1. family and parenting
2. children

12
BAPTISMS
8:45 & 10:45 am
SUNDAY SERVICES
COMPASSION SUNDAY
8:45 & 10:45 am
SUNDAY SERVICES
MOTHER'S DAY
BABY DEDICATIONS
8:45 & 10:45 am
SUNDAY SERVICES
11
4
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:15am Baptism Info Class
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
12:30pm Sunday School Teachers'
Team Mtg Lunch
1:45pm Oakwood Village Service
BREAD & CUP
VBS Volunteer Sign-Ups
8:45 & 10:45 am
24 SUNDAY SERVICES 25
2pm Sem. 301 Exploring Grace
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
12:30pm Encouragers for Single
Women Lunch
10am Men's Ministry Activities Team
8:45 & 10:45 am
17 SUNDAY SERVICES 18
10:30am Takin' It To the Streets Sierra Ridge Memory Care
NO YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
10
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
3
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
VBS Volunteer Sign-Ups
31
Sun
Office Closed
Mon
9am Men’s Bible Stdy
9am Sewers & Rippers
9am Sewers & Rippers
26
9am Men’s Bible Stdy
9am Sewers & Rippers
19
7pm Prayer Meeting for
Missionaries
9am Sewers & Rippers
12
5
Tue
NO High School Youth Group
NO Jr. High Youth Group
27
5pm MTL Dinner
NO High School Youth Group
NO Jr. High Youth Group
20
5:30pm WNL
5:30pm Jr & Sr. High Leaders Mtg
6:30pm Sr. High Youth Grp
6:30pm Jr. High @ Miyagi's Gym
13
10am Grief Share (Women)
28
10am Grief Share (Women)
21
10am Grief Share (Women)
14
3pm Gathering Inn
10am Grief Share (Women)
5:30pm WNL
5:30pm Jr & Sr. High Leaders
Mtg
6:30pm Sr. High Youth Grp
6:30pm Jr. High @ Miyagi's Gym
\
7
Thu
6
Wed
29
22
15
8
1
Office Closed
Office Closed
Office Closed
Office Closed
Office Closed
Fri
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
30
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
23
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
16
11am Worship Arts Retreat
10:15am Takin’ It to the
Streets-Worship at Auburn
Oaks Care Ctr
7am High School Parking Lot Sale
9
10:45am Women's Tea
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
2
Sat
May 2015
Grapevine of Grace
May 2015
Sunday
Service
Times
8:45 AM
Adult Sunday School
Jr. & Sr. High School
Children’s Program
Nursery
10:45 AM
Adult Sunday School
Children’s Program
Nursery
God Brings Life From Death!
I have a confession to make; I have always loved monster movies. Since the time I was young I have been
captivated by Frankenstein and the Werewolf. When
we would visit my grandparents in Southern California
my brother, my uncle, and I would stay up late and stare
at a little black and white TV my uncle had in his room,
watching late night monster movies. We watched many varieties, including Godzilla, Dracula, and The Thing. These classic films made in
the sixties and early seventies became instant favorites. They now look
dorky and simplistic, but as a kid I loved them.
If I had to choose a favorite of all my favorites I think it would be Frankenstein. The whole idea of Dr. Frankenstein robbing graves for body
parts and sewing them all together is rather morbid. Dr. Frankenstein,
using his laboratory to experiment on bringing life from death, was fascinated by the idea of prolonging aliveness. He was desperate to show
how ‘science’ could control the destiny of humanity. As we all know this
experiment went awry. In the movie, Dr. Frankenstein was successful in
bringing life from death, but the new person was not normal and turned
out to be far more dangerous then helpful. In the end of every Frankenstein movie the creature dies. (Except in the old classic where the
Werewolf finds him frozen in a glacier, somehow revives him and befriends him.)
Continued on Page 10
Continued from Page 1
Hospitality
Sewers & Rippers
Welcome back to GOD'S LITTLE
SWEAT SHOP, commonly known
as the church Worship Center.
Last month you learned about
the intricacies of making a kit for a
quilt. Each sewer enjoys picking a
kit that will be fun for her to
sew. The quilts are sewed just as
carefully as they are cut. The front
of lovely cotton is backed by cheerful, child 'designed' flannel. Borders
of plain colored flannel coordinating
front and back complete the assembly. The bottom of the quilt is then
cut so that the front and back are
even.
Those that do the ironing now have
their chance! They precisely iron
the top so that the women who stuff
the quilt will have an easier
job. However, before it is stuffed
one of our ladies sews on the
attractive "Jesus Loves You" label
that has that
message in six
languages as well as identifying
that this is a gift from Auburn Grace
Community Church.
Easter 2015
GREAT NEWS! Two one week
sessions of Junior Sewers and
Rippers will be held June
8-12 and June 15-19. Sign-ups will
begin on Sunday, May 3. We
expect to fill up quickly so be
among the first to secure your
child's place.
Contact Betsey
Hirsch, 209-481-8558, f you have
any questions.
We welcomed two new ladies this
month: Linda Cotten and Ruth
Crawford. What a pleasure to have
them! We have an amazing group
of ladies. There is room for more,
so if you are interested in this
mission, please join us on
Tuesday mornings.
We love serving our awesome God,
Rhoda
Psalm 115:1
Meet Wanda Peabody
I’ve been attending Auburn Grace
for 5 yrs.
I came to Auburn Grace because
I had been here 20 years ago and after
my husband went to be with the Lord, I
came back here and felt right at home.
A Visual Story of
Redemption
One thing I love about Auburn Grace
is Pastor Phil’s messages. I appreciate
his digging and researching to bring out
new understandings of the Bible and I
love Pastor Lorin’s music ministry.
The ministries I'm involved with are
spokesperson for The Encouragers for
Single Women, co-facilitator for Grief
Share with Francis Hale and I love
greeting for Women's Bible Study and
on Sunday mornings.
Stuffing comes next. This is a
difficult job as the batting must fill
each corner and reach top and
bottom evenly. Long, strong arms
are a definite plus when it comes to
doing this job!
I find a lot of joy in harmonizing to
Christian music and playing the piano.
I love meeting with the Women’s
Ministries Support Team. I enjoy meeting with people and getting to know
their story.
By this time one can get the feel of
a cozy, comfortable, beautiful quilt
that will either introduce a child to
Christ or be an encouragement to a
needy child who already loves the
Lord.
If my life was a book the title would
be similar to Barbara Johnson’s title of
one of her books, Life Isn’t What You
Expected So Stick a Geranium in Your
Hat & Be Happy.
Next month we will tell you how the
quilts are completed.
Once Upon a Time there was a timid
woman that the Lord asked to lead in
ways she never dreamed.
Please remember to collect used
stamps for us. Tear off the right
hand top of your envelope that
contains a stamp of any amount
and place it in the receptacle on the
information wall in the main
lobby. Also needed are the Box
Tops for Education which are used
to help purchase playground equipment. Thank you so much!
It’s not fashionable but I keep a
Christmas tree up all year round
decorated for each season.
Website:
www.auburngrace.com
Email:
[email protected]
530-823-8330
PASTOR
Phil Sparling
ASSOCIATE/WORSHIP PASTOR
Lorin Miller
ADMINISTRATIVE PASTOR
Dave Wickstrom
PASTOR OF BODY LIFE
Greg Hummel
STUDENT MINISTRIES PASTOR
Steve West
CHILDREN’S DIRECTOR
Sue Smead
Auburn Grace
Community Church
ELDER BOARD
Tom Bowen, Bob Churchwell,
Lorin Miller, Kent Smead,
Phil Sparling, Hal Wallace
DEACONS:
Greg Hummel - Head Deacon
Steve and Becky Brown
Melanie Felce Al and Pat French
Mike and Lorraine Keeffe
Rod and Donna Lee
Gwen Smith
3126 Olympic Way
MAILING: P.O. Box 6446
Auburn, CA 95604
Summarizing Our
Stewardship
July 2014—June 2015
Budget As of 4/28/15
2014/15 Year-To-Date Total Need
$1,176,863
2014/15 Year-To-Date Total Giving
$1,106,657
Difference: +/- : $ -70,206 / -5.97%
Thank you for your generosity
in the support of God’s work!
“ B u il d ing a f a m il y o f b el i e v e r s t h a t know Christ and make Him known.”
2
11
Bringing life from death; extending
life beyond the expected life cycle; defying the natural progression of aging. These have always
been the pursuits of mankind. We
have continually strived to be the
ones in control of the uncontrollable. But, unfortunately, there are
just certain issues in life that will
always be beyond our control. We
want to live forever young; we
want our destinies to be in our
realm of control; we don’t like the
idea that someone else holds
some kind of power over us. Dr.
Frankenstein is alive and well today. Well, at least his ideas are.
Right now, today, there is a laboratory in Arizona that has cryogenically frozen a famous baseball
player after his death, with his
head and body stored separately.
I am not joking. This famous player wanted it this way. He wanted
to be ready in the event that
‘science’ could cure his decease,
reattach his head, and bring him
back to life. Or maybe ‘science’
could figure out a way to attach
his head to a healthy body and
restore life from death. Dr. Frankenstein lives!
We, as moral and spiritual beings,
and having God’s laws written on
our hearts, have always understood that life and death are ultimately in God’s hands. We have
an innate understanding that God
is both the giver and taker of life.
He brings life and He brings
death. This is not a difficult truth
to understand, that is unless
you’ve had a loved one taken
from you, or a family member
nearing death’s door. This is also
why we believe in the sanctity of
life. Not only is every human being valuable and significant be-
cause we are created in the image of God, but we understand
that He alone should be the giver
and taker of life.
But has God ever performed the
miracle of bringing life from
death? Has God ever performed a
Frankenstein? Has He ever
plugged the electrodes into a human being and revived the systems that make up human life? In
the realm of physical life we know
the answer is ‘yes’! There are
over a half dozen accounts in the
Bible of God resuscitating physical life back into a corpse. There
are also hundreds of stories
throughout the centuries of how
people have been brought back to
life after death to take them from
this planet.
But even more exciting is the fact
that God is still pulling off spiritual
Frankenstein’s. He, on a daily basis, is bringing spiritual life where
was once spiritual death. The Bible says that while we were “dead
in our trespasses” that God
brought back to life and made us
“alive
together
with
Jesus
Christ” (Ephesians 2:1-5). Resuscitation has occurred in our hearts
toward God. Where there was
once indifference, estrangement,
and even hostility toward our Creator He has brought about life.
We can now know Him, love Him,
and experience Him in an intimate
manner. His Spirit confirms with
my spirit that I am His child. We
have fellowship. We have union
and life together! God has out
done anything that the good old
doctor Frankenstein could have
even imagined.
Our job now is to immerse ourselves into this relationship of life.
10
God’s desire and design in bringing spiritual life from spiritual
death is for us to respond to Him
with love, devotion, and obedience. His plan is for us to dive
deep into this new life. Since we
now can love Him with our whole
heart, which was once dead to
him, let’s choose to love Him.
Love Him in prayer, love Him
through meditation upon His
word, the Bible, love Him through
worship, and love Him though loving others. Let’s exhibit the life
that He has brought from death.
This new life was not meant to be
neither shallow nor hidden. Let’s
jump in and make this new life
both deep and public. Let’s grow
deeper, spending time in scripture
study, prayer, and worship. Let’s
love others, both the lovable and
the unlovely. This is why we have
been brought back to life!
I think I’ll go to my Netflix account
and order a good old fashion
monster movie for this weekend.
How about Frankenstein Meets
the Wolfman! That’s a good one!
I love being your Pastor, see you
on Sunday.
Pastor Phil
Teaching Girls
to be Ladies
This is an excerpt from Dr. James
Dobson's February 2015
Newsletter. This is the second of
2 parts.
But what about moms who haven’t
been trained in social etiquette themselves? They can hardly pass on
what they haven’t learned. And what
can we suggest for those who are
simply too busy to tackle the job?
That is couwhere professional etiquette training comes in. Classes are
popping up in cities across the ntry to
meet this precise need.
This chapter in my book, Bringing Up
Girls, again, is entitled “Teaching
Girls to be Ladies.” I can hear some
of my readers objecting to the goal of
introducing principles of modesty and
grace to girls. That is hardly the
direction the popular culture has
taken us in recent decades.
Some would question whether it is
even desirable for a girl to be
feminine in a traditional sense, fearing that it will signal a return to the
oppression of a patriarchal era when
women had to hide their intelligence
and conceal their accomplishments.
Hear me out, moms. Not for a moment would I try to take away the
hard-won achievements of respect
and emancipation enjoyed by today’s
women. May they long endure.
So much has changed in the culture
since then. I will tell you that I am
disgusted by the way young men
treat their girlfriends today. Some
guys will honk from the street, waiting
for a girl to come out. They stay behind the steering wheel while she
opens her own door, and then they
take her to a McDonald’s or a Taco
Bell. Often, the guy will even expect
his date to pay for her food!
Do you know why this happens?
Because girls tolerate it. I would advise a young lady who is expected to
pay for her meal to do so only once.
She should then ask to be taken
straight home and never agree to see
the dude again. Any man who is that
disrespectful doesn’t deserve a sec-
ond chance.
Women hold the keys to masculine
behavior. Guys are inclined to take
what they can get and be no more
accommodating than they have to be.
To some degree, the lack of culture
and refinement we see in many of
today’s men is the fault of women
who ask for, and get, little or nothing.
If a girl sees herself as a lady, she
will expect her escort to behave like a
gentleman. He will respect her if she
respects herself. If she wants him to
be spiritually sensitive, she should go
out with him only a few times before
asking him to accompany her to
church. If she objects to his use of
profanity, she should simply not accept it. If she wants him to think of
her often and call her on the phone,
she should wait for him to get the
idea himself. Female aggressiveness
is a turnoff to most men. I don’t care
if the rules have changed; it is still a
bad idea for a girl to pursue a guy
breathlessly. She should let him be
the initiator. That is the way he is
made.
Parents, teach these concepts to
your girls! If your daughter wants her
boyfriend to take her to nice places,
she should expect him to make the
plans for an evening together and to
ask her out at least a week ahead of
time. If he shows up unannounced on
Friday night and says, “Wanna’ hang
out?” she should tell him she has other things to do. If she wants him to be
a gentleman, she should require him
to act like one, and she should always remember that she is a lady.
If a woman wants a man to marry
her, she absolutely must not make
herself available sexually. That
wrecks a relationship. Besides, it is
morally wrong. Under no circumstances should she live with a guy
before marriage. He will get what he
wants, and she will get nothing. The
number one reason men give for
marrying late or not at all is because
they can get everything they want—
including love and sex—without commitment. A moral, self-respecting
woman simply will not play that
game.
If it becomes obvious that a guy is
3
not going to commit, she should send
him packing. Period! Don’t argue, just
cut him loose. Don’t blame a guy if he
is unmannerly and exploitative. He
was probably not taught properly.
Show him what you expect, and if he
balks, move on—quickly. If he is a
big drinker or uses illegal drugs, run
from him. He is trouble on the hoof.
There is someone better out there for
you if you set your standards high.
It comes down to this: the relationship between a man and a woman
throughout their lives together, if indeed they do marry, will reflect the
ground rules set by the woman when
they are courting. She can change
him then, but probably not after. She
should not settle for anything less
than what she needs emotionally.
High on her list of priorities should be
a mutual understanding about manners and morals. It is the way men
and women have related to each other for thousands of years, and it still
provides the basis for healthy families
that are equipped to go the distance.
However, teaching girls to be ladies
is not enough. We must also give
them a strong biblical foundation from
which morals and virtues can evolve.
Our hope is that our daughters will
someday pass along those verities to
the next generation. No other priority
comes close to this one in significance.
John Adams wrote:
“The foundations of national morality
must be laid in private families. In
vain are schools, academies and universities instituted if loose principles
and licentious habits are impressed
upon children in their earliest years.
The mothers are the earliest and
most important Instructors of youth.”
It was true in 1778, and it is still true
today.
Student Ministries
Children's Ministry
The Junior High group had a fantastic night at their
Scavenger Hunt on April 10. The goal of the hunt
was "Bigger or Better" and the winning team brought
in an ice chest. The group ended at the home of
Pastor Steve and Lisa West with dessert and prizes.
It was a great night!
Our featured Children’s Ministries teacher this month
is Jenn Fiechter. Jenn has been married to RJ for 16
years and they have two wonderfully creative children, Nolan, 11, and Morgan, 9. They enjoy hiking,
taking drives, and going to Disneyland together! They
also enjoy camping and going on safari in the 80
acres behind their house.
Jenn and her family have been
attending AGCC for the past three
years and Jenn has been serving
in the Children’s Department for
two years. She began helping with
VBS and then started teaching at
Wednesday Nite Live. Jenn now
has taken the helm as the
Wednesday Nite Live Coordinator.
and substitutes occasionally on
Sunday mornings as well.
Upcoming Events in May!
HIGH SCHOOL MAN HUNT - May 1
7:30-11:00 pm
Come find the leaders of Auburn Grace Student
Ministries as they hide out in disguise at The
Fountains. Drop off/pick up at BJs in Roseville. Bring
$5 for Pazookies at BJs after the hunt. Winning team
gets free Pazookies!!
After helping with VBS, Jenn was willing to help in
other areas of Children’s Ministries as she feels that
God had brought her to the Children’s Department.
She was excited when she was asked if she would
tell the Bible story to the children on Wednesday
nights. She loves telling stories, especially Bible
stories and after praying, she felt that God was
confirming that this was where she was supposed
to serve.
PARKING LOT SALE - May 9
Student Ministries is hosting a HUGE parking lot
sale here at Auburn Grace on Saturday,
May 9 from 7:00 am-1:00 pm. Students sell their
stuff to earn money for camp or other AGCC events.
Donations gladly accepted! Items can be dropped off
on Friday, May 8. For questions or to arrange pick up
of your donations, please contact Pastor Steve West
at 530-913-3834 or Meredith at 530-823-8330 or
[email protected].
Jenn loves having a relationship with the kids and
being able to be the one who tells them about all of
the stories in the Bible. Jenn says, “I get to be really
enthusiastic with the age group I’m with and I can tell
that they like it. I love making God’s Word exciting
and real to them.” We are all so blessed to have Jenn
as a teacher and leader in the Children’s Department!
Young Adult Ministry (YAM)
The Young Adult Ministry is led by Matt and Becca Hendricks where the importance of community and engaging
one another towards Christ is the center point. It is a group that has been steadily growing and continues to
meet on Sunday nights at 5:00 pm. If you are or know a ‘twenty-something’ that would like to get plugged into
this amazing ministry, contact Brittany Brown (530-320-9326) or Isaac Ordaz (530-906-2651) for details.
4
Tokyo, Okinawa, Nagano, and
Gunma. Last month we just held
our first ever Encompass Japan
Retreat/Conference, where 22
participated from those 4 regions,
a number of whom met for the
first time. I feel my role is to help
these workers understand and
function as a "team", and through
their synergy, mutual encouragement,
support,
and
help,
become highly fruitful in spurring
a movement of evangelism
and disciple-making throughout
Japan.”
would have you help in this outreach to these Japanese students. To be a host family, or to
obtain more information, watch in
upcoming bulletins or contact one
of the following people:
Bridget Uhler
[email protected]
Matt Sparling
[email protected]
Lawrence Buren
[email protected]
Matt and Jen Daniels will be joining this Encompass team when
they arrive in Japan, hopefully by
the end of 2015.
More Opportunities
Reach Japan for Christ
to
Auburn Grace supports three
couples that are taking the Gospel
to the Japanese people—Ralph &
Joan Justiniano (Japan), Cecil &
Debbie O’Dell (Long Beach, CA)
and Matt & Jen Daniels (Japan).
You can help in this effort without
leaving home (and apart from
anything you may be doing for
direct support of any of these
couples). How you ask?
We have once again been given
two
opportunities
to
reach
Japanese students that are
coming to CA. First, we were
asked to host 12 Japanese
students (11 girls and 1 boy) from
July 20-August 21. Secondly,
the Japanese Handbell Choir,
consisting of 15 students (all
girls), plan on visiting our area.
They will be here the week of
August 17. I know the people/families that have done this in
the past have been blessed and
they have been a blessing to the
students. Please consider if God
9
Our Missionaries on the Front Line - 4th of a Series
Auburn Grace supports many
missionaries, some are in the US
and many are in other countries. It
is my desire to inform you about
who we are supporting and provide you with information on them
and their ministry. This month we
will go across the Pacific Ocean
to the ministry of Ralph & Joan
Justiniano in Japan.
Ralph was born in Manila,
Philippines, but lived on Okinawa
until he was 8, when his family
immigrated to the U.S. He grew
up in Los Angeles and in his
senior year God used a pastor
sharing Ephesians 2:8-9 as a
catalyst to draw Ralph into a
saving relationship. God continued to bring circumstances and
experiences together to call Ralph
to church-planting, and then to
reaching the least reached
nations.
Joan grew up in Toledo, Ohio,
and moved to Southern California
when she was 20. The following
year a friend invited her on her
church's college retreat, where
Joan prayed to receive Christ. A
year later, after deciding she
wouldn't want to marry anyone
from Southern California, she
arranged to move back to Ohio.
Two weeks before she left, she
went on a church retreat and met
Ralph. They were engaged after 4
months of long-distance phone
calls and letters, and married 6
months later, in 1983.
Ralph and Joan were both
involved in outreach in the Long
Beach area and also hosted a few
Japanese home-stay students.
God used the fact that there were
a lot of churches and opportunities to hear the gospel in
Southern California, but very few
in places like Japan, with a
Christian population of just 0.4%.
This moved their hearts to want to
serve Him in Japan. After Ralph
completed his Masters degree in
Missions, Ralph and Joan, along
with their 3 young children, began
raising support and landed in
Japan in 1995.
Ralph says, “Probably the most
significant ministry the Lord has
entrusted to us at this time is twofold. First is the raising up and
training of our Japanese disciples
in Tokyo, and second is the
development and training of the
national Japanese mission team
that the Lord has allowed us to
establish, which is Encompass
Nihon
of which
(Ralph)
Our(Japan),
Encompass
NihonI Team
am currently the director.”
Vision for their ministry is
summed up as follows by Ralph,
“From the start of our ministry in
Japan in 1995, we have sensed
God showing us that the key to
fruitful and long-term disciplemaking in Japan is leading
normal,
everyday
Japanese
people to Christ, helping them to
be on fire for the Lord in their
normal, everyday life settings, and
equipping them to multiply that
passion to those around them in
8
their everyday settings. We are
thrilled to see that starting to happen, and we are committed to following through with this ministry
and sharing this vision with the
steadily
growing
Encompass
Nihon Team, and all the disciples
Fast Facts: Generosity is the Christian's Best Apologetic
Pastor Tim Kellar captures this apologetic well by describing how the human heart, my heart, is "an idol
factory that takes good things and turns them into ultimate things.” Both by nature and by family background, I am a frugal person. My heart doesn't get
particularly excited about cars, hobbies, clothes, or
possessions. My deeper satisfaction comes from security. Comfort, sameness, financial predictability, at all
levels is my idol. Like all idols...it competes with my
intimacy with God. This "greed" absorbs my heart and
imagination more than any other competitor.
What can free me from this idol? Generosity frees me
from this most insipid and false idol. Generosity is not
a random idea or a haphazard behavior, but a basic,
personal, moral orientation to life (Smith and Davidson, The Paradox of Generosity).
The Tokyo Disciples
in Japan.”
“The disciples in Tokyo have
come to faith through several
ministries of evangelism and
discipleship that the Lord has
allowed us to pursue”, Ralph
reports. “Those are 1) Our house
church, 2) Joan's ladies' Bible
studies, 3) the Restaurant Outreach Bible study we started
several years ago, 4) the College
Student discipleship ministry, and
5) the more recent musicians' outreach Bible study in downtown
Tokyo. In the Tokyo area, we
have approximately 20 Japanese
disciples in whom we are
intentionally investing to help
them be on fire for the Lord and
fruitfully multiplying. The Lord has
brought precious fruit to the Tokyo
ministry, and in just the past 6
months, 6 Japanese have come
to faith, 5 have been baptized,
and the 6th is planning the details
for his baptism.”
On a national basis Ralph
explains, “The Lord has allowed
us to develop a team of harvest
workers committed to a movement of evangelism and disciplemaking in Japan- Encompass
Nihon (Japan). They come from
4 regions of Japan where
we are involved in ministry:
Defined: "Generosity is a noble, gallant lifestyle of giving good things to others liberally and lavishly without
expectation of return or personal benefit." Now, that
definition inspires me! Sadly, it does not necessarily
define me as I would like. The longed-for lifestyle preference makes my naturally greed-inclined heart seem
small and without merit.
Why is generosity such an important Apologetic?
FIRST, GIVING TRANSFORMS ME SPIRITUALLY:
God represents the most enlarged heart for generosity
in the universe. As I give, I model what the Father has
shown me. As I give, I release the death grip of greed
and false idols that so incessantly whisper in my ear as
if my life was utterly dependent on the possessions
with my grip.
My most dramatic spiritual transformation can only
come through giving. It's a game-changer.
SECOND, GENEROSITY IS NOW THE BEST APOLOGETIC WE AS
CHRIST-FOLLOWERS HAVE TO A WATCHING AND NEEDY
WORLD:
post-modern. How we handle our possessions grabs
the attention of those seeking truth as our culture demands we possess more and aspire to greater wealth.
Kellar stated it so well: "The early church was strikingly
different from the culture...the pagan society was stingy with its money and promiscuous with the body. A
pagan gave nobody their money and practically gave
everybody their body. And the Christians came along
and gave practically everybody their money."
Our generosity impresses the world. And so it should
as God's generosity is His calling card, quite counterculturally.
THIRD, GENEROSITY ALLOWS ME TO INVEST INTO THINGS
THAT MATTER:
There is no loss in buying things and enjoying them.
There is loss when our money constantly tries to buy
us meaning and happiness that will forever be elusive
without an eternal perspective.
So I get to be a part of God's work, God's expression,
and His mission as I invest financially in things that
yield eternal results. There's added value of an eternal
nature for me personally that I cannot yet fully comprehend, but scripture indicates we store up treasure in
heaven.
If generosity changes my heart, speaks to a spiritually
thirsty world, and yields eternal dividends, I'm all in.
The idol is screaming in my ear, still, but his voice is
not quite as loud and powerful. And that's a good
thing.
For more on this topic go to Generis, an organization
committed to accelerate generosity toward Godinspired vision.
Pastor Dave
Classic apologetics are in the rear view mirror of the
AGCC All-Church Campout
June 26-28
Snowflower Resort - Emigrant Gap
Limited spots—sign-up now!
Snowflower Resort is a beautiful wooded preserve located in the High Sierra Mountains of Northern California
and offers fun and adventure for all ages. Located on a beautiful 23 acre lake with swimming, fishing, hiking and
mountain biking, playground, basketball, horse shoe pit and shuffleboard. Trailers, motorhomes and tents are
welcomed. If you can't go for the entire weekend then come visit for the day—$5 vehicle entry.
Please sign-up on a Response Form in a Sunday bulletin
or by calling Melanie Felce at 916-652-9631.
5
6 WEEK ALL-CHURCH FAMILY SMALL GROUP STUDY / SUMMER 2015
HOW TO PRAY FOR AMERICA
“When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous
do?” – Psalms 11:3
I believe our nation is in trouble today, probably more than I’ve seen in my
lifetime. We are contending with issues that are causing the very foundation
of our country to crumble. Our moral and spiritual roots are eroding, the
economy is misleading, family life is disintegrating, and political forces are at
unprecedented odds. There seem to be very few leaders who will take a
stand for God and for His Word.
It can be tempting to believe that America has reached a point of no return.
While these factors cause despair, we are reminded in Scripture that with
God, nothing is impossible. No problem is too great for Him. Seasons of
distress and uncertainty and hardship call for faithful, fervent prayer by
God’s people and remind us of our responsibility to humble ourselves before
Almighty God. We cannot expect healing to come to our nation apart from
obedience to God through His Holy Word.
God longs for His people to humble themselves and to seek forgiveness and
pray for guidance. God’s Word says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is
the Lord” (Psalm 33:12). The Bible commands that we repent of our sins
and turn to Almighty God. And because we are confident that we serve a
God of mercy and compassion, we know that He stands ready to respond to
our cries out of the abundance of His divine wisdom.
It is a crucial time for us to individually and collectively seek God’s divine
intervention for the challenges facing us. We need to pray not only for our
nation, but we need to pray for our leaders, for all those who govern us, that
they will turn to God with humble hearts and follow Him. Our military leaders
need our prayers as we have dedicated men and women serving on battlefields and sacrificing their blood to protect our nation and many innocent
people around the world. God is faithful to bless those who turn to Him.
Pray that as a nation we would return to God. As we call on God, let us do
so by genuine faith, believing that He hears our prayers. God can heal this
great land, for which our forefathers fought and died. We need spiritual renewal, we need a revival in America, and we need each and everyone to
pray. Lord, Hear Our Cry! – Franklin Graham
6
Heavenly Father,
THE FORGOTTEN STORY OF HOW UNITING GENERATIONS UNLEASHES EPIC SPIRITUAL POTENTIAL
We come to You in the Name that is
above every name—Jesus Christ
our Lord and Savior.
Our hearts cry out to You.
Something special happens when all of God’s people—teens, adults, and seniors—do life together. Grow Together
shows how to ignite powerful spiritual growth through multigenerational, relational unity with the church, helping one another find satisfying answers to life’s 3 Hungers: Truth, Identity and Meaning.
Knowing that You are a prayeranswering, faithful God—the One
we trust in times like these—we ask
that You renew our spirits, revive
our churches, and heal our land.
This summer Auburn Grace Community Church will host this powerful six week small group host home study from Summit Ministries, that will no doubt transform the way we “do life together” as Christ followers. Sign up for home groups will
begin on June 7 in the Courtyard.
We repent of our sins and ask for
Your grace and power to save us.
Hear our cry, oh God, and pour out
Your Spirit upon us that we may
walk in obedience to Your Word.
We are desperate for Your tender
mercies. We are broken and
humbled before You.
Forgive us, and in the power of
Your great love, lift us up to live in
Your righteousness.
We pray for our beloved nation.
May we repent and return to You
and be a light to the nations. And
we pray for our leaders and ask that
You give them wisdom and faith
to follow You.
Preserve and protect us, for You
are our refuge and only hope.
Deliver us from all fears except to
fear You, and may we courageously
stand in the Truth that sets us free.
We pray with expectant faith and
grateful hearts.
In Jesus’ name, our Savior.
Amen.
– 2015 National Prayer by
Dr. Jack Graham
Leading Christian voices are rediscovering the power of multigenerational relationships within the church:
“Grow Together offers a blueprint for igniting powerful spiritual growth in the church through multigenerational relationships.” Ravi Zacharias, Author of Why Jesus?
“When Jesus charged us with the Great Commission, He did not say ‘make believers’ – He said ‘make disciples.’ How do
you do that? After you read and watch Grow Together, you’ll know how.” Frank Turek, Author of I Don’t Have Enough
Faith to Be an Atheist
“This is the church’s greatest moment. Here’s how to make the most of it! Jeff Myers’ double helix of worldview and lifeon-life mentoring will be used by God to impact the church and change the world! You can have all the right truth, but if
it’s not lived out in relationships it will never change your family, it will never change the church, it will never change the
world. Grow Together explores the proven spiritual power of multigenerational mentoring.” Josh McDowell, Author of
The Unshakeable Truth.
HOW THE GENERATIONAL DIVIDE GRINDS DOWN THE CHURCH’S EPIC POTENTIAL
Reconciling the generations in the church would breathe new life into a faltering institution and perhaps even save
civilization. Generational divides kill the church. But reuniting the generations is possible, and it makes probable dramatic
change that can revitalize the spread of the gospel and display God’s glory in a way that whole nations will praise Him.
To grasp this vision, though, we must release a catastrophic, nearly unavoidable assumption. If we don’t figure out what
this error is and how to reverse course, three generations hence our progeny will be powerless to reverse its effects. On
its face, this claim seems far-fetched. But as someone who has invested his whole life working with young adults, I am
more convinced every day that it is true. The gap between generations is killing the church, and we desperately need to
have a conversation about it. There has never in history been greater opportunity for the church to truly influence culture,
and we are on the verge of missing it. Whether we change course and begin to flourish is not a decision of individual
wills. We must together decide, because at the center of our choosing is not a solitary soul but a body—institution given
by God. It’s called The Church. Each generation has its idea of what church is—what it looks like and what happens
there—and one generation isn’t interested in following arbitrary cultural rules that make church meaningful to a few but
squeeze the rest out. The greatest cultural divide in the church is not between the rich and the poor or between majority
and minority cultures. It is a generational divide: silent, invisible, culturally-acceptable segregation by age. Jeff Myers,
Author of Grow Together.
7
6 WEEK ALL-CHURCH FAMILY SMALL GROUP STUDY / SUMMER 2015
HOW TO PRAY FOR AMERICA
“When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous
do?” – Psalms 11:3
I believe our nation is in trouble today, probably more than I’ve seen in my
lifetime. We are contending with issues that are causing the very foundation
of our country to crumble. Our moral and spiritual roots are eroding, the
economy is misleading, family life is disintegrating, and political forces are at
unprecedented odds. There seem to be very few leaders who will take a
stand for God and for His Word.
It can be tempting to believe that America has reached a point of no return.
While these factors cause despair, we are reminded in Scripture that with
God, nothing is impossible. No problem is too great for Him. Seasons of
distress and uncertainty and hardship call for faithful, fervent prayer by
God’s people and remind us of our responsibility to humble ourselves before
Almighty God. We cannot expect healing to come to our nation apart from
obedience to God through His Holy Word.
God longs for His people to humble themselves and to seek forgiveness and
pray for guidance. God’s Word says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is
the Lord” (Psalm 33:12). The Bible commands that we repent of our sins
and turn to Almighty God. And because we are confident that we serve a
God of mercy and compassion, we know that He stands ready to respond to
our cries out of the abundance of His divine wisdom.
It is a crucial time for us to individually and collectively seek God’s divine
intervention for the challenges facing us. We need to pray not only for our
nation, but we need to pray for our leaders, for all those who govern us, that
they will turn to God with humble hearts and follow Him. Our military leaders
need our prayers as we have dedicated men and women serving on battlefields and sacrificing their blood to protect our nation and many innocent
people around the world. God is faithful to bless those who turn to Him.
Pray that as a nation we would return to God. As we call on God, let us do
so by genuine faith, believing that He hears our prayers. God can heal this
great land, for which our forefathers fought and died. We need spiritual renewal, we need a revival in America, and we need each and everyone to
pray. Lord, Hear Our Cry! – Franklin Graham
6
Heavenly Father,
THE FORGOTTEN STORY OF HOW UNITING GENERATIONS UNLEASHES EPIC SPIRITUAL POTENTIAL
We come to You in the Name that is
above every name—Jesus Christ
our Lord and Savior.
Our hearts cry out to You.
Something special happens when all of God’s people—teens, adults, and seniors—do life together. Grow Together
shows how to ignite powerful spiritual growth through multigenerational, relational unity with the church, helping one another find satisfying answers to life’s 3 Hungers: Truth, Identity and Meaning.
Knowing that You are a prayeranswering, faithful God—the One
we trust in times like these—we ask
that You renew our spirits, revive
our churches, and heal our land.
This summer Auburn Grace Community Church will host this powerful six week small group host home study from Summit Ministries, that will no doubt transform the way we “do life together” as Christ followers. Sign up for home groups will
begin on June 7 in the Courtyard.
We repent of our sins and ask for
Your grace and power to save us.
Hear our cry, oh God, and pour out
Your Spirit upon us that we may
walk in obedience to Your Word.
We are desperate for Your tender
mercies. We are broken and
humbled before You.
Forgive us, and in the power of
Your great love, lift us up to live in
Your righteousness.
We pray for our beloved nation.
May we repent and return to You
and be a light to the nations. And
we pray for our leaders and ask that
You give them wisdom and faith
to follow You.
Preserve and protect us, for You
are our refuge and only hope.
Deliver us from all fears except to
fear You, and may we courageously
stand in the Truth that sets us free.
We pray with expectant faith and
grateful hearts.
In Jesus’ name, our Savior.
Amen.
– 2015 National Prayer by
Dr. Jack Graham
Leading Christian voices are rediscovering the power of multigenerational relationships within the church:
“Grow Together offers a blueprint for igniting powerful spiritual growth in the church through multigenerational relationships.” Ravi Zacharias, Author of Why Jesus?
“When Jesus charged us with the Great Commission, He did not say ‘make believers’ – He said ‘make disciples.’ How do
you do that? After you read and watch Grow Together, you’ll know how.” Frank Turek, Author of I Don’t Have Enough
Faith to Be an Atheist
“This is the church’s greatest moment. Here’s how to make the most of it! Jeff Myers’ double helix of worldview and lifeon-life mentoring will be used by God to impact the church and change the world! You can have all the right truth, but if
it’s not lived out in relationships it will never change your family, it will never change the church, it will never change the
world. Grow Together explores the proven spiritual power of multigenerational mentoring.” Josh McDowell, Author of
The Unshakeable Truth.
HOW THE GENERATIONAL DIVIDE GRINDS DOWN THE CHURCH’S EPIC POTENTIAL
Reconciling the generations in the church would breathe new life into a faltering institution and perhaps even save
civilization. Generational divides kill the church. But reuniting the generations is possible, and it makes probable dramatic
change that can revitalize the spread of the gospel and display God’s glory in a way that whole nations will praise Him.
To grasp this vision, though, we must release a catastrophic, nearly unavoidable assumption. If we don’t figure out what
this error is and how to reverse course, three generations hence our progeny will be powerless to reverse its effects. On
its face, this claim seems far-fetched. But as someone who has invested his whole life working with young adults, I am
more convinced every day that it is true. The gap between generations is killing the church, and we desperately need to
have a conversation about it. There has never in history been greater opportunity for the church to truly influence culture,
and we are on the verge of missing it. Whether we change course and begin to flourish is not a decision of individual
wills. We must together decide, because at the center of our choosing is not a solitary soul but a body—institution given
by God. It’s called The Church. Each generation has its idea of what church is—what it looks like and what happens
there—and one generation isn’t interested in following arbitrary cultural rules that make church meaningful to a few but
squeeze the rest out. The greatest cultural divide in the church is not between the rich and the poor or between majority
and minority cultures. It is a generational divide: silent, invisible, culturally-acceptable segregation by age. Jeff Myers,
Author of Grow Together.
7
Our Missionaries on the Front Line - 4th of a Series
Auburn Grace supports many
missionaries, some are in the US
and many are in other countries. It
is my desire to inform you about
who we are supporting and provide you with information on them
and their ministry. This month we
will go across the Pacific Ocean
to the ministry of Ralph & Joan
Justiniano in Japan.
Ralph was born in Manila,
Philippines, but lived on Okinawa
until he was 8, when his family
immigrated to the U.S. He grew
up in Los Angeles and in his
senior year God used a pastor
sharing Ephesians 2:8-9 as a
catalyst to draw Ralph into a
saving relationship. God continued to bring circumstances and
experiences together to call Ralph
to church-planting, and then to
reaching the least reached
nations.
Joan grew up in Toledo, Ohio,
and moved to Southern California
when she was 20. The following
year a friend invited her on her
church's college retreat, where
Joan prayed to receive Christ. A
year later, after deciding she
wouldn't want to marry anyone
from Southern California, she
arranged to move back to Ohio.
Two weeks before she left, she
went on a church retreat and met
Ralph. They were engaged after 4
months of long-distance phone
calls and letters, and married 6
months later, in 1983.
Ralph and Joan were both
involved in outreach in the Long
Beach area and also hosted a few
Japanese home-stay students.
God used the fact that there were
a lot of churches and opportunities to hear the gospel in
Southern California, but very few
in places like Japan, with a
Christian population of just 0.4%.
This moved their hearts to want to
serve Him in Japan. After Ralph
completed his Masters degree in
Missions, Ralph and Joan, along
with their 3 young children, began
raising support and landed in
Japan in 1995.
Ralph says, “Probably the most
significant ministry the Lord has
entrusted to us at this time is twofold. First is the raising up and
training of our Japanese disciples
in Tokyo, and second is the
development and training of the
national Japanese mission team
that the Lord has allowed us to
establish, which is Encompass
Nihon
of which
(Ralph)
Our(Japan),
Encompass
NihonI Team
am currently the director.”
Vision for their ministry is
summed up as follows by Ralph,
“From the start of our ministry in
Japan in 1995, we have sensed
God showing us that the key to
fruitful and long-term disciplemaking in Japan is leading
normal,
everyday
Japanese
people to Christ, helping them to
be on fire for the Lord in their
normal, everyday life settings, and
equipping them to multiply that
passion to those around them in
8
their everyday settings. We are
thrilled to see that starting to happen, and we are committed to following through with this ministry
and sharing this vision with the
steadily
growing
Encompass
Nihon Team, and all the disciples
Fast Facts: Generosity is the Christian's Best Apologetic
Pastor Tim Kellar captures this apologetic well by describing how the human heart, my heart, is "an idol
factory that takes good things and turns them into ultimate things.” Both by nature and by family background, I am a frugal person. My heart doesn't get
particularly excited about cars, hobbies, clothes, or
possessions. My deeper satisfaction comes from security. Comfort, sameness, financial predictability, at all
levels is my idol. Like all idols...it competes with my
intimacy with God. This "greed" absorbs my heart and
imagination more than any other competitor.
What can free me from this idol? Generosity frees me
from this most insipid and false idol. Generosity is not
a random idea or a haphazard behavior, but a basic,
personal, moral orientation to life (Smith and Davidson, The Paradox of Generosity).
The Tokyo Disciples
in Japan.”
“The disciples in Tokyo have
come to faith through several
ministries of evangelism and
discipleship that the Lord has
allowed us to pursue”, Ralph
reports. “Those are 1) Our house
church, 2) Joan's ladies' Bible
studies, 3) the Restaurant Outreach Bible study we started
several years ago, 4) the College
Student discipleship ministry, and
5) the more recent musicians' outreach Bible study in downtown
Tokyo. In the Tokyo area, we
have approximately 20 Japanese
disciples in whom we are
intentionally investing to help
them be on fire for the Lord and
fruitfully multiplying. The Lord has
brought precious fruit to the Tokyo
ministry, and in just the past 6
months, 6 Japanese have come
to faith, 5 have been baptized,
and the 6th is planning the details
for his baptism.”
On a national basis Ralph
explains, “The Lord has allowed
us to develop a team of harvest
workers committed to a movement of evangelism and disciplemaking in Japan- Encompass
Nihon (Japan). They come from
4 regions of Japan where
we are involved in ministry:
Defined: "Generosity is a noble, gallant lifestyle of giving good things to others liberally and lavishly without
expectation of return or personal benefit." Now, that
definition inspires me! Sadly, it does not necessarily
define me as I would like. The longed-for lifestyle preference makes my naturally greed-inclined heart seem
small and without merit.
Why is generosity such an important Apologetic?
FIRST, GIVING TRANSFORMS ME SPIRITUALLY:
God represents the most enlarged heart for generosity
in the universe. As I give, I model what the Father has
shown me. As I give, I release the death grip of greed
and false idols that so incessantly whisper in my ear as
if my life was utterly dependent on the possessions
with my grip.
My most dramatic spiritual transformation can only
come through giving. It's a game-changer.
SECOND, GENEROSITY IS NOW THE BEST APOLOGETIC WE AS
CHRIST-FOLLOWERS HAVE TO A WATCHING AND NEEDY
WORLD:
post-modern. How we handle our possessions grabs
the attention of those seeking truth as our culture demands we possess more and aspire to greater wealth.
Kellar stated it so well: "The early church was strikingly
different from the culture...the pagan society was stingy with its money and promiscuous with the body. A
pagan gave nobody their money and practically gave
everybody their body. And the Christians came along
and gave practically everybody their money."
Our generosity impresses the world. And so it should
as God's generosity is His calling card, quite counterculturally.
THIRD, GENEROSITY ALLOWS ME TO INVEST INTO THINGS
THAT MATTER:
There is no loss in buying things and enjoying them.
There is loss when our money constantly tries to buy
us meaning and happiness that will forever be elusive
without an eternal perspective.
So I get to be a part of God's work, God's expression,
and His mission as I invest financially in things that
yield eternal results. There's added value of an eternal
nature for me personally that I cannot yet fully comprehend, but scripture indicates we store up treasure in
heaven.
If generosity changes my heart, speaks to a spiritually
thirsty world, and yields eternal dividends, I'm all in.
The idol is screaming in my ear, still, but his voice is
not quite as loud and powerful. And that's a good
thing.
For more on this topic go to Generis, an organization
committed to accelerate generosity toward Godinspired vision.
Pastor Dave
Classic apologetics are in the rear view mirror of the
AGCC All-Church Campout
June 26-28
Snowflower Resort - Emigrant Gap
Limited spots—sign-up now!
Snowflower Resort is a beautiful wooded preserve located in the High Sierra Mountains of Northern California
and offers fun and adventure for all ages. Located on a beautiful 23 acre lake with swimming, fishing, hiking and
mountain biking, playground, basketball, horse shoe pit and shuffleboard. Trailers, motorhomes and tents are
welcomed. If you can't go for the entire weekend then come visit for the day—$5 vehicle entry.
Please sign-up on a Response Form in a Sunday bulletin
or by calling Melanie Felce at 916-652-9631.
5
Student Ministries
Children's Ministry
The Junior High group had a fantastic night at their
Scavenger Hunt on April 10. The goal of the hunt
was "Bigger or Better" and the winning team brought
in an ice chest. The group ended at the home of
Pastor Steve and Lisa West with dessert and prizes.
It was a great night!
Our featured Children’s Ministries teacher this month
is Jenn Fiechter. Jenn has been married to RJ for 16
years and they have two wonderfully creative children, Nolan, 11, and Morgan, 9. They enjoy hiking,
taking drives, and going to Disneyland together! They
also enjoy camping and going on safari in the 80
acres behind their house.
Jenn and her family have been
attending AGCC for the past three
years and Jenn has been serving
in the Children’s Department for
two years. She began helping with
VBS and then started teaching at
Wednesday Nite Live. Jenn now
has taken the helm as the
Wednesday Nite Live Coordinator.
and substitutes occasionally on
Sunday mornings as well.
Upcoming Events in May!
HIGH SCHOOL MAN HUNT - May 1
7:30-11:00 pm
Come find the leaders of Auburn Grace Student
Ministries as they hide out in disguise at The
Fountains. Drop off/pick up at BJs in Roseville. Bring
$5 for Pazookies at BJs after the hunt. Winning team
gets free Pazookies!!
After helping with VBS, Jenn was willing to help in
other areas of Children’s Ministries as she feels that
God had brought her to the Children’s Department.
She was excited when she was asked if she would
tell the Bible story to the children on Wednesday
nights. She loves telling stories, especially Bible
stories and after praying, she felt that God was
confirming that this was where she was supposed
to serve.
PARKING LOT SALE - May 9
Student Ministries is hosting a HUGE parking lot
sale here at Auburn Grace on Saturday,
May 9 from 7:00 am-1:00 pm. Students sell their
stuff to earn money for camp or other AGCC events.
Donations gladly accepted! Items can be dropped off
on Friday, May 8. For questions or to arrange pick up
of your donations, please contact Pastor Steve West
at 530-913-3834 or Meredith at 530-823-8330 or
[email protected].
Jenn loves having a relationship with the kids and
being able to be the one who tells them about all of
the stories in the Bible. Jenn says, “I get to be really
enthusiastic with the age group I’m with and I can tell
that they like it. I love making God’s Word exciting
and real to them.” We are all so blessed to have Jenn
as a teacher and leader in the Children’s Department!
Young Adult Ministry (YAM)
The Young Adult Ministry is led by Matt and Becca Hendricks where the importance of community and engaging
one another towards Christ is the center point. It is a group that has been steadily growing and continues to
meet on Sunday nights at 5:00 pm. If you are or know a ‘twenty-something’ that would like to get plugged into
this amazing ministry, contact Brittany Brown (530-320-9326) or Isaac Ordaz (530-906-2651) for details.
4
Tokyo, Okinawa, Nagano, and
Gunma. Last month we just held
our first ever Encompass Japan
Retreat/Conference, where 22
participated from those 4 regions,
a number of whom met for the
first time. I feel my role is to help
these workers understand and
function as a "team", and through
their synergy, mutual encouragement,
support,
and
help,
become highly fruitful in spurring
a movement of evangelism
and disciple-making throughout
Japan.”
would have you help in this outreach to these Japanese students. To be a host family, or to
obtain more information, watch in
upcoming bulletins or contact one
of the following people:
Bridget Uhler
[email protected]
Matt Sparling
[email protected]
Lawrence Buren
[email protected]
Matt and Jen Daniels will be joining this Encompass team when
they arrive in Japan, hopefully by
the end of 2015.
More Opportunities
Reach Japan for Christ
to
Auburn Grace supports three
couples that are taking the Gospel
to the Japanese people—Ralph &
Joan Justiniano (Japan), Cecil &
Debbie O’Dell (Long Beach, CA)
and Matt & Jen Daniels (Japan).
You can help in this effort without
leaving home (and apart from
anything you may be doing for
direct support of any of these
couples). How you ask?
We have once again been given
two
opportunities
to
reach
Japanese students that are
coming to CA. First, we were
asked to host 12 Japanese
students (11 girls and 1 boy) from
July 20-August 21. Secondly,
the Japanese Handbell Choir,
consisting of 15 students (all
girls), plan on visiting our area.
They will be here the week of
August 17. I know the people/families that have done this in
the past have been blessed and
they have been a blessing to the
students. Please consider if God
9
Bringing life from death; extending
life beyond the expected life cycle; defying the natural progression of aging. These have always
been the pursuits of mankind. We
have continually strived to be the
ones in control of the uncontrollable. But, unfortunately, there are
just certain issues in life that will
always be beyond our control. We
want to live forever young; we
want our destinies to be in our
realm of control; we don’t like the
idea that someone else holds
some kind of power over us. Dr.
Frankenstein is alive and well today. Well, at least his ideas are.
Right now, today, there is a laboratory in Arizona that has cryogenically frozen a famous baseball
player after his death, with his
head and body stored separately.
I am not joking. This famous player wanted it this way. He wanted
to be ready in the event that
‘science’ could cure his decease,
reattach his head, and bring him
back to life. Or maybe ‘science’
could figure out a way to attach
his head to a healthy body and
restore life from death. Dr. Frankenstein lives!
We, as moral and spiritual beings,
and having God’s laws written on
our hearts, have always understood that life and death are ultimately in God’s hands. We have
an innate understanding that God
is both the giver and taker of life.
He brings life and He brings
death. This is not a difficult truth
to understand, that is unless
you’ve had a loved one taken
from you, or a family member
nearing death’s door. This is also
why we believe in the sanctity of
life. Not only is every human being valuable and significant be-
cause we are created in the image of God, but we understand
that He alone should be the giver
and taker of life.
But has God ever performed the
miracle of bringing life from
death? Has God ever performed a
Frankenstein? Has He ever
plugged the electrodes into a human being and revived the systems that make up human life? In
the realm of physical life we know
the answer is ‘yes’! There are
over a half dozen accounts in the
Bible of God resuscitating physical life back into a corpse. There
are also hundreds of stories
throughout the centuries of how
people have been brought back to
life after death to take them from
this planet.
But even more exciting is the fact
that God is still pulling off spiritual
Frankenstein’s. He, on a daily basis, is bringing spiritual life where
was once spiritual death. The Bible says that while we were “dead
in our trespasses” that God
brought back to life and made us
“alive
together
with
Jesus
Christ” (Ephesians 2:1-5). Resuscitation has occurred in our hearts
toward God. Where there was
once indifference, estrangement,
and even hostility toward our Creator He has brought about life.
We can now know Him, love Him,
and experience Him in an intimate
manner. His Spirit confirms with
my spirit that I am His child. We
have fellowship. We have union
and life together! God has out
done anything that the good old
doctor Frankenstein could have
even imagined.
Our job now is to immerse ourselves into this relationship of life.
10
God’s desire and design in bringing spiritual life from spiritual
death is for us to respond to Him
with love, devotion, and obedience. His plan is for us to dive
deep into this new life. Since we
now can love Him with our whole
heart, which was once dead to
him, let’s choose to love Him.
Love Him in prayer, love Him
through meditation upon His
word, the Bible, love Him through
worship, and love Him though loving others. Let’s exhibit the life
that He has brought from death.
This new life was not meant to be
neither shallow nor hidden. Let’s
jump in and make this new life
both deep and public. Let’s grow
deeper, spending time in scripture
study, prayer, and worship. Let’s
love others, both the lovable and
the unlovely. This is why we have
been brought back to life!
I think I’ll go to my Netflix account
and order a good old fashion
monster movie for this weekend.
How about Frankenstein Meets
the Wolfman! That’s a good one!
I love being your Pastor, see you
on Sunday.
Pastor Phil
Teaching Girls
to be Ladies
This is an excerpt from Dr. James
Dobson's February 2015
Newsletter. This is the second of
2 parts.
But what about moms who haven’t
been trained in social etiquette themselves? They can hardly pass on
what they haven’t learned. And what
can we suggest for those who are
simply too busy to tackle the job?
That is couwhere professional etiquette training comes in. Classes are
popping up in cities across the ntry to
meet this precise need.
This chapter in my book, Bringing Up
Girls, again, is entitled “Teaching
Girls to be Ladies.” I can hear some
of my readers objecting to the goal of
introducing principles of modesty and
grace to girls. That is hardly the
direction the popular culture has
taken us in recent decades.
Some would question whether it is
even desirable for a girl to be
feminine in a traditional sense, fearing that it will signal a return to the
oppression of a patriarchal era when
women had to hide their intelligence
and conceal their accomplishments.
Hear me out, moms. Not for a moment would I try to take away the
hard-won achievements of respect
and emancipation enjoyed by today’s
women. May they long endure.
So much has changed in the culture
since then. I will tell you that I am
disgusted by the way young men
treat their girlfriends today. Some
guys will honk from the street, waiting
for a girl to come out. They stay behind the steering wheel while she
opens her own door, and then they
take her to a McDonald’s or a Taco
Bell. Often, the guy will even expect
his date to pay for her food!
Do you know why this happens?
Because girls tolerate it. I would advise a young lady who is expected to
pay for her meal to do so only once.
She should then ask to be taken
straight home and never agree to see
the dude again. Any man who is that
disrespectful doesn’t deserve a sec-
ond chance.
Women hold the keys to masculine
behavior. Guys are inclined to take
what they can get and be no more
accommodating than they have to be.
To some degree, the lack of culture
and refinement we see in many of
today’s men is the fault of women
who ask for, and get, little or nothing.
If a girl sees herself as a lady, she
will expect her escort to behave like a
gentleman. He will respect her if she
respects herself. If she wants him to
be spiritually sensitive, she should go
out with him only a few times before
asking him to accompany her to
church. If she objects to his use of
profanity, she should simply not accept it. If she wants him to think of
her often and call her on the phone,
she should wait for him to get the
idea himself. Female aggressiveness
is a turnoff to most men. I don’t care
if the rules have changed; it is still a
bad idea for a girl to pursue a guy
breathlessly. She should let him be
the initiator. That is the way he is
made.
Parents, teach these concepts to
your girls! If your daughter wants her
boyfriend to take her to nice places,
she should expect him to make the
plans for an evening together and to
ask her out at least a week ahead of
time. If he shows up unannounced on
Friday night and says, “Wanna’ hang
out?” she should tell him she has other things to do. If she wants him to be
a gentleman, she should require him
to act like one, and she should always remember that she is a lady.
If a woman wants a man to marry
her, she absolutely must not make
herself available sexually. That
wrecks a relationship. Besides, it is
morally wrong. Under no circumstances should she live with a guy
before marriage. He will get what he
wants, and she will get nothing. The
number one reason men give for
marrying late or not at all is because
they can get everything they want—
including love and sex—without commitment. A moral, self-respecting
woman simply will not play that
game.
If it becomes obvious that a guy is
3
not going to commit, she should send
him packing. Period! Don’t argue, just
cut him loose. Don’t blame a guy if he
is unmannerly and exploitative. He
was probably not taught properly.
Show him what you expect, and if he
balks, move on—quickly. If he is a
big drinker or uses illegal drugs, run
from him. He is trouble on the hoof.
There is someone better out there for
you if you set your standards high.
It comes down to this: the relationship between a man and a woman
throughout their lives together, if indeed they do marry, will reflect the
ground rules set by the woman when
they are courting. She can change
him then, but probably not after. She
should not settle for anything less
than what she needs emotionally.
High on her list of priorities should be
a mutual understanding about manners and morals. It is the way men
and women have related to each other for thousands of years, and it still
provides the basis for healthy families
that are equipped to go the distance.
However, teaching girls to be ladies
is not enough. We must also give
them a strong biblical foundation from
which morals and virtues can evolve.
Our hope is that our daughters will
someday pass along those verities to
the next generation. No other priority
comes close to this one in significance.
John Adams wrote:
“The foundations of national morality
must be laid in private families. In
vain are schools, academies and universities instituted if loose principles
and licentious habits are impressed
upon children in their earliest years.
The mothers are the earliest and
most important Instructors of youth.”
It was true in 1778, and it is still true
today.
Hospitality
Sewers & Rippers
Welcome back to GOD'S LITTLE
SWEAT SHOP, commonly known
as the church Worship Center.
Last month you learned about
the intricacies of making a kit for a
quilt. Each sewer enjoys picking a
kit that will be fun for her to
sew. The quilts are sewed just as
carefully as they are cut. The front
of lovely cotton is backed by cheerful, child 'designed' flannel. Borders
of plain colored flannel coordinating
front and back complete the assembly. The bottom of the quilt is then
cut so that the front and back are
even.
Those that do the ironing now have
their chance! They precisely iron
the top so that the women who stuff
the quilt will have an easier
job. However, before it is stuffed
one of our ladies sews on the
attractive "Jesus Loves You" label
that has that
message in six
languages as well as identifying
that this is a gift from Auburn Grace
Community Church.
Easter 2015
GREAT NEWS! Two one week
sessions of Junior Sewers and
Rippers will be held June
8-12 and June 15-19. Sign-ups will
begin on Sunday, May 3. We
expect to fill up quickly so be
among the first to secure your
child's place.
Contact Betsey
Hirsch, 209-481-8558, f you have
any questions.
We welcomed two new ladies this
month: Linda Cotten and Ruth
Crawford. What a pleasure to have
them! We have an amazing group
of ladies. There is room for more,
so if you are interested in this
mission, please join us on
Tuesday mornings.
We love serving our awesome God,
Rhoda
Psalm 115:1
Meet Wanda Peabody
I’ve been attending Auburn Grace
for 5 yrs.
I came to Auburn Grace because
I had been here 20 years ago and after
my husband went to be with the Lord, I
came back here and felt right at home.
A Visual Story of
Redemption
One thing I love about Auburn Grace
is Pastor Phil’s messages. I appreciate
his digging and researching to bring out
new understandings of the Bible and I
love Pastor Lorin’s music ministry.
The ministries I'm involved with are
spokesperson for The Encouragers for
Single Women, co-facilitator for Grief
Share with Francis Hale and I love
greeting for Women's Bible Study and
on Sunday mornings.
Stuffing comes next. This is a
difficult job as the batting must fill
each corner and reach top and
bottom evenly. Long, strong arms
are a definite plus when it comes to
doing this job!
I find a lot of joy in harmonizing to
Christian music and playing the piano.
I love meeting with the Women’s
Ministries Support Team. I enjoy meeting with people and getting to know
their story.
By this time one can get the feel of
a cozy, comfortable, beautiful quilt
that will either introduce a child to
Christ or be an encouragement to a
needy child who already loves the
Lord.
If my life was a book the title would
be similar to Barbara Johnson’s title of
one of her books, Life Isn’t What You
Expected So Stick a Geranium in Your
Hat & Be Happy.
Next month we will tell you how the
quilts are completed.
Once Upon a Time there was a timid
woman that the Lord asked to lead in
ways she never dreamed.
Please remember to collect used
stamps for us. Tear off the right
hand top of your envelope that
contains a stamp of any amount
and place it in the receptacle on the
information wall in the main
lobby. Also needed are the Box
Tops for Education which are used
to help purchase playground equipment. Thank you so much!
It’s not fashionable but I keep a
Christmas tree up all year round
decorated for each season.
Website:
www.auburngrace.com
Email:
[email protected]
530-823-8330
PASTOR
Phil Sparling
ASSOCIATE/WORSHIP PASTOR
Lorin Miller
ADMINISTRATIVE PASTOR
Dave Wickstrom
PASTOR OF BODY LIFE
Greg Hummel
STUDENT MINISTRIES PASTOR
Steve West
CHILDREN’S DIRECTOR
Sue Smead
Auburn Grace
Community Church
ELDER BOARD
Tom Bowen, Bob Churchwell,
Lorin Miller, Kent Smead,
Phil Sparling, Hal Wallace
DEACONS:
Greg Hummel - Head Deacon
Steve and Becky Brown
Melanie Felce Al and Pat French
Mike and Lorraine Keeffe
Rod and Donna Lee
Gwen Smith
3126 Olympic Way
MAILING: P.O. Box 6446
Auburn, CA 95604
Summarizing Our
Stewardship
July 2014—June 2015
Budget As of 4/28/15
2014/15 Year-To-Date Total Need
$1,176,863
2014/15 Year-To-Date Total Giving
$1,106,657
Difference: +/- : $ -70,206 / -5.97%
Thank you for your generosity
in the support of God’s work!
“ B u il d ing a f a m il y o f b el i e v e r s t h a t know Christ and make Him known.”
2
11
12
BAPTISMS
8:45 & 10:45 am
SUNDAY SERVICES
COMPASSION SUNDAY
8:45 & 10:45 am
SUNDAY SERVICES
MOTHER'S DAY
BABY DEDICATIONS
8:45 & 10:45 am
SUNDAY SERVICES
11
4
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:15am Baptism Info Class
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
12:30pm Sunday School Teachers'
Team Mtg Lunch
1:45pm Oakwood Village Service
BREAD & CUP
VBS Volunteer Sign-Ups
8:45 & 10:45 am
24 SUNDAY SERVICES 25
2pm Sem. 301 Exploring Grace
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
12:30pm Encouragers for Single
Women Lunch
10am Men's Ministry Activities Team
8:45 & 10:45 am
17 SUNDAY SERVICES 18
10:30am Takin' It To the Streets Sierra Ridge Memory Care
NO YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
10
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
10:30am Children's Baptism Class
3
5pm YAM - Young Adult Ministry
VBS Volunteer Sign-Ups
31
Sun
Office Closed
Mon
9am Men’s Bible Stdy
9am Sewers & Rippers
9am Sewers & Rippers
26
9am Men’s Bible Stdy
9am Sewers & Rippers
19
7pm Prayer Meeting for
Missionaries
9am Sewers & Rippers
12
5
Tue
NO High School Youth Group
NO Jr. High Youth Group
27
5pm MTL Dinner
NO High School Youth Group
NO Jr. High Youth Group
20
5:30pm WNL
5:30pm Jr & Sr. High Leaders Mtg
6:30pm Sr. High Youth Grp
6:30pm Jr. High @ Miyagi's Gym
13
10am Grief Share (Women)
28
10am Grief Share (Women)
21
10am Grief Share (Women)
14
3pm Gathering Inn
10am Grief Share (Women)
5:30pm WNL
5:30pm Jr & Sr. High Leaders
Mtg
6:30pm Sr. High Youth Grp
6:30pm Jr. High @ Miyagi's Gym
\
7
Thu
6
Wed
29
22
15
8
1
Office Closed
Office Closed
Office Closed
Office Closed
Office Closed
Fri
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
30
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
23
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
16
11am Worship Arts Retreat
10:15am Takin’ It to the
Streets-Worship at Auburn
Oaks Care Ctr
7am High School Parking Lot Sale
9
10:45am Women's Tea
9:30am Takin’ It to the Streets
2
Sat
May 2015
Grapevine of Grace
May 2015
Sunday
Service
Times
8:45 AM
Adult Sunday School
Jr. & Sr. High School
Children’s Program
Nursery
10:45 AM
Adult Sunday School
Children’s Program
Nursery
God Brings Life From Death!
I have a confession to make; I have always loved monster movies. Since the time I was young I have been
captivated by Frankenstein and the Werewolf. When
we would visit my grandparents in Southern California
my brother, my uncle, and I would stay up late and stare
at a little black and white TV my uncle had in his room,
watching late night monster movies. We watched many varieties, including Godzilla, Dracula, and The Thing. These classic films made in
the sixties and early seventies became instant favorites. They now look
dorky and simplistic, but as a kid I loved them.
If I had to choose a favorite of all my favorites I think it would be Frankenstein. The whole idea of Dr. Frankenstein robbing graves for body
parts and sewing them all together is rather morbid. Dr. Frankenstein,
using his laboratory to experiment on bringing life from death, was fascinated by the idea of prolonging aliveness. He was desperate to show
how ‘science’ could control the destiny of humanity. As we all know this
experiment went awry. In the movie, Dr. Frankenstein was successful in
bringing life from death, but the new person was not normal and turned
out to be far more dangerous then helpful. In the end of every Frankenstein movie the creature dies. (Except in the old classic where the
Werewolf finds him frozen in a glacier, somehow revives him and befriends him.)
Continued on Page 10
Continued from Page 1