This week has been especially busy with regards to prayer needs, both within our own church family and within our state.  Continue to pray for all those who have been and are being impacted by the devastating fires.  Also, pray for rain and that the weather would cooperate as firefighters and frontline workers battle to save homes and lives. Thank you for being a praying church.

This Sunday, we will continue our summer series called, FOCUSED.  I believe the word "focused" is a perfect way to describe how Jesus lived his life here on earth.  Everything Jesus said or did, from his formal teachings, parables and miracles, to his dinner conversations, were designed to point people to God and His kingdom.  Jesus said it best in Matthew 6:33:  "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously and he will give you everything you need." 

In Hebrews 11:6 the author writes these words, "He (God) rewards those who earnestly seek him".  Earnest, diligent, sincere, these are all great words to describe how we are to seek after God.  In other words, be hungry in your searching, relentless in your pursuit.  Don't be satisfied with the stars in the sky.  Seek him as the shepherds did.  Long for him as Simeon did.  Worship him as the wise men did.  God rewards those who seek him.  Not those who seek doctrine or religion or systems or creeds.  The reward is reserved for those who seek nothing less than God Himself.  And what is the reward?  That we will be given the heart of Jesus (II Corinthians 3:18).  Can you think of a better gift than than to be like Jesus?  Come this Sunday, focused, ready to seek the face of God, so that we can be changed through the power of the Holy Spirit into the likeness of His Son, Jesus.   

Note:  Our Sunday service continues to meet at 9:30am, with two options for participating.

1.  Attend our live "in-person" gathering.  No capacity restrictions, no mask requirements, no COVID protocols to follow!

2.  We value our online church community and will continue to livestream our church service at 9:30am for those who wish to participate. 

After the service, at 10:45am, Trudy Reusser will continue her discipleship class on the book of Revelation.  The book of Revelation unveils the glory of Jesus Christ.  Written by the Apostle John, Revelation is a reminder to remain faithful and trust God, even when things around us don't make sense. 

See class details below: 

Discipleship Study:  Revelation (The Christian's Ultimate Victory)
Facilitator:  Trudy Reusser
10:45am to 11:45am
In-person and on zoom
Zoom Link:  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81594772166  (the zoom link has changed from previous weeks)

See you Sunday.

Pastor Doug

I hope you and your family had a fun and relaxing Fourth of July!  Rose and I, along with our girls, just returned Thursday night from a week-long trip to Lake Tahoe.  We did some lounging at the lake, played mini-golf, hiked in an afternoon thunderstorm, got caught in a massive hailstorm on the freeway that literally stopped traffic, went river rafting down the Truckee River and saw two bears up close.  All in all, we had a great time! 

This Sunday, Pastor Norm will continue our summer series called, FOCUSED.  Our vision behind this series is to enter into a season where we intentionally regain our focus on who Jesus is and who He has called us to be as a church.  When we focus on Jesus, transformation in our lives and the lives of those around us is inevitable.  Focusing our attention on Jesus will ultimately lead to an intimacy with Him which in turn allows us to experience abundant life.

As you prepare for this Sunday's worship gathering, I would encourage you to read Psalm 84 and let the Psalmist guide you into  the worship of God.  In each of the three sections of Psalm 84, you will discover God's special ways of revealing Himself to us.  Psalm 84 lays before us a reminder of our life journey of knowing and pursuing God which serves as our base for our times of worship.  Verses 5-8 take us on a special path showing how the Lord is intimately involved in our lives--even during difficult times

Note:  Our Sunday service continues to meet at 9:30am, with two options for participating.

1.  Attend our live "in-person" gathering.  No capacity restrictions, no mask requirements, no COVID protocols to follow!

2.  We value our online church community and will continue to livestream our church service at 9:30am for those who wish to participate. 

After taking a break for the July 4th holiday and to deal with some health issues, Trudy Reusser will resume her discipleship class on the book of Revelation.  The book of Revelation unveils the glory of Jesus Christ.  Written by the Apostle John, Revelation is a reminder to remain faithful and trust God, even when things around us don't make sense. 

See class details below: 

Discipleship Study:  Revelation (The Christian's Ultimate Victory)
Facilitator:  Trudy Reusser
10:45am to 11:45am
In-person and on zoom
Zoom Link:  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81594772166 

Finally, continue to pray for those in our church family.  

See you Sunday.

Pastor Doug

Happy "almost" Fourth of July.

It's hard to believe that this Sunday is July 4th.  I can't think of a better way to celebrate the freedom we have in this country to worship God than by gathering together to do just that.  The writer of Hebrews tells us not to neglect meeting together, especially as we look forward, with anticipation, to the return of Jesus.   

This Sunday, Larry Annes will kick-off our summer series called, FOCUSED.  Our vision behind this series is to enter into a season where we intentionally regain our focus on who Jesus is and who He has called us to be as a church.  When we focus on Jesus, transformation in our lives and the lives of those around us is inevitable.  Focusing our attention on Jesus will ultimately lead to an intimacy with Him which in turn allows us to experience abundant life.

Focusing on Jesus also brings freedom in our lives and allows us to see His purposes for us. In any area that we are struggling, as we set our eyes on Jesus, we will receive power to overcome those areas of weakness. Now more than ever, we need to keep our focus on Jesus, so that He can bring clarity to what may seem chaotic and unclear.

Last week, I tried to illustrate this with an object lesson.  I started with an empty jar and filled it up with little rocks, then I tried to squeeze in a big rock at the top.  When I did this the big rock wasn't able to fit in the jar and was sticking out the top. But when I placed the big rock in the empty jar first and then poured in all the little rocks, everything fit. In this illustration, the little rocks represent all of the things that can easily fill our time and energy: work responsibilities, family, to-do lists, entertainment, school, etc... If we put these things first, we won't be able to fit the big rock: Jesus and the things Jesus is calling us to do in our lives. But if the big rock comes first, all of the little ones will find their place. That is what it looks like to live a focused life. Jesus Himself lived a focused life. He was concerned with completing the task that God had given Him (John 17:4) and He was able to do that by keeping the right focus. In our lives, if we don't start first with Jesus, everything else will get out of line.

Note:  Our Sunday service continues to meet at 9:30am, with two options for participating.

1.  Attend our live "in-person" gathering.  No capacity restrictions, no mask requirements, no COVID protocols to follow!

2.  We value our online church community and will continue to livestream our church service at 9:30am for those who wish to participate. 

Please Note:  Due to the July 4th holiday, our discipleship class on Revelation will NOT be meeting.

Finally, continue to pray for those in our church family. 

See you Sunday.

Pastor Doug