Every Tuesday we publish a blog post to lay out in one place what’s going in the life of the church for the upcoming week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:
7:00 pm - Erkelens home and Cunningham home
10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom
Acts 23:12-35 is a very unique passage in the book of Acts: God’s name isn’t referred to once, nor is there any identifiable commands or teaching of any Christian doctrine. It’s a story of an unlikely rescue of Paul from a murderous plot. What relevance does this passage have for us? Verse 11 gives the answer - God had promised Paul that he would reach Rome and verse 12-35 are evidence of God providentially fulfilling His promise. This is the Christian’s comfort - what God has sovereignly said, He will providentially do. Listen to the sermon HERE to learn more.
As you’ve noticed, every Sunday we don’t take communion together, we do a public reading together. While at times, we’ll read passages of Scripture or historic confessions, we’re currently working through the Sovereign Grace Churches Statement of Faith. We’d encourage you to study further, so below are the verse references from the portion of the Statement of Faith that we read on Sunday - “Man as male and female”. If you would like to access the full Statement of Faith, click HERE.
This Saturday the city of Santa Ana will be hosting a COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic for individuals 18 and older at the Second Baptist Church. If you’re interested in getting vaccinated or know of any friends or Santa Ana neighbors who are, appointments can be made by following the link below. Walk-ins are also welcome, but appointments are preferred.
A few weeks ago, we started participating in a fundraiser for Livingwell Pregnancy Center, a local nonprofit dedicated to loving mothers and loving their babies, even if not yet born. This is important work and it strikes near to God’s heart for the most vulnerable among us.
If you haven’t yet taken a bottle, this Sunday is the last Sunday to pick one up. Once you grab one, don’t forget to fill it up with coins and dollars to help fund Livingwell’s mission. There are just a few more days to do so!
For questions, contact Angie Cunningham.
Every Tuesday we publish a blog post to lay out in one place what’s going in the life of the church for the upcoming week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:
7:00 pm - Schlieder Home
10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom
11:30 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom
Every six months, we hold a brief members meeting immediately after the service. This meeting is mandatory for all members, but guests are welcome as well. This meeting is a time to communicate what we wouldn’t communicate on a typical Sunday morning. We’ll look back on what God has graciously done in the last 6 months in our church and look forward to where we believe God is taking us as a church. Also, during this members meeting, we will indeed be making some big, exciting announcements.
As soon as the service ends, here’s how things will go:
Parents will pick up kids from children’s ministry and bring them back to the auditorium
Setup team will break down as much as possible in the foyer and children’s ministry classroom, but leave everything in place in the ballroom
The members meeting will promptly begin 10 minutes after the service has ended
Parents, please bring a snack for your kids if you think they’ll get hungry. We also understand that they might become a bit restless and make some noise. Please know that this is ok.
We commit to keeping you no longer than 30 minutes
Once the members meeting concludes, the ballroom may be broken down
Four times every year, there are 5 Fridays in a month - which means that we miss the joy of gathering as small groups for an additional week (since small groups only gather on the 1st and 3rd Fridays).
We encourage you to take full advantage of this free week and experience the joy of fellowship by investing into another family or member of the church. Consider inviting someone or multiple someones from a different small group over to your house, out for dinner or even for a casual hang in the evening either on Friday itself or on another night this week.
Jesus has placed us in Santa Ana for a reason - He’s called us to make disciples in this city, baptizing them and teaching them all that Jesus commanded. This isn’t a suggestion Jesus has given us - it’s a command; a commission. He alone has authority to send us. But He alone also provides what we need to go and have the confidence to go and to have any hope of actually accomplishing what He has sent us out to do. He has promised His presence and that changes everything. This last Sunday, we heard God’s Word preached from Matthew 28:18-20. God stirred our hearts by His Spirit to take the Gospel of His grace to our unbelieving friends and neighbors.
For security reasons related to Sunday’s guest preacher, the sermon was not recorded - either via audio or video. However, here are a few resources to continue your learning and progress toward walking in obedience to the Great Commission in all of life:
Book: Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by JI Packer
Book: Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus by Mack Stiles
Article: How Can I Speak More Boldly About Christ? by John Piper
God is growing Cross of Grace Santa Ana. Partly by introducing us to new neighbors and, on the rare and special occasion, sometimes by introducing us to completely new lives altogether. This past week was one such occasion.
Little Ivy Madrigal was born to Fernando and Liz. She was born healthy and, by God’s grace, Liz is in excellent health as well.
Please pray for this new family of six as they adjust to a new pattern of life and rejoice with them in the grace of God through the giving of new life!
Be on the lookout in the coming weeks for a meal sign-up.
