American Lutheran Church

06/01/2026

People of ALC,
Be reminded that Women's Bible Study will meet next Monday, June 8, at 7PM.

05/31/2026

Holy Trinity Sunday - May 31, 2026

05/31/2026

Good morning! Today is the First Sunday after Pentecost and the feast day of The Holy Trinity. This is the day we set aside to give some particular attention to a theological concept that we speak every week, the doctrine of God expressed in three persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – that stands at the center of what we confess as people of God, as followers of Jesus, and as a body gathered and guided by the Holy Spirit.

…Jesus came and said to [the eleven disciples],
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been
given to me. Go therefore and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
and teaching them to obey everything that I have
commanded you.”
~ Matthew 28: 18 – 20a

While the expressions of the Trinity are drawn from Scripture, the doctrine itself is not spelled out; nor is the word “trinity” used anywhere in the Bible. The term originated sometime in the first or second century and then ended up igniting some of the most contentious and protracted conflicts in the early church, as theologians and Christian thinkers tried to find some consensus on the nature of God. The Trinity is a kind of comment not on how or whether God exists or what God is but how God relates. And one thing the Trinity describes is a relational God. The three persons do not stand in isolation, but only in relation to each other; each can be named, but only experienced relative to the others.

Our calling as people of faith is not to make sense of or try to explain the Trinity, but rather to be open to a deeper relationship with God and a deeper awareness of the triune relationship of God, self, and neighbor. A relationship that is all inclusive (“all nations”), excludes no one, and doesn’t leave anyone behind. The triune God we confess is also preoccupied with the well-being of the neighbor and reaching out to others; about being in right relationship with God and with one another.

Prayer of the Day:

God of heaven and earth, before the foundation of the universe and the beginning of time you are the triune God: Author of creation, eternal Word of salvation, life-giving Spirit of wisdom. Guide us to all truth by your Spirit, that we may proclaim all that Christ has revealed, and rejoice in the glory he shares with us. Glory and praise to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.

Readings:

Genesis 1: 1 – 2: 4a
Psalm 8
2 Corinthians 13: 11 – 13
Matthew 28: 16 – 20

05/30/2026

05/30/2026

ALC at Nebraska Synod Assembly '26 with ELCA Presiding Bishop, Yehiel Curry.

05/26/2026

We still have number of children's coats and sweaters, mostly left from the JAM program. Unclaimed items will be donated to the Impact Center.

05/24/2026

Protect me, O God, for I take refuge in you;
I have said to the LORD,
“You are my Lord, my good above all other.”
All my delight is in the godly who are in the land,
upon those who are noble among the people.
My boundaries enclose a pleasant land;
indeed, I have a rich inheritance.
~ Psalm 16: 1 – 2, 6

Almighty and everlasting God, author and giver of life, our strength and our shield, we give our heartfelt thanks this Memorial Day for all your servants who, answered the call of honor and duty, put the welfare of others ahead of their own, and gave of themselves completely in service to our nation. We remember as well, those who returned home from war, but whose lives were cut short or diminished by physical or emotional wounds and are now at rest with You. We feel a particular grief for those soldiers who have taken their own lives. Grant them all rest from their labors in the perfect light of your presence and in the peace only You can provide.

God of compassion, pour out your spirit of comfort on all who mourn and for whom this day raises painful memories of loss, grief, or shattered dreams that, casting all their sorrows on you, they may have strength for the days ahead.

O Lord, as we commend our fallen warriors to your merciful care, grant peace among nations. Help us to make a world where the arms of war will be set aside; when swords are pounded into ploughshares, spears into pruning hooks, and suffering and killing will be no more. Give us strength to love; bring us from conflict to harmony; and may peace fill our hearts and our world. Finally, give us faith, so that we may live in confidence and hope…until, by your call, we are all gathered unto you in the company of all your saints.

Hear our prayer this day, O God, our rock and our redeemer…

05/24/2026

Day of Pentecost
May 24, 2026

05/24/2026

Good morning! Today is the Day of Pentecost. This is the day, fifty days after Easter, we give some particular attention to the pouring out of the third person of the Trinity. Every week in our creeds, we confess our belief “…in the Holy Spirit.” And then we name some of the gifts of the Spirit: ‘the church, holy and catholic (i.e. universal), the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.’ All gifted to us by the breath and power and mystery of God who creates and enlivens the world.

The appointed Psalm for today are selected verses from Psalm 104, including…

How manifold are your works, O LORD!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
Yonder is the sea, great and wide,
with its swarms too many to number,
living things both small and great.
All of them look to you
to give them their food in due season.
You send forth your Spirit, and they are created;
and so you renew the face of the earth.
Bless the LORD, O my soul. Hallelujah!
~ Psalm 104: 24 – 25, 27, 30, 35b

The message of Pentecost is that God’s Spirit has ordered the world in a way that invites us to live in confidence and trust in all that God provides to sustain us. The world is a matrix of life because it is infused with God’s Spirit and everything depends on God’s life-giving breath. By God’s Spirit, all creatures are given life and the earth pulses with well-being. The world is different because God’s Spirit is indeed among us. All that remains for us is to bear fruit in accordance with that Spirit. (with thanks to Walter Brueggemann)

Prayer of the Day:

O God, on this day you open the hearts of your faithful people by sending us into us your Holy Spirit. Direct us by the light of that Spirit, that we may have a right judgement in all things and rejoice at all time in your peace, through Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Readings:
Acts 2: 1 – 21
Psalm 104: 24 – 34, 35b
1 Corinthians 12: 3b – 13
John 20: 19 – 23

05/23/2026

People and Friends of ALC,
Be reminded that tomorrow is the Day of Pentecost (aka Big Red Sunday) so remember to wear RED.