to her community, from which she had been separated because she is labeled a “sinner.” Jesus sees faith, trust and belief in her actions, and at the same time he tells his host that such “faith in action” is lacking in him. What could you do that Jesus might look at you and your actions and say, “Your faith has made you whole. Go in peace”?

July 27, 2026 | Luke 8:1-10
Reflection:
There are denominations of Christians throughout the world that do not allow women to serve in leadership roles. Luke highlights for us how women were a crucial part of Jesus’ ministry. Mary from Magdala, Joanna from Herod’s household, Susanna, and many others used their resources to support Jesus and the apostles’ work. Had you ever noticed that detail, “and many others”? The work of the kingdom is not just for some. Many women and men have helped to tell the world of God’s love and how we are to love one another. What woman or women have deepened your own faith? The parable of the Sower and the Seeds is known through three gospel accounts. It must have made quite an impact to be remembered so widely. Read it today with fresh eyes and ears. Do you identify yourself in the story? Are you the sower? Are you one of the group of seeds? Are you the soil? Have you ever been the thorns and choked someone’s faith? With ears to hear, what is God telling you through this parable? And if you don’t understand the parable, as Jesus knew many wouldn’t, tomorrow will provide at least one explanation.

July 28, 2026 | Luke 8:11-25
Reflection:
Jesus says that “riches and pleasures” can choke out growing faith. You may feel like you don’t have “riches”; someone always seems to be richer than you. But comforts shape our lives. Christians around the world experience the gospel in different ways, depending on their circumstances. Some who live in profound poverty live with immense gratitude for simple things we take for granted. How does comfort prevent you from leaning into God more deeply, from expressing thankfulness with abandon, or from growing and producing the fruit of the Spirit? How can you connect with another to share their burdens in such a way that you both are liberated to grow in faith and love? Three more “movements” occur in today’s reading. Read each and take a moment to meditate on them. Notice key themes of light, hearing and doing the word of God, and the power of God in Jesus to bring peace amid chaos. Which of these stories speaks most deeply to you today?

July 29, 2026 | Luke 8:26-39
Reflection:
If you’re reading along with us all through this year, this will be the third time we encounter the man of the Gerasenes who is controlled by a whole Legion of demons. (In Matthew’s telling, there are two men.) The detail that stands out to me in this account is that when the man is freed from what binds him and is restored to himself, he is found “clothed.” How long had he been naked, living among the tombs? This strikes me as a profound act of compassion Jesus has for this man or that Jesus inspires in others, that they would think to find clothes for this man to wear. Scripture doesn’t say, “And they found an old sheet to wrap around the man.” It says, “They found him clothed and in his right mind, sitting at Jesus’ feet.” All of these are signs of how Jesus affected the full restoration of the people he healed. It’s no wonder, though, that the man wants to go with Jesus, not only because Jesus is so compelling, but also because of how hard it would be for him to live among people who compel Jesus to go away. Jesus encourages with one task: “Go tell the good news of what God has done.” What good news would Jesus ask you to tell?

July 30, 2026 | Luke 8:40-48
Reflection:
Today’s stories are not complete in our reading; we have to wait until tomorrow to get “the rest of the story.” Take note of how desperate the leader of the synagogue is that he would fall at Jesus’ feet and beg him to heal his only child. And it just says that Jesus went. No other commentary. Then the story is interrupted. Then we have a remarkable story. We’ve encountered it before. This woman risks everything in her desperation just to touch Jesus and experience healing. Think of all the times Jesus healed people; scripture doesn’t tell us what Jesus experienced as he healed someone, but here we get a clue. Jesus says, “I noticed that power had gone out from me.” Is this what he felt every time he healed? We could only conjecture. But perhaps he recognizes that a healing has happened because he’d felt this before. Jesus knew something remarkable had happened, and he sought out the person who’d touched him. The woman risks everything again in declaring that she was the one and explaining why she had done it. Jesus doesn’t chastise her. He tells her that her faith/trust/belief has brought her into wholeness. And the peace with which he sends her off is a restorative peace (shalom)...the kind that God entered into after the six days of creation.

July 31, 2026 | Luke 8:49-56
Reflection:
Now we get the rest of the story that was interrupted yesterday. Notice how Jesus makes the connection between faith/trust/belief and salvation/healing/deliverance. When we read “Only believe, and she will be saved” in English, there is more intended in the language of the scripture (Greek) and likely in Jesus’ own language (Aramaic). Jesus’ name (Yeshua) had at its root the meaning of “God is salvation, deliverance, rescue, emancipation, freeing, and healing.” There is no “saving” without the healing that restores wholeness. And this is what Jesus does in this story. He brings this twelve-year-old girl back to wholeness, her breath having come back into her. Notice how Jesus “orders” them all not to tell anyone what had happened. Why do you think he did this?

August 1, 2026 | Luke 9:1-17
Reflection:
Today, we hear again about the close association between the preaching of the good news and healing. Jesus preached and healed, and he sent his disciples out to do the same. Notice how much the disciples must rely on hospitality in fulfilling their mission. Jesus commands them to be reliant on God and the people to whom God leads them. Hospitality has forever been a key element in the drawing near of the kingdom. Take heed of Herod. Without social media, he has no idea who this Jesus is that he’s hearing so much about. He will get to see Jesus, but it will be much later in our story. Luke says Herod is really intrigued by Jesus. The political realm is beginning to get nervous about this phenomenon, Jesus. The detail that jumps out at me in the Feeding of the Five Thousand is that Jesus had “slipped quietly into the city of Bethesda.” He wasn’t planning on making a spectacle, but the crowds found him, and when they wouldn’t leave, Jesus found a way to show the great compassion of God. He found a way to feed them all. Notice that when the crowds first found Jesus, he didn’t shun them. Rather, he welcomed them. And he spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and he healed. Jesus is consistent in how he interacts with the crowds. The heart of this is compassion. When was the last time someone spoke to you of the kingdom of God in such a way that you felt compelled to linger and hear more? What has intrigued you about the kingdom of God?