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15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Te Rātapu Tekau mā rima o He Wā Noa

13 July 2025


Bible readings for today

  • Amos 7:7-17 
  • Psalm 82
  • Colossians 1:1-14
  • Luke 10:25-37

Today is also Sea Sunday
  • Job 38:1,4-11 
  • Ps 107:23-32;33:1-12 
  • Acts 27:27-32,39-44 
  • Mark 4:35-41 

Liturgical Colour: GREEN
​
New Zealand State schools start tomorrow (Term 3)

Collect

E te Atua kaha rawa,
nāu mātou i ako e āu kupu
ko te aroha te whakatutuki o te ture;
meatia kia aroha pono ō mātou ngākau ki a koe
me ō mātou hoa tata anō ko mātou;
Ko Īhu Karaiti tō mātou Ariki.
Āmine.

Almighty God,
you teach us in your word that love is the fulfilling of the law;
grant that we may love you with all our heart and our neighbour as ourselves;
through Jesus Christ our Lord
Amen.

​Sea Sunday resources


The Good Samaritan & the Greatest Commandment (Luke 10:25-37)

In this week's passage Jesus has a very important conversation about two important things - what is the most important commandment, and who is our neighbour? 
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​Visio Lectio
Another great illustration from Rev. Sarah West from Auckland, shared with permission
​PNG Download
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Gospel Conversations 2025: Is there any parable which has a greater impact on Christian mission and ministry than the Good Samaritan? For that very reason, preachers might feel puzzled as to how to present the parable in a way which sparks new insights in their hearers. Hopefully this Conversation will give some ideas!
Gospel Conversations 2020: Everyone - well, almost everyone - knows the parable of the Good Samaritan, so what can we learn from it which will strike us afresh? This week's conversation gives us a wealth of ideas to challenge and cheer us.

Intergenerational Worship

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Ordinary Time Year C 2025 Intergenerational Worship Series
​
(Angela Blundell, Auckland Dio Intergenerational Ministry)
This resource has 8 weeks of worship ideas (from July 6 to Aug 31) to help your community connect to God and each other through worship, sharing and creativity.

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A collection of resources and ideas (Intergen Australia)
Written and compiled by Jillian Ross. Bible references: Colossians, Luke.


Preschool Fun

Sharing the Story
  • If you have access to Godly Play material you might like to use the Story of the Good Samaritan. 
  • Retelling the Good Samaritan with felt shapes (Flame Creative)
  • Try a simplified version of this talk - A neighbour's a neighbour which uses the book 'Horton hears a Who' to help explain the parable. 
  • You might like to use this Story Bag (Flame Creative) to retell the story using your fave kids bible. 

Helping hand prints (Trueway Kids)
Find a large piece of blank paper or cardboard and some washable paint and let the kids stamp their hands into the paint and then onto the paper. Repeat as many times as you want. 
Talk about - what does it mean to have helping hands? Remind the kids that God wants us to help and love others.

First Aid
Set up a corner with some toys, dolls, or some willing adult patients. Add some plasters (lots of plasters!), bandages and anything else first aid-ish.​
Talk about - what happened in the story. Why did the first two people ignore the person who was hurt? Why did the Samaritan help him? How do you think God felt about that? I wonder if you have been hurt before? Who helped you?

For families
Encourage households to consider how they can serve others in their church, neighbourhood or wider community in a way that their preschoolers can participate in an enjoy. For example, preschoolers could:
  • choose a can of food or two for a Mission Bin at the supermarket.
  • help collect library books/groceries for someone stuck at home.
  • help bake some biscuits for a friend. 
  • draw a picture on a card for someone who is sick.
  • help with some weeding for a neighbour or at a community garden.
  • point out rubbish at a local park or playground for an adult to pick up. 
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Kids Talks

Love your neighbour (Sunday School Works) - full lesson plan which includes games and activities.

​
Who is my neighbour? (Ministry to Children)

A neighbour's a neighbour (Sermons 4 Kids) - relate it to the book Horton hears a Who.

Apples and Oranges (RFour) - Ask, Tell, Share

Good Samaritan skit (Sermons 4 Kids) - act it out.

Don't judge a book by its cover (Ministry to Children) - a modern day Good Samaritan skit.

Activities

  • Pipecleaner Moses Craft (Bible Story Printables)
  • Folding Optical Illusion (Jesus Without Language)
  • Paper Plate Heart Weaving (Red Ted Art)
  • Heart Craft (True Aim Education)
  • Water Colour and Crayon Messages (Flame Creative Kids)
  • If it were you and reflection sheet - downloadable worksheet with modern day scenarios (Ministry Spark)
  • Lift the Flap Book (Jesus without language) 
  • Printable Images (Jesus without language)
  • Good Samaritan Mini Theatre (Jesus without language)
  • ​Good Samaritan colouring sheet (Sermons 4 Kids)
Live it out! (Trueway Kids)
Why not brainstorm some practical ways your kids and households can serve your church, neighbours or wider community? Write them down and give them to your church households. Get the kids to report back on how they went.

5 ways to practice service as a family (Faith Alive)

Pray it!

Prayer is an opportunity to encounter God. It can involve words spoken in a group, art we hang on our walls, or a stroll in the park. Try this prayer from the Methodist Prayer Cards which offer 52 different prompts for creative prayer.
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Media

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Bible Explore
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