We WANT YOU TO BE THERE

There are two ways to be sure you don’t miss out on all that’s happening at Sovereign Grace Church: subscribe to our blog and sync with our calendar. Our calendar has been updated for the 2021-2022 ministry year. Here are a few important notes for you:

• Prayer Meetings. Now on the 4th Tuesdays of the month starting in September. Unite with us in prayer as we ask God to bless, heal, and revive our church, our city, and our gospel partners. All the details are right here.

• Youth Meetings. Now on the 1st Thursdays of the month starting in October. Join other middle and high schoolers at the Turbedsky home for discipleship and fellowship. Contact the church office for more info.

• Picnics in the Plaza and Sunday Events. The last Sunday of every month we’ll host our Picnics in the Plaza and other fun church events. Reformapalooza, our Reformation Day celebration, is coming in October. The chili cook-off will be back in 2022. Prepare to stay after the service with us those Sundays.

We can’t say it enough so we’ll say it again: subscribe to our blog and sync with our calendar and you won’t miss a thing!

We love living life with you

*The following prayer was originally published on The Gospel Coalition.

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“You are the salt of the earth,” and “the light of the world.” (Matt. 5:13,14); “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.” (Eph. 4:31)

Heavenly Father, as your Gospel-cherished, Spirit-indwelt children, these Scriptures grab our attention and arrest our hearts. We’re immersed in a culture of unhinged “malice,” unfiltered “brawling”, and weaponized “bitterness.”

It grieves your heart, and it should sadden us as well. We’re to be different, and offer a better way. We’re not to mirror our culture, but offer a redemptive alternative. You’ve called us to be salt and light—offering your healing presence and the light of the Gospel.

Father, grant us wisdom, strength and plenty of grace. May the fire in our bones be the purifying fire of your Spirit—compelling us to make much of Jesus, less of ourselves, and more of our neighbors.

Help us pull up every root of resentment, bitterness, and spite, growing in the garden of our hearts (Heb. 12:15). Replace them with fresh “shoots” of humility, gentleness, and kindness.

In these coming fall months, use us to write stories of “Kingdom-come,” with the ink of grace and the hope of Jesus’ return. Knowing there’s a Day coming when your will will be done “on earth, as in heaven,” helps us immensely. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ tender and triumphant name.

It Takes God to Know God

On Sunday Jeff Purswell, our denomination’s Director of Theology and dean of the Pastor’s College, preached from Exodus 34:1-9. He reminded us that God has revealed himself to us. And it turns out He is not like us. He is not on edge. He is not frustrated and flustered with us. He shows us His glory by showing us His goodness. He patiently waits for us. He loyally cares for us. He steadfastly loves us.

Listen to the sermon.

You’ve already received all the info for Celebration CA including a list of FAQs and a special invitation. The ball is in your court, but the countdown clock is ticking. There are only two days left to register!

Register by 11:59pm this Sunday
9/12/2021

Don’t get left in the valley while we’re on the mountain October 8-10. Get yourself registered ASAP. If money is tight, apply for a scholarship by contacting the church office. If you want to be there, we’ll find a way to make it happen.

Huricane Ida has caused considerable damage to the city of New Orleans and the homes and church facilities of our sister churches. Thank you for your interest in helping them in their time of need.

“If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.”
1 Corinthians 12:26 ESV

As we join together to serve them, we ask that you would consider praying, going, and giving. May the Lord use all of us to extend mercy and care to our partners in the gospel.

Pray

Ask God to be merciful toward everyone impacted by this storm. Pray for those whose homes have been damaged. Pray for those displaced from their homes. Pray for those who are facing the loss of work and income. Pray for relief work to be quick and effective.

Go

We may need teams to go and work with our sister church in New Orleans. There are homes to clean and repair and countless other practical needs to meet over the next few weeks. If you are interested in learning more about our work teams, please complete this form.

Give

Lakeview Christian Center, one of the two Sovereign Grace Churches in New Orleans, has established a Hurricane Ida relief fund. Make a contribution here.

“Being a part of the church is what we are. It’s not just a practical thing. It’s an identity thing.”
-Jonathan Leeman

Click the image above or this link for a very helpful 2-minute video on why it’s crucial we remain connected to the church.

*The following post is from our denomination’s Director of Emerging Nations, Dave Taylor. It originally appeared here.

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Matthew 28.18-20, ‘And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

The great commission that we have been given as Christians is far bigger than we could have ever asked or imagined... But how wonderful, comforting, and inspiring it is to know that the One who has called us, is always with us, even to the end of the age. What a mission-changing reality!!

With that in mind, here are a few ways that you can be praying for our wider mission in the month ahead:

1. Please pray for our Pastors College in Ethiopia (Trinity College) as the students begin to gather ahead of the 14th September launch. There will be 13 students attending the PC this year, from 6 different countries: Somaliland, Somalia, Kenya, Rwanda, the USA, and of course Ethiopia. Please pray for Josh Pannell, Dean of the Ethiopian Pastors College and everyone involved in this years Pastors College.

2. Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Nepal as they continue to deal with a new surge of Covid-19 cases. Church buildings have been closed for gathering for almost one and half years now, and yet incredibly, the Church itself continues to grow. The Nepali Christians are continually committed to serving the poor and suffering in the name of Christ, and so may we be praying for them in this. May this be their finest hour and may His grace abound to them in these times.

3. Please pray for Songhwan Kang and his church, Lord’s Grace Church in Seoul, South Korea. They have recently moved to a new location as a church and are keen to reach out to their new community. Please pray that God would give their members courage and grace to boldly preach the gospel in this new area, as well as reach into the next generation. Please also pray that God would help them identify and train some church planters who can plant new SG Churches in South Korea in the next 3-5 years, a happy hope and prayer that they continue to carry as church.

4. Please pray for our newly formed ‘Reaching The Unreached Work Group’, which I (Dave Taylor) have pulled together to help myself and the Leadership Team map a way forward for growth, in reaching the unreached in our world. Please pray for great wisdom, faith and insight for us all: Dave Taylor (Lead Pastor, Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney & Director of Emerging Nations), Brendan Willis (Pastor, Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney), Pat Tedeschi (Pastor, Greentree, NJ), Tim Kerr (Pastor, Sovereign Grace Church, Toronto), Ken Delage (Pastor, Mercy Hill Community Church, VA) and Leo Parris (Pastor, Covenant Fellowship Church, PA).

May the One who has commissioned us, also give us faith and favour for the road ahead.

Bethany and Israel are wonderful church members who have a two year-old son and 4-month old twins. They’ve just registered for Celebration CA! They want all of you to come. We asked them to share why they’re excited to go, even though traveling up there with three little ones will come with its challenges. Here’s what they shared:

We’re excited to attend Celebration CA next month for more reasons than we can count! But here are the two big ones.

The first is to deepen relationships. We’ve been attending Sovereign Grace Church of Orange for over 7 years now and we know a good number of you. But not everybody. And the people we do know, we could always know better. We want to know and love the saints we sit next to and sing with on Sundays. The retreat gives us two days to do just that!

The second reason that we’re excited is to seek God with you. After we’re dismissed on Sundays we go on to live our lives. We can quickly forget the songs we just sang or the sermon we just heard. But when you’re removed from the hustle and bustle of life and actively commit to a weekend of seeking God, worshipping him, and being among his people…you’ll realize He is exactly what your soul was longing for. Having a break from normal life

We’re not naive. This weekend will be tough for our family. We have twin babies and a toddler. Yikes. We considered the pros and cons. But here’s what we realized:

Our life is crazy anyway. We may as well spend the weekend with friends!

We had some logistical questions and spoke with Pastor Dustin and he answered them. If you’re in that same boat , I encourage you to speak to a pastor first or read the Family Camp FAQ on the blog. Make a decision after you’ve done those things at least, but don’t miss out because of assumptions. I can tell you that there are accommodations for families and individuals. Our pastors have designed this to serve us.

I really hope to see you all there! It’ll be better for all of us if you’re there. Plus, we really need to beat the Santa Ana and Pasadena churches at some games and we will need all hands on deck! We can’t wait to see you in Idyllwild.

Registration is open until this Sunday, September 12th. Secure your spot now.