St. John’s Lutheran, Folcroft
Worship Service July 24, 2022
https://stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE Our Father, God in Heaven Above (Walther)
* CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Blessed be the holy Trinity, one God, whose steadfast love endures forever. Amen.
Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
Merciful God,
we confess that we have not followed your path
but have chosen our own way.
Instead of putting others before ourselves,
we long to take the best seats at the table.
When met by those in need,
we have too often passed by on the other side.
Set us again on the path of life.
Save us from ourselves
and free us to love our neighbors. Amen.
Hear the good news!
God does not deal with us according to our sins
but delights in granting pardon and mercy.
In the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven.
You are free to love as God loves. Amen.
* PRAYER OF THE DAY
Let us pray.
Almighty and ever-living God, you are always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and you gladly give more than we either desire or deserve. Pour upon us your abundant mercy. Forgive us those things that weigh on our conscience, and give us those good things that come only through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
* indicates please stand as you are able
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13
* GATHERING SONG Praise and Thanksgiving (ELW 689)
FIRST READING: Genesis 18:20-32
20Then the LORD said, “How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin! 21I must go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me; and if not, I will know.”
22So the men turned from there, and went toward Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the LORD. 23Then Abraham came near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked 24Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it 25Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just” 26And the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.” 27Abraham answered, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. 28Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” 29Again he spoke to him, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30Then he said, “Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31He said, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32Then he said, “Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak just once more. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.”
PSALM: Psalm 138
1I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with | my whole heart;
before the gods I will | sing your praise.
2I will bow down toward your holy temple and praise your name, because of your steadfast | love and faithfulness;
for you have glorified your name and your word above all things.
3When I called, you | answered me;
you increased my | strength within me.
4All the rulers of the earth will praise | you, O LORD,
when they have heard the words | of your mouth.
5They will sing of the ways | of the LORD,
that great is the glory | of the LORD.
6The LORD is high, yet cares | for the lowly,
perceiving the haughty | from afar.
7Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you | keep me safe;
you stretch forth your hand against the fury of my enemies; your right | hand shall save me.
8You will make good your purpose for me;
O LORD, your steadfast love endures forever; do not abandon the works | of your hands.
SECOND READING: Colossians 2:6-15 [16-19]
6As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
8See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. 9For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10and you have come to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. 11In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; 12when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. 13And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, 14erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. 15He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it.
* GOSPEL: Luke 11:1-13
The holy gospel according to Luke. Glory to you, O Lord.
1[Jesus] was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”2He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
3Give us each day our daily bread.
4And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial.”
5And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ 7And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ 8I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
9“So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. 10For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish 12Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion 13If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
The gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
MEDITATION
*HYMN OF THE DAY What a Friend We Have in Jesus (ELW 742)
* APOSTLES' CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead.* On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
OFFERING
Offerings may be made on line through our website: stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org or sent by mail to
St. John’s Lutheran church, 1500 Glen Avenue, Folcroft, PA 19032.
Those who are worshipping in person can place their offerings
in the plate at the door as they enter or leave.
* PRAYERS OF THE INTERCESSION:
Trusting in God’s extraordinary love, let us come near to the Holy One in prayer.
Rooted and built up in Christ, we pray for the church. Embolden church leaders to take risks for the sake of the gospel, and equip the baptized to proclaim your extravagant love for the whole world. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Rejoicing in the works of your hands, we pray for the natural world. Make rivers and lakes, oceans and all waterways, sparkle with your radiance. Protect water sources and strengthen those who defend them. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Interceding on behalf of the vulnerable, we pray for the peoples of the world. Inspire all rulers and governing authorities with your justice. Guide the work of legislators and public officials, that they advocate for the well-being of those they serve. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Lord, we pray for the Ukrainian people that they be surrounded by your love and protection against the attacks on their country. Lift them up and protect them, end this war against them and let your peace reign. God of grace, hear our prayer.
Persistent in prayer, we pray for our neighbors in need. To all who have hunger, give daily bread. To all who have bread, give hunger for justice. Open us to the cries of those who suffer. We pray especially for Sherrie, Ana, Lillian, Helen, Arlene, Jose, Hoon, the Melendez family, Connie, Pat, Hazel, Deb, Joe, Ruth, Lisa, Bill, Rick, Dick, Alisia, Jacklyn, Lillian, Alexis, Jim and those we now raise before you in our hearts. We pray for those affected by the Covid virus in mind, body or spirit. Grant them healing and wholeness. God, of grace, hear our prayer.
Abounding in thanksgiving, we pray for this congregation. Bless the prayer and fellowship ministries in this place. Call us together in times of praise and blessing, trouble and sorrow, in your holy name. Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
Buried with Christ in baptism and raised with him to new life, we give thanks for your saints who rest in your eternal presence. Join our voices with theirs as we sing of your great glory. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Receive the prayers of your children, merciful God, and hold us forever in your steadfast love; through Jesus Christ, our holy Wisdom. Amen.
* LORD'S PRAYER
Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. Amen.
* BLESSING:
The God of peace, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you, comfort you,
and show you the path of life this day and always.
Amen.
* SENDING SONG Lord, Teach Us How to Pray Aright (ELW 745)
* DISMISSAL: Go in peace. Love your neighbor. Thanks be to God.
POSTLUDE Gavotte (Gluck)
You are welcome to watch the live service at 10:15 am at https://www.facebook.com/stjohnslutheranfolcroft
Or you can watch live streaming on the St. John's website: https://stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org
If you are having trouble accessing, please let us know.
The ETERNAL CANDLE is sponsored for the month of July by MaryAnne Rossi in memory of loved ones.
We recently received a large oil drop with a steep increase in the oil price. After requesting a payment plan from the oil company to pay this bill of over $5,500 in several smaller payments, we will be paying $1,375 in four payments. While we know everyone is dealing with price increases in all aspects of our lives, at this time, it will still be tough to meet these payments within the budget. We prayerfully ask all members to dig deeper and if you are able to help in some small way, please contribute to this fund along with your regular offering, You can use any envelope and just mark as Heating Fund. Thank you for your consideration.
A sign-up sheet is available on the hallway bulletin board. Sign up for the Eternal Candle is available for the year 2022. The cost is now $20. We still need a sponsor for the months of August and December.
Each week, we collect food for our hungry neighbors in need in our SHARING GOD'S BOUNTY WAGON. Hunger doesn’t take a vacation. Please consider making a donation of a food item each week.
YOU CAN HELP! You can be a good steward AND get your grocery shopping done. Did you know that if you purchase a grocery food gift card from St. John’s, our congregation will receive 5% of all sales of gift cards. Please see Ruth Weaver if you wish to purchase and gift cards. Thank you for helping us raise that 5% for
Are you on FACEBOOK Do you ever like or share the church's posts We hope you do. Every little activity on our page is a good thing. More eyes to see what we're about and what we have going on is helpful. And if you leave a comment, even better. Others that may check our Facebook page out see that we're a busy, happening church. If you need our social media addresses on Facebook or Instagram, see Elaine Fisher or check out the hashtag on the bulletin board in the hallway for information.
We are registered as Saint Johns Evangelical Lutheran Church for Amazon Smile. Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of eligible smile.amazon.com purchases to the charities selected by customers. To register your charity designation, you will need to go to Smile.amazon.com. Then you select our name as your charity. Again, the name is registered as Saint Johns Evangelical Lutheran Church. You will only have to register once. Next time you plan to shop online, go first to smile.amazon.com and you will be redirected to your own Amazon account. Your charity designation will be listed on the top left. So far, we have received over $135, just by doing your shopping through Smile.amazon.
The Finance Committee is looking for a member or two to join us in managing the finances of the church. This committee should have at least five members to be able to function correctly. Currently, committee consists of Chairperson, Barb Lynn, Financial Secretary, MaryAnne Rossi and Treasurer, Sherrie Modge. Pastor Wende is also a member of this committee. Ideally during the formation of the budget, we would be able to rely on the voices of a few other members. You do not need any degree or accounting classes to join. As Barb says, if you can balance your checkbook, you can be a member! Please consider joining!
Our Financial Response (May)
CURRENT
Budgeted costs per month $ 9,048.05
Offering last month $ 5,483.29
Budget required to date (5 months) $ 45,240.25
Total received to date $ 27,214.70
MISSION SUPPORT
Budget required to date (5 months) $ 2,500.00
Total received to date $ 2,491.55
Please continue to support St. John's. Our expenses continue each month
even if we are not all worshipping together inside our building.
Your offering and tithes may be made on line through our website: stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org or sent by mail to
St. John’s Lutheran church, 1500 Glen Avenue, Folcroft, PA 19032.
