BY GOD’S GRACE, WE CELEBRATED A MILESTONE ANNIVERSARY AS A CHURCH IN SANTA ANA

November 5th marked the FIFTH anniversary of our first service in Downtown Santa Ana! By God’s grace, this church was planted, sustained, and has been richly blessed through his faithful love over the years. Praise God for building his church, bringing the increase, and binding us all together to share in and celebrate the joy of Jesus!

We gathered this past Sunday for a celebration, which included a nacho and churro bar, a testimony from many members past and present, our annual kickball game, a piñata and lots of great fellowship with one another. Enjoy some pictures that captured our celebration!

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL ALBUM

Jason Roenicke has been serving for the past 11 months as an intern at Cross of Grace Santa Ana. The role he’s occupied is one which serves the purpose of equipping and of evaluation. We’ve wondered if God has called Jason to be a pastor of Cross of Grace Santa Ana. He wonders the same thing. And we believe it’s a task given to the local church to assess the calling and gifting of a potential pastor.

ONE MORE WEEK TO SUBMIT YOUR FEEDBACK ON JASON’S INTERNSHIP

So far, we’ve heard nothing but positive feedback. We’re grateful to God for the work that seems to be evidenced in his life. However, we won’t assume we’ve heard everything from you. Before Jason proceeds on to the next stage of being positioned as a leader in our church, we’re giving you a final opportunity to provide your assessment of his leadership, character and influence in the church. Maybe it’s nothing but good reports and evidence of God’s grace. If so, go ahead and tell us. We want to be prudent where we need to be prudent and celebrate where we can celebrate.

YOUR THOUGHTS CAN BE SUBMITTED THROUGH THIS FORM.

WE ARE GOD’S PLAN TO SPREAD THE JOY OF OUR SAVIOR TO THE PEOPLE OF SANTA ANA

God has sustained Cross of Grace Santa Ana for five years in our city. To mark the occasion, we asked Eric Turbedsky, Senior Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church of Orange, to come and preach from 2 Corinthians 5:11-21. Eric leads the church that sent us out with a dream of becoming a church in the heart of Santa Ana. In Sunday’s sermon, He reminded us of how marvelous it is that God would love us and that He would send us. Listen to the sermon and become captivated once again by the fact that you’ve been chosen to be a part of God’s mission to save people to the ends of the earth.

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

FIVE YEARS OF GOD’S FAITHFULNESS

Our 5th anniversary is here! This Sunday marks half a decade of Jesus building and sustaining Cross of Grace Santa Ana. We can’t wait to celebrate with kickball, fellowship, and a giant nacho bar. It’s happening at the Houlton home right after the service. We’ll provide a piñata for the kids and a dessert for everyone. Here’s how you can prepare to party with us:

• Sign up for our potluck here. Because nacho bars don’t build themselves.

• Bring along some athletic wear and tennis shoes for our annual cul-de-sac kickball contest.

Contact the church office with any questions.

WE CAN’T WAIT TO CELEBRATE WITH YOU!

CLOCKS WILL “FALL BACK” AS DAYLIGHT SAVINGS ENDS SUNDAY

It is almost time to fall back! Daylight Savings time 2022 ends at 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, November 6. Enjoy an extra hour of sleep, and we’ll see you Sunday morning for our weekly celebration of life in Christ.

THERE ARE ONLY 2 SMALL GROUP MEETINGS LEFT IN 2022

Outside of Sunday mornings, small groups are the most important moment in the life of our church. They are a context where biblical discipleship happens within the church as we connect the truths of the gospel to every aspect of our lives. Each group meets in a home, splitting their time between singing, praying, and discussion. Some groups include young children in their meetings. All groups welcome guests. Carve this time out in your calendar to be refreshed in the gospel and to serve your friends by pointing their lives to Christ.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SMALL GROUPS, CLICK HERE

OCTOBER 31 - NOVEMBER 7

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:

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4: SMALL GROUP

• 7:00 pm - Schlieder, Houlton, or Erkelens Home

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6: SUNDAY GATHERING AT THE EBELL CLUB

• 10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6: 5TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

• 12:30 pm - Houlton Home

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7: FALL FINANCE CLASS

• 7:00 pm - Cunningham Home

OUR PASTORAL TEAM IS AWAY FOR the WEEK

Every year our family of churches enjoys a family reunion. A time when pastors, wives, and members of Sovereign Grace Churches come together for a week of worship, fellowship, and encouragement in our shared mission. This year there are 700+ registrants from 21 different nations attending our annual gathering in Orlando. It’s sure to be a sweet time away!

As a pastoral team we say thank you for sending us! This conference is one of the highlights of our year. It’s a joy to attend and always makes us eager to come back and serve the church. In addition to sending us, we also ask that you please pray for us while we’re here. Throughout the week, you can pray that:

• The Lord would refresh our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Pray that we would be brought so close to the fire of the cross that the sparks would fall on our hearts and set our affections aflame for Christ.

• The Lord would use this time to equip us to serve our church well. We’re being sent by the members of our church for the members of our church. Pray that we’d come back better leaders than when we left.

• The Lord would build existing and establish new relationships among pastors and members of Sovereign Grace Churches across the globe.

• The Lord would give us moments of clarity about our local mission. Pray for the Lord to fill us with His Spirit to give us a greater longing to spread the joy of Jesus to our neighbors.

• The Lord would use this time to give Jason clarity regarding His ministry calling. He’s been faithful as our Pastoral Intern, and it’s been a joy to walk alongside him through the journey of discerning his calling. Pray that the Lord would grant us discernment and encouragement as we consider the future this week.

YOU NEED TO BELIEVE

Have you ever thought, "I'd much more easily believe God if He just _________”. If he just spoke to me audibly, gave me a sign, or proved his love for me in some way. But would you? Mark 6:31-56 teaches us that, actually, we don’t need God to prove himself. We need him to change our hearts. Our tendency toward unbelief is not a problem of insufficient evidence, it’s a problem of a hardened heart. If you believe that God is but aren’t sure that God is for you, listen to this Sunday’s sermon to learn more about God’s solution for hard hearts.

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

REFORMATION DAY IS THIS MONDAY

This Monday marks the 505th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. On October 31, 1517, a German Monk named Martin Luther nailed a document calling for reform in the Catholic Church to the door of the local church in Wittenburg. What followed was a movement that has changed both the church and the world to this day!

SOMETHING TRUE, NOT SOMETHING NEW

The triumph of the Reformation wasn’t the development of new doctrine that took the world by storm, but the rediscovery of the biblical gospel. It was the recovery of “the church’s true treasure,” as Luther said time and time again.

As a Sovereign Grace Church, we gladly locate ourselves downstream of the heritage and theology that flowed out of the Reformation. “Reformed Theology” is one of the 7 Shared Values that mark our family of churches. The story of the Reformation is important to us because it’s a story that helps us better understand ourselves as it points us to the shoulders of the gospel-centered saints of old that we still stand upon today.

RESOURCES TO KEEP US REFORMING

You can find an excellent summary of what the Protestant Reformation was all about and why it remains relevant today in the article Does the Reformation Still Matter? by Stephen Nichols. In addition to this, below you will find a selection of resources that will immerse you in the story of the Reformation as you sing, watch, and listen to the events which have shaped our church and the world around us.

• Sing

  • The Five Solas by Psallos puts the 5 summary slogans of the Reformation (Scripture Alone, Faith Alone, Grace Alone, Christ Alone, & God’s Glory Alone) to music and drives the truth of the gospel down into our hearts.

• Watch

  • Luther: The Life and Legacy of the German Reformer - Available to stream for FREE. “Watch this documentary to discover the events God used in Martin Luther’s life that led him to rediscover the gospel of justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.“ You can also download Ligonier’s free accompanying study guide.

• Listen

  • Luther: In Real Time - There are 2 seasons to the podcast. It was first released 500 years after the events described, this podcast allows you to walk in Martin Luther’s footsteps from his heresy charges to his famous stand for the authority of God’s Word at the Diet of Worms.

We hope this list makes you grateful to God for his work in the past and also encourages you to keep the spirit of the Reformation alive as we seek to always be reforming our church and our lives according to God’s Word. Semper Reformanda!