This upcoming Sunday, we have the privilege of welcoming new members into our midst. These are people who have committed to participating in the life of the church and performing the “one anothers” with this local body of Christ. They’re also individuals whom we, as a church, commit to so the same with and for. We praise God for His grace and the evidence of the advancement of His Gospel through Santa Ana.
What an exciting time this is to be doing ministry. As we grow as a church and impact both English and Spanish speakers, we’re actively working to introduce good, theologically sound, Spanish songs to our congregation. With that in mind - over the next 10 weeks, we’ll be introducing a number of new Spanish songs into our Sunday morning Liturgy. Some of the songs will be hymns or recognizable Sovereign Grace songs. Some will be songs that were written exclusively in Spanish.
This upcoming Sunday we will be introducing "Hay Libertad." You can listen to the song here. The lyrics are below, in both English & Spanish. Please take a few moments this week to listen to and read through this song in preparation for Sunday.
When Christ returns, all nations will proclaim that He is Lord. When we sing on Sundays, we’re experiencing a foretaste of that very reality.
VERSO 1
Las cadenas de la muerte me quitó
Para mí ya no hay condenación
Hay libertad, libertad
Siendo esclavo del pecado me libró
En la cruz compró mi redención
Y libertad, libertadd
CORO
Rompió mis cadenas
Me dio vida nueva
Y al fondo del mar echó mi maldad
Lavó mis pecados
Y me ha perdonado
Solo en el nombre de Jesús
Hay libertad
VERSO 2
Yo proclamo al que en la cruz por mí murió
Y cambió mi duro corazón
Por libertad, libertad
El poder de su evangelio me salvó
Y no me avergüenzo del Señor
Mi libertad, libertad
PUENTE
Al que el Hijo hace libre
Es libre en verdad
VERSE 1
The chains of death you took away
For me there is no condemnation
There is freedom, freedom
Being a slave to sin, you freed me
On the cross he bought my redemption
And freedom, freedom
CHORUS
My chains are now broken
He gave me a new life
And at the bottom of the sea he cast my evil
He washed my sins
And he has forgiven me
Only in the name of Jesus
There is freedom
VERSE 2
I proclaim the one who died on the cross for me
And changed my hard heart
For freedom, freedom
The power of his gospel has saved me
And I'm not ashamed of the Lord
My freedom, freedom
BRIDGE
Who the Son sets free
is free indeed
Contact Krista Alvarez or Rebecca Erkelens for details. Childcare will be provided and fun will be had. See all you ladies Saturday at 11!
El Paso is a city that in many ways is very much like our city. For many reasons, the tragic shooting that took place this past weekend hit closer to home than others. It makes us long for the day when Christ will return to make all things new. It also makes us hope for true recovery, restoration and peace for the city through the Gospel. Thankfully, we have a sister church, Cross of Grace Church, who are mere miles from the site of the shooting.
As an expression of solidarity, last Sunday’s offering was taken in order to be sent directly to Cross fo Grace Church that they might be even more effective in ministering the Gospel in the wake of this tragedy. Please pray for God to use these funds for His glory and the good of the city.
If you’d like to know how else you can pray for El Paso, read Cross of Grace pastor Ricky Alcantar’s article, 6 Ways You Can Pray For El Paso.
If you’d like to donate directly to the victims’ families fund, you can do so here.
The school we meet at one Sunday mornings has been a blessing to us for nearly two years. As the next school year nears its start, we endeavored to be a blessing to the school in a particular way. The school administration informed us that what they really need and have no budget for is “teacher appreciation”. You responded and, Lord willing, teachers will enter this school year feeling just a little more acknowledged and appreciated, inspiring them to persevere in loving and educating the children of our neighborhood. Thanks for being a blessing, Sovereign Grace Santa Ana!
This Sunday marked the beginning of our fall sermon series in the Minor Prophets. Beginning in the book of Joel, we came across a Hebrew nation that had just endured a devastating locust invasion. It was not mere happenstance, but rather a consequence of the prolonged sin of God’s people and their unresponsiveness to the consequences of their sin. God then issues a consequence that they can’t ignore. It’s not, however, out of cruelty. Instead, it’s done out of love - to bring them back to Himself. The peoples’ willful ignorance of their own sin and its consequences had led them to miss what God was up to. The same is true in our lives. When we smooth over our disobedience with positivity and rationalization; when we ignore the very real consequences of our sins, we run the risk of missing the very real mercy of God drawing us back to Himself.
In April, the ladies of Sovereign Grace Santa Ana put on a massive clothing exchange. This August, join them once again for a time of fellowship and a different kind of exchange.
Bring your favorite recipes, come prepared to taste some of the best recipes and to experience an enjoyable time with other ladies.
If you would like to bring a recipe or meal to share, require childcare or have any questions, please contact Krista Alvarez at krista@sovgracesantaana.org
This Wednesday, Mike Alvarez, who regularly leads us to sing songs of praise, adoration, confession and thanksgiving to our Savior on Sunday mornings, will be headed to Louisville Kentucky for the Sovereign Grace Worship God Conference.
Mike will be learning and relearning throughout the week. He’ll be making connections with other worship leaders. He’ll be refreshing his soul in the Gospel so that he can do the same for us as he leads us in worship on Sunday mornings.
Please pray for Mike as he goes and thank the Lord that we as a church have the opportunity to do things like this for the glory of God and the good of the church (and our neighbors).
We’re hoping that everybody participates in at least some way. If you’re unsure about what you can buy, here’s a list below:
K-Cup coffee pods
Folgers Coffee Cans
Healthy snacks in bulk
Starbucks, Amazon, Grocery Store or Target Gift Cards
Any thoughtful gift to make a teacher feel appreciated.
If you have any questions on what would items would be good to purchase, please contact our church admin, Krista Alvarez (krista@sovgracesantaana.org).
Holiness is often misunderstood. It’s often placed into the category of legalism. But Peter instructs us of the words of God - “Be holy for I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:15) and Paul reminds us that God created us for good works (Eph. 2:10). So, it’s clear that holiness is a priority. But how do we pursue holy living and avoid legalism? What is the strength for holiness? What happens when we fail in our pursuit? How do we persevere in holiness? All these questions are valid questions and relate to real life. We’ll discuss these and more as we pursue holiness together over the next number of months in our small groups.
