Orange County Wildfires and The Upcoming Election

On Monday, two wildfires erupted in Orange County. Many have been evacuated from their homes or worry that they might soon need to be.

Next week is the presidential election - an event that has evidenced a deepening division in our nation and one in which many important issues are on the table.

These are big events, but we serve a bigger God. We can trust the Lord to protect our neighbors and to rule sovereignly as King Jesus over our nation. That’s why this week, as every other week, prayer is one of the most significant ways that we can love our neighbors and be meaningfully involved in American politics.

For the Wildfires:

1) Pray that the fires would be contained and extinguished quickly.

2) Pray for the firefighters who are out there risking their lives.

3) Pray for families that have been evacuated and fear losing (or have already lost) their homes.

4) Pray for the health and safety of everyone involved as they fight this fire in the midst of a pandemic.

For the Election:

1) Pray for peace in our nation - that we would trust in our victorious Christ no matter the outcome. Pray that whomever wins, we would be able to respect the office of president, knowing that ultimately, Jesus rules over our nation.

2) Pray for wisdom for our leader in this next term - that God would supply whomever is elected both nationally and locally with wisdom.

A New Resource Available for Santa Anans

The Santa Ana CARES initiative has released a Covid-19 resource guide. This is a comprehensive guide to recovery resources, including business relief, rental assistance, utility assistance, child care assistance, free Covid-19 testing, senior and at risk support and much more!

Check out this resource guide here.

Share this resource with your family, friends, neighbors- anyone who you think would benefit.

SAME CHURCH. NEW NAME.

On Sunday we announced some big news - effective Sunday, November 1, Sovereign Grace Church of Santa Ana will become Cross of Grace. This decision has been in the works since before our church was even planted. As we approach our third anniversary, the timing was right and we’ve decided to move forward into this next year under a new name.

WE ARE NOW CROSS OF GRACE SANTA ANA

Here are just a few of the reasons we changed our name and why we chose Cross of Grace:

1. “Sovereign Grace”, while filled with rich theological meaning to those who have studied the Bible and have familiarity with theological terms, is foreign to most new Christians and is unintelligible to most in our community. By our name, few in our city understand what kind of church we are.

2.  Sovereign Grace Santa Ana is difficult to translate to Spanish (Iglesia Gracia Soberana de Santa Ana) and results in different church initials than in English. 

3. Cross of Grace communicates the centrality of the Gospel to our mission and message - it also clearly identifies us as a protestant church.

4. Cross of Grace is easily accessible, simple to translate (Cruz de Gracia), and is a name that’s not already being used by a church within Santa Ana or even OC.

FAQ’S

1. When will this change go into effect?

   • Sunday, November 1. Website, signage, social media, handouts and other collateral will reflect the new name and logo. The new website (crossofgracesa.org) can be accessed directly, but the old website will also automatically redirect to the new beginning Nov. 1.

2. Are we still a part of Sovereign Grace Churches?

   • Yes. We treasure our partnership with Sovereign Grace Churches and have no desire whatsoever to disassociate with the larger denomination or our sister churches.

3. Has anything changed about what we believe or who we are as a church?

   • No. This is a name and branding change. Our statement of faith, identity as a neighborhood church seeking to spread the joy of Jesus in Santa Ana and even our rhythms and patterns as a church will remain unchanged.

4. Why should I be excited about this change?

   • Because it represents the progress of our mission through the progress of our Gospel. We’re growing as a church - both in number and in clarity of mission. It also represents a sustained commitment to the essential message of the Bible and a sustained commitment to effectively reach our Santa Ana neighbors with that message.

OCT 26-NOV 1

Every Tuesday we publish a blog to share what’s going in the life of the church for that week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30: FIFTH FRIDAY - NO SMALL GROUPS

• Contact your small group leader to find out if your small group will be having an informal get-together

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 1: SUNDAY GATHERING AT THE EBELL CLUB

• 10:00am - Meeting Room - Outdoor Courtyard.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 1: THIRD ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

• 4:00pm- Houlton Home- Bring your friends, family and a few chairs or blankets to sit on!

On Sunday, we introduced the newest members of Sovereign Grace Church of Santa Ana. We had the added privilege of hearing from two of them. Read their brief testimony to be reminded of how God is building His Church in our city:

From Joe:

“I just want to thank everybody for allowing us to come up here and share. Due to the pandemic every church closed their doors and we were invited to this church by Jeff and we decided to come and check it out. I noticed that this church was different than other churches. We had been praying for God to lead us to the right church. I started coming to this church and I just started learning more about what it means to be a Christian. I learned about where I needed growth. By joining the men’s meetings, which I really enjoy, I got to know the the men and I just feel like I can get comfortable here. I'm not going to be just a number here where I don't show up for 2 weeks in a row. I know I'll get that phone call asking me if I'm okay or if something’s wrong and that might be the case one day where where I might need that phone call. Also coming here and hearing the the the pastors speak Spanish made me feel at home being that Spanish my second language. I just want to thank you everybody for the walk for welcoming us to the church.”

From Michelle:

“Having a relationship with Christ is my priority and first thing in my life because without him I know that I’m not the person He created me to be. I came to saving faith in 2013 and I was baptized in 2015. My first initial membership at a church was in Indio California at a small Baptist Church which I really enjoyed and appreciated my pastor and had great church friends. We moved to Orange County and bounced around to a couple of churches looking for a home church. We were invited by Jeff and were immediately impressed with his leadership and understanding of the word of God. We’ve come back ever since. I look forward to my relationship with all of you and however I can serve. I've also been attending the women's small group and I look forward to getting to know all you ladies. These relationships are new but they mean a lot to me. I also look forward to my daughter getting to know people and being part of the children's ministry in the future. Thank you so much.”

WE ARE MEMBERS, ONE OF ANOTHER

Paul says in Ephesians 4:25 that we are one body, yet “members one of another”. So, think of church membership not so much as “membership in a club” and more as an expression of commitment to the people around you. The Bible is full of “one anothers” - commands toward believers to act in godliness toward other people. What Scripture makes clear is that these “others” refer to a specific group of people and not all people generally. These “others” are the men and women identified in a particular local church. As members of Sovereign Grace Church of Santa Ana, we have the privilege of living out the Christian life with one another.

In light of this, we praise God for our new members, Ernie, Jose, Rosie, Robert, Kara, Christian, Jason, Kayleigh, Joe and Michelle, whom we had the joy of introducing this last Sunday. We look forward to joining you in the spread of the joy of Jesus in Downtown Santa Ana.

GOD, THE TIMELESS PURSUER OF THE LOST

A Hellenistic Jew, a Samaritan and an Ethiopian eunuch walk into a restaurant …

It’s not a setup to a bad joke, but instead what Acts chapter 8 appears to be on the surface - three seemingly unrelated stories about three individuals and groups of people. What ties them together? The principle that God is about the business of saving people - individual people. In Christ, He has created a people (plural) for His own possession, but every single person He has called to Himself, He personally pursues with love and grace. Acts 8 teaches us that neither distance not defiance can stop or hinder God’s gracious pursuit of lost souls.

Listen to this week’s sermon here.

WE HAVE SOME EXCITING NEWS TO SHARE WITH YOU

This upcoming Sunday, plan to remain in your seats for an extra ten minutes after our corporate worship gathering has concluded for what will effectively be a “mini” members meeting.

YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS THIS ANNOUNCEMENT

Please make every effort to be there for this meeting. We understand keeping kiddos reigned in for this extra time is difficult. We’ll do our best to keep it short and sweet.

GOD IS ADDING LABORERS FOR THE HARVEST

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.

October 19th-25th

Every Tuesday we will be publishing a blog to share what is going in the life of the church for that week! We hope that this serves you and helps to keep you updated.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22: WOMEN’S MEETING

• 7:00pm - Houlton Backyard

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 25: SUNDAY GATHERING AT THE EBELL CLUB, NEW MEMBERS SUNDAY, MINI MEMBERS MEETING

• 10:00am - Meeting Room - Outdoor Courtyard.

• We will be welcoming our New Members this Sunday.

• Plan to stay an extra 5-10 minutes after service for a few important church updates.

Coming Up Next Week

MONDAY, OCTOBER 26: FALL CLASS SESSION 4

• 7:00pm - Via Zoom. Link will be emailed to all registrants on Sunday.