Since November 2022, Jason has been serving as a Pastoral Resident at our church. Throughout the past few years, Jason has been engaged in a process to discover if God has called him to become a pastor at Cross of Grace Santa Ana.

The process has been long and difficult, but the Lord has given him grace along the way and proven him in his gifting. After multiple academic steps, thousands of pages of books read, several written exams, an internship and a residency, he’s now taking his final oral ordination exam this Wednesday (10/11).

HE’S ON THE HOME STRETCH

He’ll be sitting before a panel of pastors from churches in the West Region of Sovereign Grace Churches who comprise the region’s “nomination committee”. They’ll conduct a 3 hour oral exam to verbally assess his theological understanding of the Gospel and his pastoral instincts in real-life pastoral ministry situations.

Pray for him as he takes this final exam!

THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD

If the Church is what God is doing in the world, what makes the Church go? What energizes, fuels, and motivates the mission of the Church to extend God's grace and establish God's peace? Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:15-23 provides the answer: the Holy Spirit. The Ephesian church then, and our little church now, however ordinary, unimpressive, or in-progress we might be, are filled with the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead and exalted him to God's right hand. Listen to Sunday’s sermon to learn more about the work of the Spirit in the church.

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

COME DISCUSS WITH US

Our next Bridge Course session is Monday, October 9th at 7pm. We’ll be diving into the topic of suffering. Suffering is one of the hardest issues we have to deal with in this life. How do we make sense of God in a world like this? And how can we trust him? We’ll explore these age-old questions and more over the course of a meal, a talk, and a conversation where every perspective is encouraged. Even if you missed the previous session, ALL are welcome to join in as we wrestle through the big questions of life. Sign up below or invite a friend and we’ll see you on 10/9 at Hopper & Burr (202 W 4th St, Santa Ana, CA 92701).

REGISTER FOR THE CLASS HERE

EVERY 1ST & 3RD FRIDAY OF THE MONTH @ 7pm

Outside of Sunday mornings, small groups are the most important moment in the life of our church. Make it a priority to attend small group this Friday at 7pm in order to encourage one another and be encouraged. To care for others and to be cared for. To point your brothers and sisters to Christ and apply his gospel to their lives, and experience the same.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SMALL GROUPS, CLICK HERE

EVERY FIRST FRIDAY OF THE MONTH WITH ROTATING SMALL GROUPS

Prayer is central to our mission and, in 2023, our small groups have been taking to French Park on the the first Friday of the month to pray for the good of our neighborhood. Asking Jesus to save Santa Anans, meet our neighbors according to his grace, and open doors for sharing his gospel and spreading his joy.

THE Roenicke SMALL GROUP WILL BE MEETING AT FRENCH PARK AT 6PM

OCTOBER 2 - OCTOBER 9

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:

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5: FRENCH PARK RUN CLUB

• 6:30 am - French Park Grass Area

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6: PRAYER IN THE PARK OR SMALL GROUP

• 6:00 pm - French Park Grass Area (Roenicke Small Group)

• 7:00 pm - Houlton & Erkelens Home

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 8: SUNDAY GATHERING AT THE EBELL CLUB

• 10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom

MONDAY, OCTOBER 9: THE BRIDGE COURSE

• 7:00 pm - Hopper & Burr

WHY WE LOVE THE CHURCH BY KEVIN DEYOUNG & TED KLUCK

This book presents the case for loving the local church. It paints a picture of the local church in all its biblical and real life guts, gaffes, and glory in an effort to edify local congregations and entice the disaffected back to the fold. It also provides a solid biblical mandate to love and be part of the body of Christ and counteract the "leave church" books that trumpet rebellion and individual felt needs.

Why We Love the Church is written for four kinds of people—the Committed, the Disgruntled, the Waffling, and the Disconnected. 

PURCHASE A COPY OF THE BOOK HERE

BECAUSE GOD’S SOVEREIGN GRACE IS MARVELOUS

The Church is what God is doing in the world. And as we look at her, what do we see at the center of her life? The glory of God. The most important thing about the Church is not the Church, it's God. In Ephesians, Paul can hardly make it through the letter's opening before he erupts in praise to the God of the Church. He reaches back before the beginning of time (1:4-5), journeys to the climatic moment of salvation history (1:6-7), enters into the present lives of his readers (1:11-13), and then raises their eyes upward to the grand ending God is writing for his chief protagonist (1:14). From start to finish, every movement of God has had one goal in mind: the praise of his glorious grace. The Church exists because God desired to possess a people to enjoy his glory forevermore. The Church is most faithful, joyful, and pure when she is as about God as he is about himself.

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

ONE OF THE BEST CONFERENCES OUT THERE

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. It’s called the Sovereign Grace Pastors Conference. This year there will be hundreds of pastors, wives, and church members from many different Sovereign Grace church around the world attending our annual gathering in Orlando. It’s sure to be a fruitful time of being filled with a grand vision for what God is doing through the Gospel in our church and in churches throughout the world.

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. It makes us eager to come back and serve the church and love our neighbors. It restores our perspective on what really matters in our city.

YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A PASTOR TO ATTEND

In addition to sending us, we ask that you would consider joining us for this year’s conference. We can’t cover all of your costs, but we can help cover some. Talk to Kyle or Jeff if you’re interested in tagging along this year.

The theme this year is The Church of Christ and the Triumph of Truth.

ALL LADIES, HIGH-SCHOOL AGED AND OLDER ARE INVITED

With the summer potlucks behind us, we are transitioning back to a discussion based format. Our Women’s Ministry exists to spur women on in their pursuit of Christ through biblical discussion and building friendships. Each month the ladies of CGSA meet together for a time of discussion and prayer in order to grow in Christ. We hope to see you there!

JOIN IN TONIGHT AT 7PM AT THE HOULTON HOME.