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INTRODUCTION
Persistence in prayer is encouraged by Jesus and wins the attention of God when Abraham intercedes for Sodom. The life of the baptized—to be rooted and built up in Christ Jesus—is to be nurtured with prayer. God hears and answers prayer and so strengthens God’s own. “When I called, you answered me; you increased my strength within me.”
ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE I Thank You Lord
* CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Baptized into Christ, let us confess our sin.
Merciful God,
you free us to love others, but we neglect our neighbors and follow our own way. You lead us by the Spirit of joy and peace, but we turn away from the abundant life you offer. You surround us with patience, kindness, and generosity, but we grow weary in doing what is right.
In your mercy, forgive us. Do not give up on us. Heal us, break our bonds, and show us the path of life. Amen.
You belong to Christ Jesus and you are God’s children through faith.
In the cross of Christ, and through the power of the Holy Spirit, your sins are forgiven. Clothed with Christ, you are a new creation.
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.
GATHERING SONG Sweet Hour of Prayer (TFF 242)
FIRST READING: Genesis 18:20-32
20 Then the LORD said, “How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin! 21 I 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.”
22 So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the LORD. 23 Then Abraham came near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked 24 Suppose 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 25 Far 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 ” 26 And the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.” 27 Abraham answered, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to my lord, I who am but dust and ashes. 28 Suppose 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.” 29 Again he spoke to him, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30 Then he said, “Oh, do not let my lord be angry if I speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31 He said, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to my lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32 Then he said, “Oh, do not let my 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
1 I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with | my whole heart;
before the gods I will | sing your praise.
2 I 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.
3 When I called, you | answered me;
you increased my | strength within me.
4 All the rulers of the earth will praise | you, O LORD,
when they have heard the words | of your mouth.
5 They will sing of the ways | of the LORD,
that great is the glory | of the LORD.
6 The LORD is high, yet cares | for the lowly,
perceiving the haughty | from afar.
7 Though 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.
8 You 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]
6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
8 Watch out that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental principles of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have come to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by the removal of the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; 12 when 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. 13 And 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, 14 erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He 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.”2 So he said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father, may your name be revered as holy.
May your kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread.
4 And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial.”
5 And 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, 6 for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ 7 And 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.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything out of friendship, 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 to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11 Is there anyone among you who, if your child asked for a fish, would give a snake instead of a fish 12 Or if the child asked for an egg, would give a scorpion 13 If 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 Pastor Wende Bleam
*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.
PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION
In solidarity with all creation, we join our voice to the voice of the whole church and pray for the needs of the world.
Loving God, create in your church a desire for union with you in prayer. Raise up leaders to teach Christ’s devotion to prayer and model Christ’s way of prayer, until all people experience prayerful intimacy with you. God of grace, hear our prayer.
Reveal to humanity the sacredness of all creation. With the breath of your Spirit, realign the balances of nature. Grant persistence in prayer and action for the sake of the earth, our common home. God of grace, hear our prayer.
Teach rulers of the earth to sing of your ways, caring for the lowly and having no preference for the powerful. Direct the heart of every person to seek your will on earth as in heaven. God of grace, hear our prayer.
To all whose prayers are cries for help, give your good gifts, and satisfy their deepest needs. Gather them to your constant, loving presence, that they may rest in the confidence of life with you. We pray especially for Pastor Wende, Ray, Richie, Jules, Thomas, Derek, Chris, Bill, Donna, Trena, Keyasi, Sorie, Bill, Carol, Vince, Danielle, Barbara, Deb, Connor, Dawn, Elaine, Robert, Anna, Don, Bryant, Lois, Curt, Calvin, Robin, Helen, Hoon, Pat, Joe, Ruth, Lisa, Jacklyn, Lillian, Alexis, 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.
Center the ministries of this assembly on prayer and service. Guide our relationships in the wider community, being ready to assist those who seek help. Strengthen feeding, clothing, and housing ministries and community partnerships. God of grace, hear our prayer.
We give thanks for all who have gone before us. May we trust your steadfast love and continue in hope until we are united with all your saints. God of grace, hear our prayer.
Trusting in your lovingkindness, we place our prayer and hope in you, in the name of Jesus Christ. 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.
PEACE
The peace of Christ be with you always. And also with you.
OFFERING OF TITHES AND GIFTS TO GOD
Please place your offering in the plate near the Sanctuary door any time during or following worship. 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.
* OFFERING PRAYER
*BLESSING
The love of God abound in you; the grace of our Savior Jesus Christ fill your hearts; and the life of the Spirit bless you and give you peace. Amen.
* SENDING SONG Go, My Children, with My Blessing (ELW 543)
DISMISSAL - Go in peace. Live by the Spirit. Thanks be to God.
The ETERNAL CANDLE is sponsored for the month of July by MaryAnne Rossi in honor of loved ones.
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 MaryAnne Rossi if you wish to purchase and gift cards. Thank you for helping us raise that 5% for helping to continue our ministry.
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. If you are in need of food, please notify Pastor Wende and she will let you know what we have available.
The Social Ministry Committee would love to hear from you if you have any ideas for small fundraising and/or social ministry events that we could pull off with minimal effort. Challenge us with your ideas!!
With our church building getting older, we need everyone’s eyes and ears to help keep her in good repair. If you see any problems like a burnt out light bulb, please let Barb or Bud know or drop a note in the offering plate on Sunday. We need to get a jump on current or upcoming problems.
Our Financial Response (May)
CURRENT
Budgeted costs per month $ 7,263.55
Offering last month $ 4,878.14
Budget required to date (5 months) $ 36,317.75
Total received to date $ 27,236.70
MISSION SUPPORT
Budget required to date (5 months) $ 2,000.00
Total received to date $ 1,889.60
Please continue to support St. John's. Our expenses continue each month.
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.
