HELP ONE ANOTHER FOLLOW JESUS

On Sunday, we learned that God has positioned each of us within the church to help one another follow Jesus. Through the work of Christ the Son, we’ve been adopted into a family filled with spiritual fathers and mothers we can learn from as well as brothers and sisters we can walk alongside. God desires to cultivate intentional, long-term relationships amongst his people in order that they would increasingly take on the shape of his Son. This is the essence of what discipleship is all about.

2 PRACTICAL WAYS TO PURSUE IT

Pastor Jason provided us with 2 simple yet crucial steps to take in order to get in the game when it comes to discipleship.

1. Find someone to mentor you - Look out at the congregation of Cross of Grace and ask yourself, “Is there someone further ahead of me in the race of the Christian life that I can learn from? Someone who knows me and could speak into my life?” Identify a brother or sister and then ask them to get together with you. To study God’s word, receive counsel, ask questions, and strive after Christ together.

2. Find someone you can mentor - Next, turn around and ask yourself, “Is there anyone younger in the faith, or younger in age that I could pour into?” Pursue intentional (though not necessarily, formal) relationships with another brother or sister at Cross of Grace. Pray for the Lord’s leading and then take a step toward someone so that the both of you together could take steps after Christ (Heb 12:1-3).

Let’s respond to what we heard in 1 Tim 5:1-2 by asking, “Who can I learn from?” and “Who can I pour into?” and then pursuing those people. Trusting that this will build up all involved, glorify the Savior whose shape we’re taking on, and make our church healthy and happy for years to come.

DISCIPLES WHO MAKE DISCIPLES

1 Timothy 5:1 begins a section of the letter concerned with how the pastor should relate to different groups within the church. Paul provides instructions for how Timothy should minister to: those of different ages and genders (5:1-2), widows (5:3-16), other elders (5:17-25), and slaves (6:1-2). All of this is important not just for Timothy but for each one of us. Because, “as go the pastors, so go the people.” There's something for the entire church to learn from the way the pastor relates to every group within the church. First and foremost, 5:1-2 makes it beautifully clear that Pastor Timothy needs to relate to the different groups within the church as he would to family. We, along with him, live in this same family and are called by God to live together as brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers. Encouraging one another. Mentoring one another. Engaging in discipleship together. Striving together so that each of us would increasingly take on the shape of the Savior. 

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

2025 BLOCK PARTY RECAP

For the 4th year in a row, we hosted our French Park Block Party - and what a party it was! Over 130 church members and French Park neighbors came together for an afternoon of summer fun. We laughed, we limboed, and we ate hundreds of tacos to the glory of God!

Through it all, God used your faithful presence as a church to build up the community of French Park, form new friendships with our nearest neighbors, and shine forth the joy we have in Jesus. We thank the Lord for this opportunity to love our neighbors and for the many hands that made it all possible! As you look through the complete photo album, would it cause you to praise the Lord for what he’s doing to bless our neighbors and bring them into his joy.

VIEW ALL THE PHOTOS HERE

PARTICIPATE IN WHAT JESUS IS DOING ACROSS THE GLOBE

From Dave Taylor, Director of Global Missions in Sovereign Grace Churches:

In John 15:4-5, Jesus says, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

Those final few words give us such an important and sobering God-given perspective on how much we’ll be able to do for the Lord by ourselves. How much? Nothing, nada, nought, zilch, diddly squat, empty handed, blank space, nil...So, oh my, how we need the Lord don’t we! If we’re going to be able to do anything, the main thing we need is Him! For apart from Him we really can do nothing!

With that in mind, here’s how you can be praying for some of our Global endeavours in the month ahead...

1. Please pray for the 20 young adults who are heading to Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney, Australia, from Cornerstone Church, Knoxville, US, 5th-14th July, to run a Kids Club with 50+ children from both inside and outside of the Church. Please pray that God would bless their ministry as they seek to share the gospel with both kids and adults alike, and that the great joy of Sovereign Grace partnership would be cultivated and enjoyed by everyone involved.

2. Please pray for the Sovereign Grace Philippines Regional Assembly of Elders, as they gather together in Cebu, 9th-12th July. During their time together they’ll be talking through the growing number of Churches interested in partnership with Sovereign Grace in the Philippines, the various updates needed and recommended for the SGC Philippines Book of Church Order, as well as whole host of ministry matters. May the Lord give these brothers great wisdom and insight as they gather together in this way, and extra measure to Jeffrey Jo as he seeks to lead this time.

3. Please pray for Bart Lipscomb, SGC Area Leader for Africa, as he heads to Zambia 11th-14th July, and then Namibia,14th-18th July. Please pray that he’d be a great blessing to each of the pastoral teams and churches that those trips represent, and that He’d give Bart wisdom and insight as to how to serve them, encourage them and come alongside them well.

4. Please pray for the SGC Latin America Pastors Retreat, in Santa Marta, Colombia, July 15th-17th. There’ll be ten pastors from Colombia, six from Costa Rica and two from Bolivia, who will be attending the retreat, which will be led by Joselo Mercado (Key Leader in LATAM) and Rich Richardson (SGC Area Leader for LATAM). This will be the first retreat of this type outside of Mexico, may it be wonderful encouragement to all of our Pastors in this region.  

5. Please pray for the two teams from Covenant Fellowship that are headed to Playa Azul. The first team heads June 30th-July 7th, to complete a construction project and to build together in partnership and relationship as churches. Then July 7th-14th, the second team is a team of youth that are headed over to lead a youth camp for local kids, plus any kids from our local Sovereign Grace Churches that are there. Please pray that this would be a great blessing for everyone involved.

6. Please continue to pray for Michael Ostanin and Arche Church, Dnipro, Ukraine. That the war would soon come to an end, and that whilst they wait for that moment, that the light and hope of the gospel would shine brightly in the midst of darkness and suffering, and that the manifold wisdom of God be revealed through His church.  

… Thank you so much for prayers. As we abide in Him, may His grace truly abound to us all.  

JUNE 30 - JULY 6

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, JULY 3

• French Park Run Club

  • 6:30am - French Park Grass Area

SUNDAY, JULY 6

• Sunday Gathering at the Ebell Club

  • 10:00am - Meeting Room: Ballroom

REDUCED CHURCH CALENDAR

In the world of agriculture, soil must remain “fallow” once every few years to maintain its fertility for years to come. To lie fallow is to lie unplowed and unplanted for a time in order for nutrients to be restored.

While we have a complete fallow month in December (nothing on the church calendar but Sunday services), for the month of July we are trimming down our church activities to take the time to intentionally rest our bodies and souls and prioritize our relationships together.

WHAT IS BEING REDUCED?

• No Small Group Meetings - Make use of the free Thursdays or Fridays to enjoy informal fellowship with one another and your neighbors.

• No Youth Ministry Meetings - Aside from Youth Camp 7/11-7/14, there are no formal Youth Group meetings.

• No Additional Church Activities - All we’ve got going on aside from our Sunday gatherings are the Men’s BBQ on 7/10 and Women’s Potluck on 7/24. Events geared toward having fun, cultivating our friendships, and welcoming in those who are not yet a part of our church.

Have any questions about church events? Look to our church calendar, which is always updated to reflect changes to meetings or events.

Subscribe to the calendar here.

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

1 Timothy is a letter from one pastor to another written for the good of the entire church. If we could sum up all of Paul’s instructions for Timothy, back then, and for every pastor since, 1 Timothy 4:16 would provide us with the essence of what a faithful pastor must do: “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.” Watch your life and watch your doctrine because it’s a matter of life and death. Pastors in the church must watch their life and doctrine so that the people of the church would watch theirs as well. This is significant, because we’re all being watched! People watch pastors. Children watch parents. Co-workers watch fellow employees. Our neighbors watch us all. What do they see when they see us? What should they see when they see us? Lives marked by godliness and gospel truth. The church ought to be a gathering of people who look like, love like, and live like Jesus Christ. But, the church cannot grow in Christ, be like Christ, or reflect the beauty of Christ to the watching world apart from the gospel which makes us who we are. Apart from this truth, the church ceases to be the church. Apart from this truth, we have no message of life to offer our neighbors. But according to this truth, we “have our hope set on the living God” and live lives now that increasingly take the shape of the lives we’ll be living in “the life to come” (1 Tim 4:8, 10).

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

LADIES, SEE YOU AT 6:30PM

Every summer, our women’s ministry takes a break from its usual monthly meetings to enjoy a series of potlucks. The ladies of our church will gather together to share meals and stories of God’s grace. This is a great event to invite your friends, especially friends who aren’t sure what they believe, don’t attend church, or are new to the faith.

Each potluck is hosted at a different member’s household. This time around the ladies of Cross of Grace will be gathering at the Mora home. See you tonight for encouraging testimonies and a buffet of breakfast foods!

CONTACT US HERE FOR LOCATION DETAILS

THIS SATURDAY AT 4PM

The French Park Block Party is finally here! It’s our biggest event of the year. An afternoon of summer fun filled with tacos, games, and enjoying our Santa Ana community to the glory of God. All of it is designed to show our neighbors how glad we to be their neighbors. To provide us with an opportunity to bless them and become friends with them. And, above all else, to reflect the joy we have in Jesus in the hopes that they’d receive as their own. 

Make this the most important thing on your calendar this Saturday. Sign up to volunteer if you haven’t yet. Post the invite to your social media accounts. Invite other Santa Ana neighbors. Above all, pray that God would spread the joy of his Son through us this weekend. You can find the digital flyer here and the sign up sheet here.

LEAD TEACHERS OR HELPERS WANTED

God has blessed our church with the gift of many children! And by God’s grace we have been able to continue expanding our gospel ministry to the kids of Cross of Grace Santa Ana by adding 3 classes to our Sunday morning Children’s Ministry program. To make sure our expansion efforts are sustainable, we’re calling on new volunteers to join our Children’s Ministry team! If you’ve been considering it for some time or are just now are considering it for the first time, we’d love for you to join the team. If that’s you, contact Pastor Jason and let him know which class you’re interested in serving in and if you’d like to be a Teacher or Helper.

SUNDAY MORNING CLASSES

Sunday morning Children’s Ministry is available for kids ages 0-12 and offered in 3 classes:

• Nursery/Preschool (ages 0-3 years old): This class meets in the dinette, and consists of time spent playing, reading a bible story and coloring. The lead teacher reads the Bible story and facilitates the class time; helpers often hold babies and offer support to the lead teacher.

• Lower Elementary (grades TK-1st): This class meets in the fireside room, and consists of time spent playing, reading through the Bible and completing activities to reinforce the Bible story, in an age targeted manner. The lead teacher facilitates the class time and does some preparation before class; helpers offer support to the lead teacher.

• Upper Elementary (grades 2nd-6th): This class meets in the fireside room, and consists of an opening activity, reading through the Bible and discussion to reinforce the Bible story, in an age targeted manner. The lead teacher facilitates the class time and does some preparation before class; helpers offer support to the lead teacher.

• All 3 classes meet during the second half of our service, after a time of singing with the entire congregation.

This expansion is a step in the direction of increasing our efforts of evangelism and discipleship toward the youth in our church. It’s our prayer that our kids would experience the joy of Jesus as they come to church on Sunday mornings and come to love gathering with God’s people.