Topics for August 2026

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Pastor Lisa will be holding office hours at the church on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10:30 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Please give me a call ahead of time if possible so that we can arrange for a time to meet and speak. To note … Hershey kisses are always available on my desk if you, like I, have a need for chocolate! I can also be reached via text messages to my cell phone, Facebook Messenger, or email (MizLKB@aol.com). Please understand if sometimes I cannot answer a call promptly. Kindly leave me a voice message and I will contact you as soon as I am able. ~ Pastor Lisa

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August 2nd ~ Tenth Sunday after Pentecost ~ 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.

August 9th ~ Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost ~ Elijah finds the presence of God not in earthquake, wind, or fire, but in the sound of sheer silence. When the disciples face a great storm on the sea, they cry out with fear. Jesus says: “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” Amid the storms of life, we gather to seek the calm presence of Christ that soothes our fears. In comforting words of scripture and in the refreshing bread and cup of the eucharist, God grants us peace and sends us forth to be a sign of God’s

presence to others.

August 16th ~ Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost ~ In Isaiah we hear that God’s house shall be a house of prayer for all people and that God will gather the outcasts of Israel. The Canaanite woman in today’s Gospel is a Gentile, an outsider, who is unflinching in her request that Jesus heal her daughter. As Jesus commends her bold

faith, how might our church extend its mission to those on the margins of society? In our gathering around word and meal we receive strength to be signs of comfort, healing, and justice for those in need.

August 23rd ~ Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost ~ In Isaiah, the people are advised to look to their spiritual ancestors as the rock from which they were hewn. Jesus declares that the church will be built on the rock of Peter’s bold confession of faith. God’s word of reconciliation and God’s mercy are keys to the church’s mission. Paul

urges us to not be conformed to this world but to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, using our individual gifts to build up the body of Christ. From the table we go forth to offer our spiritual worship through word and deed.

August 30th ~ Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost ~ The prophet Jeremiah speaks of the incurable wound of his suffering yet finds in God’s words the delight of his heart. When Peter doesn’t grasp Jesus’ words about suffering, Jesus tells the disciples they will find their lives in losing them. Such sacrificial love is described by Paul when he

urges us to associate with the lowly and not repay evil with evil. In worship we gather as a community that we might offer ourselves for the sake of our suffering world.

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Please consider giving a financial donation to one of the following

organizations:

ELCA Disaster Response

c/o ELCA

P.O. Box 1809

Merrifield, VA 22116-8009

Lutheran World Relief

700 Light Street

Baltimore, MD  21230

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The members of New Jerusalem Evangelical Lutheran Church

wish you a blessed day and we pray that your day is filled

with hope, love, peace, and good health!