Please pray for Kingdom Life Church. They are a sister Sovereign Grace church in Nassau, Bahamas and bracing for Hurricane Mathew.
Ask God to protect the members of this church and to use them as a source of mercy and grace in the days and weeks to come.
Scott and Rachel participated in last year's Art of Marriage group. Here is what they shared on Sunday, encouraging us to register for this year. It starts in October.
- Scott
Rach and I did the Art of Marriage series at the Cunningham’s a little over a year ago. Up until that point we had gone to a few marriage conferences and seminar type things throughout our marriage. That might come as a shock to those of you who think I need much more help as a husband than what 3 marriage seminars has to offer. I think I’m becoming a better husband since the Art of Marriage series.
I’d invite you to think of this group in the same way you would our small groups. Our small groups aren’t exclusively for those who are near rock bottom in their lives, or for those who are championing Christianity. It is for the members of our church to share in this life together, and meeting together is a precious and joyous occasion for us. The Marriage series is an extension of that except the scope is narrowed to marriage and the Gospel and the obvious fact that it’s only 6 meetings or so. The video content is exceptional, but God meeting us through transparency and vulnerability in community was much more profound. So whether you are newly married or have been married for a long time, whether you are at a low point, a mid point, or a high point in your marriage, it is good to come together to help one another’s marriages be a better parable of Christ and the church. Paul teaches in Ephesians that the covenant between husband and wife is meant to tangibly illustrate the covenant between Christ and his bride, the church. This series is meant to aid one another toward that end. A lasting benefit for Rachel and me is that we communicate better with one another and handle disagreement much better though it took a few awful disagreements in the car-rides over to the Cunningham’s before progress was made.
- Rachel
Like Scott mentioned, the community aspect of the group really blessed us. We were the youngest and most recently married couple of the group and with marriage and Christ in common, we got to spend time with some amazing couples that we wouldn’t be able to spend that much time with otherwise.
One of my biggest take-aways from the group meetings was from the personal stories of some of the amazing marriages of couples in this church. We talked about the reality of dry-spells and times of easy loving passion- the reality of the possibility of “falling out of love” and still choosing to glorify Christ with their committed marriages and the work it takes to see one another as Christ sees us: broken and in desperate need of eternal love.
We hope that if you can carve out some time, that you would choose to participate in the Art of Marriage group. Conversation with good people about learning to love your spouse more like Christ loves us is a good thing, no matter where you are in your marriage, if you are engaged or married for 30 years, we can all use this reminder.
Last Sunday we welcomed new church members. This is the story of two.
I am Jeff and this is my fiancé Taylor. We are getting married this October and are excited to call Sovereign Grace our home.
We were both saved in 2010, baptized in 2010, met in 2010, and began dating in 2010. We were juniors in High School and regularly attending a youth service when our pastor set out with his family to plant a church in Orange County. So at age 17, we followed and threw ourselves into the life of that church and, long story short, 5 years later it became clear God was leading us in a new direction. Our theology and vision for the church had changed and we began searching for a new home.
It took us nearly six months to find you and we are so grateful we did.
You welcomed us into your community that first Sunday. Dustin greeted us immediately and invited us to sit with his family. This meant so much. It was hard to leave our familiar friends and church. We praise God for the grace he has given to you.
Our second Sunday was your evening Communion service. Again, praise God!
We are delighted to join you, a people who love one another and celebrate so well the gospel of the grace of God. We look forward to meeting more of you, developing friendships, and serving alongside you all.
Last weekend, some of our leaders took time to discuss the future. God is at work and we want to faithfully steward our calling as a congregation. Thank you for praying for them. We'll hear more about what they discussed in the coming months. It was a very joyful 24 hours.
This past Sunday we officially welcomed Kyle Houlton as our newest Pastoral Resident. His family relocated here from our sister church in Tucson, Arizona with the hope of joining God in the advance of the gospel in Orange County. We have positioned Kyle to lead a future church plant in Santa Ana.
Kyle shared...
The opportunity for church planting in southern California is staggering. There are more lost Californians than we could together count in a year. People who need Jesus. People who need to hear the Gospel.
We asked God if we could be a part of bringing the gospel to Southern Californians and discovered you. Sovereign Grace Church of Orange. It has taken 3 years to get here and we couldn't be more excited and grateful. Thank you for your support, your faith, and your example.
God is doing something in Orange County that’s bigger than us.
James and his family have decided to relocate to Orange, join our church, and partner with us as we labor to reach more Californians with the gospel. Wow!
Please pray James would find suitable employment ASAP. They are also looking for housing in Old Towne Orange. You can look him up here if you have any leads. They hope to be with us by the middle of August. We'll provide more details this Sunday morning.
From James...
"The powerful presence of God, at work within a church and its community, is very attractive. Having experienced Sovereign Grace Church firsthand, we cannot help but say, "God is in this place! And, we want to be a part of it!" So, we are eager to join you as soon as possible. Although we don't know what the future holds exactly, we are confident that God will provide. Even now, we are reminded of Jesus' words in Luke 9: “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." We have been called. Therefore, we will go, and won't look back. Thankfully, we do not travel alone. Thank you so very much for your support in this endeavor. We look forward to seeing you face-to-face! James, Meredith, Eden, and Joelle"
