Reclaiming our St. John’s Community
COVID has been hard on community. This has been true for families, for friends, and for the city in which we live. It has also been hard on our congregation as a community. For months, we could not worship together, and some are still not ready to resume in-person gathering. So many activities that have been part of our normal congregational life had to be put aside in the interest of safety and health.
It’s time to reclaim who we are as the community of God’s people. It’s time to reboot our identity as members of a church, branches on a vine, sheep of a flock, stones in a building, and parts of a body.
The worship series “Better Together” focuses on what it means to be a congregation. We will be looking at the Biblical metaphors and images for the local church, and seeking to apply these truths to our lives, both individually and as a congregation. Along the way, we will be inviting your participation in activities and events designed to bring us together as church, so that we can rediscover the Biblical truth that as the people of God, we are truly “better together.”
Date | Title | Focus |
August 22 | Reclaiming Community | The Christian Faith is designed to be lived in community. Focus on the “one another” words in scripture and being mirror of the community of God, the Trinity. |
August 29 | Beloved Bride | Focusing on the image of the church as the bride of Christ. The church is the beloved of the bridegroom for whom He suffered and died. Do we look at each other as the beloved of God? |
September 5 | Caring Family | We are a family. The Trinity uses family language. Our relationship with God is in familial terms. This week will emphasize caring for each other. We will especially celebrate our Stephen Ministry and Biblical Counseling Ministry this Sunday, as well as other ways we support and care for each other |
September 12 | Listening Flock | We are the sheep that hear the Shepherd’s voice. This week will focus on being fed by the Shepherd. The blessing of feeding on the Word together. We will be resuming Sunday Morning Bible Class this week, as well as training for new small group leaders on using Right Now Media video resources for small groups |
September 19 | Serving Body | We are uniquely gifted and brought together as one body to serve. This week will focus on serving in and through the congregation. We will highlight ways of serving together as the body of Christ and look forward to a ministry fair on October 3. |
September 26 | People on Mission | The church exists on earth for the sake of God’s mission. We are called to be workers for the harvest, sent by Christ into the mission field of our daily lives. Our guest preacher this Sunday is Rev. Joe Robb, California-Nevada-Hawaii District Assistant to the President for Missions. |
October 3 | Worshiping Community | The end goal of the mission is worship. We will focus on the importance of worship and what happens when we come together. We will introduce ways that we will be enhancing worship as we move forward. |