Staff Trax

This Sunday’s Gospel reading is the story of when Jesus visits the home of two sisters, Mary and Martha. Mary stops what she is doing to listen to Jesus, but Martha is busy preparing for his visit. She has no time for her guest.

Martha complains to Jesus that Mary has left her to do all of the preparation. Perhaps she expects sympathy from Jesus by sharing her irritation with her sister.…

I am sure that you have heard of John the Baptist, but did you know that Tuesday was the Feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, a significant day in the Christian calendar, particularly within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglicanism, and Lutheranism. Unlike some holidays, it is observed annually on the same date — June 24.

This feast day is celebrated to commemorate…

This Sunday is Pentecost. We celebrate the birth of the church and wear red. But when I did a search on the internet for the word Pentecost, it was interesting to me that not only the Christian celebration came up, but also the Jewish one.

In Acts 2:1-21 (our First Reading for this Sunday), the Jews were celebrating Shavuot. They were “all together in one place” to celebrate…

Hello, Salem! It will be my privilege to walk with you for a time in worship and supply work on April 27 and May 4.

Since we’re going to be walking together, it would be good for you to know a little bit about me.

My name is Pastor Merle Brockhoff. (I go by Pastor Merle; as shorthand I am sometimes just called “PM.”)

I’ve been a Lutheran pastor for 40 years, serving…

Holy Week starts with Palm Sunday, then progresses to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. But have you heard of “Spy Wednesday”?

When preparing services for Holy Week, I came across information on this little-known day. According to Augsburg Fortress, Wednesday in Holy Week “was formerly called ‘Spy Wednesday,’ an allusion to the gospel accounts in which Judas is identified…

I have been volunteering with the Home-Delivered Meals ministry, formerly known as Meals on Wheels, through Salem for several months now. Honestly, at first I was hesitant because I wasn’t familiar with how it worked and worried about the time commitment. But serving others and making a positive impact on our community is something that matters deeply to me, so I reached out, asked about the ministry…

I want to share about the Good Faith Network and the impact it has had on my faith journey.

Many of you know, but for those who don’t, the Good Faith Network is in interfaith organization in Johnson County comprised of almost 30 faith communities across three faith traditions — Christian, Jewish, and Muslim. We advocate for justice around the most pressing issues in Johnson County. We…

The Creation Care Team is a collection of people from Salem Lutheran Church, Overland Park Lutheran Church, and Overland Park Presbyterian Church that meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. by Zoom to discuss issues and to schedule events related to God’s creation — the natural environment. Next up is a retreat sponsored by the Creation Care Team from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on…

Salem’s Welcome Statement: We, the members of Salem Lutheran Church, affirm the belief that we are all created in God’s image and are called to love one another as God loves us. We are a community that welcomes people of all ages, cultures, economic statuses, ethnic backgrounds, family blends, gender identities, physical and mental abilities, races, and sexual orientations. We seek to…

This Sunday we will celebrate the Transfiguration of our Lord. I did a quick Google search on the topic, and AI told me all I needed to know about Transfiguration. See the results below.

The Transfiguration in the Bible is when Jesus' appearance changed to reveal his heavenly glory. The word "transfiguration" comes from the Latin words trans- ("across") and figura ("form, shape").