Rev. Dr. Julie Roberts-Fronk,
Pastor
Rev. Mike Fronk,
Pastor
The Caller
May 14, 2019
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Carving Out Time: Entering the Holy
Time flies; I feel it more than ever as I have gotten older. When I was a kid, days, weeks and months seemed to last forever. The school year was endless; for that matter the school day was endless. The outside world was always calling, Mr. Hoff would have to jolt me back from my stage of day dreaming to the matters at hand. Even Summer vacation was too long, I would exhaust the list of things I wanted to do within the first few weeks and then I was bugging my parents for things to do. I had to be careful in asking my mom and dad about this because they would assign me something, they wanted to have done rather than something I wanted to do.
That time keeping left me years ago and the world sped up. Now I live in the land of endless lists. There is no way that I have enough time to knock out what I have set before me, there just isn’t enough time. This is not unique to me, most ever adult I know lives in a world that is flying by. Our commitments, wants, and desires far outstrip the time we have been allotted. What is there to do? Do we shrug it off, it will never be any better so solder on.
Every once in awhile I do remember that Jesus did say that he came to give us abundant living. When we consider abundant living, we have to confess that it lies outside the lists that we create for ourselves. There isn’t a list that ends with abundant living, rather abundant living is an attitude we bring to the tasks we do. It’s not easy but we have the ability to shape the world around us through our spiritual life. When we allow our faith to aid us in driving our life, we hold the potential slowing our lives down enough to see what God is doing in and with us.
Remember God doesn’t count time like us, we have the ability to step into God’s time whenever we choose.
Here are a few pastoral suggestions on how one can enter God’s time:
- First off don’t feel guilty that you’re getting things done, remember this is not on the list. These are exercises to free yourself from time.
- Take a short walk and enjoy the sights and sounds around you.
- Sit in a quiet place and consider how you made this space holy.
- Call a friend or better yet, have a meal with someone who brings joy to your life and hold that holy space.
We hold within ourselves God’s eternal presence, too often however, our own sense of the holy gets pushed into the back ground of living. I hope we all can find it within ourselves to take a moment and step out of our time and into God’s to experience a sense of the holy.
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Matthew chapter 5 begins, “When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying…” The Sermon on the Mount encompasses three chapters in the Gospel of Matthew: chapters 5 through 7.
Over the course of the next 12 weeks we are going to delve into the beginning of the Sermon of Mount: The Beatitudes. The blessings that are given in the Beatitudes were counter-cultural in Jesus’ day and have continued to challenge us present day listeners to live into a different reality. Each week the sermon will center on each of the sayings. Each verse begins with the pronouncement of “Blessed are”, but why are they blessed? In the world of Jesus and in ours the meek, the poor, the mourning, and the persecuted, are not groups one would think of as blessed. Why this choice of words? They are dissident to our ears; are we hearing Jesus right?
The Beatitudes are expansive statements; they cause wonder, soul searching, and at their deepest level a change in perspective and living. They will be our opportunity to walk Jesus as he offers a new perspective on the realm of God.
- May 5: Matthew 5:1-2 - Introduction to he Beatitudes (Listen Online)
- May 12: Matthew 5:3 - The Poor in Spirit (Listen Online)
- May 19: Matthew 5:4 - Those Who Mourn
- May 26: Matthew 5:5 - The Meek
- June 2: Matthew 5:6 - Hunger and thirst for righteousness
- June 9: Pentecost
- June 16: Matthew 5:7 - The Merciful
- June 23: Matthew 5:8 - Pure in Heart
- June 30: Matthew 5:9 - The Peacemakers
- July 7: Matthew 5:10 - Persecuted for Righteousness
- July 14: Matthew 5:11-12 - Blessed are You
- July 21: Matthew 5;13-16 - Salt and Light
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What Can I Recycle?
As part of the mission of First Christian Church Pomona, we donate to Heifer International. Part of the benefits we recieve is a subscription to WorldArk, a magazine that informs us of what HI is doing accross the world. We found a particular article interesting that we believe would be a useful reminder to all of us about what is recyclable and what is not. Take a look below and be informed.
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Calendar for May 2019
Click on button below to visit our calendar page at our website. Keep up to date with what is going on at First Christ Church of Pomona.
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Birthdays
- 3rd ~ Keith Fisher
- 4th ~ Kristi Teeple & Brian Thies
- 8th ~ Nevaeh Valdez
- 9th ~ Michael Godfrey
- 12th ~ Mark Gonzalez
- 21st ~ Virginia Galleano
- 26th ~ Rosanne Montoya, Ken Mock, & Michele Wiley
- 28th ~ Chris Eckeard & Mike Fronk
- 31st ~ Ross Church
If someone should be added to this list, please let the churc
h office know at
[email protected]
. We'd love to wish you a happy anniversa
ry here in The Caller! If you would like to have your anniversary listed, contact the church office at
[email protected]
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CELEBRATIONS AND PRAYER CONCERNS
We join together in prayer for our community and our world.
Please let us know on your yellow card if you would like to add someone to the list or if someone should be removed. We review the list quarterly and will contact you if it is unclear if someone you listed should stay on the list. Please let us know if someone has inadvertently been removed.
HOMEBOUND & CONVALESCING
- Ernest & Janice Newborn
- Bob & Jackie McCallister
ONGOING PRAYERS
- Martin Mireles
- Jody Heatherly
- Theresa Kovacs
- Marie Tillinger
- Carolyn McKee
- Doug, Heather, Ryann, Makaela & Thomas Jolly
- Annette Anderson
- Jan Akin
- Martha Gorsuch
- Rick Larson
- Bret Wiley
- Sandra Strother
- Markel McMellon
- Marcy Morales
- Carey Smith
- Nelson Mann
- Kovacs Family
- Ross Family
- Chris & Kim Greeley
- Laura Zivnak
- Gary Paulson
- Harry Pearson
- Jose Mendiola
- Lorraine Rogers
- Paris Reed
- Werner Tillinger
- Evelyn Lepire & Family
- The Charlie Weaver Family
- Linda Doss & Family
- Jill Hunt
- Abbott Family
- Sam Harvey
- Cynthia Spellacy
God never gives us discernment in order that we may criticize, but that we may intercede. — Oswald Chambers
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Have you visited our sermons page? Check here to listen to past sermons from pastors, guest speakers, etc. Reflect, and be blessed.
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Have you visited our blog page? Check here for Julie's Jar, Left Hand Remarks, and other postings from First Christian Church of Pomona.
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About
First Christian Church Pomona
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We are an active, informed, progressive Christian community worshipping and serving in Pomona, CA. Our congregation is a part of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Denomination.
All are welcome to worship, take Communion and serve the world with us.
“We are Disciples of Christ, a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world. As part of the one body of Christ we welcome all to the Lord’s Table as God has welcomed us.”
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Join Us for
Bible Study:
9am Sunday
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Join Us for
Worship:
10am Sunday
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