INTRODUCTION
In today’s first reading God invites all who are hungry or thirsty to receive food and drink without cost. Jesus feeds the hungry multitude and reveals the abundance of God. At the eucharistic table we remember all who are hungry or poor in our world today. As we share the bread of life, we are sent forth to give ourselves away as bread for the hungry.
Announcements
Confession and Forgiveness
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
God of all mercy and consolation, come to the help of your people, turning us from our sin to live for you alone. Give us the power of your Holy Spirit that we may confess our sin, receive your forgiveness, and grow into the fullness of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
Most merciful God,
we confess that we are captive to sin and cannot free ourselves. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways, to the glory of your holy name. Amen.
In the mercy of almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to die for us, and for his sake God forgives us all our sins. As a called and ordained minister of the church of Christ, and by his authority, I therefore declare to you the entire forgiveness of all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
* Prayer of the Day
Let us pray.
Glorious God, your generosity waters the world with goodness, and you cover creation with abundance. Awaken in us a hunger for the food that satisfies both body and spirit, and with this food fill all the starving world; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Gathering Song O Jesus, Joy of Loving Hearts (ELW 658)
First Reading: Isaiah 55:1-5
A reading from Isaiah.
1 Hear, everyone who thirsts;
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread
and your earnings for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
3 Incline your ear, and come to me;
listen, so that you may live.
I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, sure love for David.
4 See, I made him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and commander for the peoples.
5 Now you shall call nations that you do not know,
and nations that do not know you shall run to you,
because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel,
for he has glorified you.
Psalm: Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21
8 The Lord is gracious and full of compassion,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 Lord, you are good to all,
and your compassion is over all your works.
14 The Lord upholds all those who fall
and lifts up those who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all wait upon you, O Lord,
and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open wide your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 You are righteous in all your ways
and loving in all your works.
18 You are near to all who call upon you,
to all who call upon you faithfully.
19 You fulfill the desire of those who fear you;
you hear their cry and save them.
20 You watch over all those who love you,
but all the wicked you shall destroy.
21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord;
let all flesh bless God’s holy name forever and ever.
Second Reading: Romans 9:1-5
A reading from Romans.
1 I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience confirms it by the Holy Spirit—2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my own brothers and sisters, my own flesh and blood. 4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; 5 to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, comes the Christ, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen.
Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21
The holy gospel according to Matthew. Glory to you, O Lord.
13 Now when Jesus heard [about the beheading of John the Baptist,] he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. 15 When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 16 Jesus said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” 17 They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.” 18 And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And all ate and were filled, and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.
The gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
Meditation Pastor Wende Bleam
Hymn of the Day Lord, Whose Love in Humble Service (ELW 712)
*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 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 online through our website, stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org or sent by mail to
St. John’s Lutheran Church, 1500 Glen Avenue, Folcroft, PA 19032.
* Offering Prayer
Prayers of Intercession
With bold trust in God’s unfailing provision, we pray for the church, those in need, and all of God’s creation.
For your church in every place, that it satisfies those who hunger for your word. Bless the ministry of readers, translators, Bible study leaders, and writers, that God’s word is broken open and shared with all. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
For your wondrous creation and all the bounty it provides, that your creatures are fed and nourished. Bless the work of farmers, farmworkers, those who fish, and all whose labor brings your abundance to our tables. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
For all who cry out with great sorrow and unceasing anguish, that they are comforted. Feed all who struggle with food insecurity; have mercy on all who are suffering in body, mind, and spirit. We pray for the family and friends of Bishop Pat Davenport, Folcroft Police and Fire Company members, Ceasar, Bruce, Paul, Ruth, Deb, Richie, Donna, Carol, Barbara, Dawn, Vince, Danielle, Connor, Bryant, Walt, Lisa, Pastor Wende, Ray, Lillian, Alexis, Dadiana, Martie, Derek, Robert, Sandy, Tonie, Frank, Billy, Birtey and those we now raise before you in our hearts. God of grace, hear our prayer.
For this congregation, that it bears faithful witness to the abundance and joy of life in you. Bless all your faithful people gathered here, that they may become blessings for this community. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Receive our prayers and answer, O God, as you have promised. All this we ask in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 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.
* The Geat Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you. And also with you.
Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, almighty and merciful God, through our Savior Jesus Christ. Who on this day overcame death and the grave, and by his glorious resurrection opened to us the way of everlasting life. And so, with all the choirs of angels, with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we praise your name and join their unending hymn:
* Holy, Holy, Holy
In the night in which he was betrayed,
our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;
broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take and eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
This cup is the new covenant in my blood,
shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
* Invitation to Communion
Come to the banquet, for all is now ready.
Communion Song
The body and blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace. Amen.
*Prayer after Communion
*Blessing
Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. Amen.
* Sending Song You Satisfy the Hungry Heart: Gift of Finest Wheat (ELW 484)
Dismissal - Go in peace. Share the good news. Thanks be to God.
The Eternal Candle is sponsored for the month of August by John Bindi.
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.
For the month of August, we are collecting school supplies: backpacks, spiral notebooks, composition notebooks, 3-ring binders, loose leaf paper, 2-pocket folders, posit notes, index cards, glue sticks or bottles, rulers, pencils, pens, colored pencils, crayons, pencil boxes or pouches, markers, highlighters, erasers, pencil sharpener and scissors.
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 Mary Anne Rossi 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
MaryAnne 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 (thru July)
CURRENT
Budgeted costs per month $ 7,305.04
Offering last 2 months $ 9,015.28
Budget required to date (7 months) $ 51,135.28
Total received to date $ 33,080.68
MISSION SUPPORT
Budget required to date (7 months) $ 2,800.00
Total received to date $ 2,674.04
Please continue to support St. John's. Our expenses continue each month.
Your offering and tithes may be made online through our website, stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org or sent by mail to
St. John’s Lutheran Church, 1500 Glen Avenue, Folcroft, PA 19032.
