Matthew 25:36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
I’ve been thinking about this text this week. Looking after sick people, a fulfillment of the Gospel, was done by the Early Church. I have mentioned before how the pagan rulers of Rome noticed the benevolence of the ‘Christ followers’ and tried to get the pagan priests to do the same. With basic care, lives were saved – by Christians – who extended themselves as taught by Jesus.
This ministry to the ill later became the basis for Christianity inventing the hospital systems that we have today. For that matter, it also figured in to the development of the university systems, too.
But, I am interested today in that word “visit”.
I don’t want anyone to get sick by exposing themselves to any virus. Great caution should be exercised and good caregivers, who are trained to do so, should give good care.
But aren’t we all in a sort of ‘prison’? Cut off from many of our social circles and places, we still need contact and ‘visits’ of different sorts. I want to renew my efforts to telephone church members. You may hear from me soon.
Can you help? Are you visiting others? We have a great opportunity to relieve some of the loneliness that is among us. With the Love of Christ in our hearts, we might bring great comfort with a simple phone call, text message, a note in the mail.
And if you would like to send greetings through the newsletter, I would be glad to help with that!
Be Blessed!
Pastor Albert
Luke 19:5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
Church is now open with antivirus measures in place.
Youth Vespers Report: Last Friday Night, Detective Olin Osborne, Jr. led a conversation for our high school youth on the intersection of faith and social justice. Olin shared his experience via a Zoom video call of what it was like to be in the middle of it all as he helped manage the protests in La County. He shared with us his Christian viewpoint and answered the many questions raised by our youth about social justice. The discussion lasted a couple of hours and was a great blessing to all!
Moving forward, we hope to have more youth vespers on the intersection of faith and current topics. This Friday night (7/24), Cheyla Bellamy will be sharing her story of how God led her to serve in the mental health field. She will also answer any questions that our youth have related to maintaining optimal mental health during the pandemic.
If you would like to share with our high school youth as to how God has led you in your life, please reach out to me or Christina Corney so we can schedule you for a Friday night youth vespers conversation. This is an opportunity for our youth to connect with their church family and grow in their faith!
“Early Adventists & Social Justice” Some of our members have watched this video series and recommend it to us. Our founders were quite involved in the great societal questions of their day. There are four parts. This is Part 1:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fEwrS6kPz4
Southern California Conference: “Week of Encouragement” Our Conference (headquarters) is putting together a series of meetings to encourage us in our faith journey. It will also serve to keep us united as a larger church family. As you watch this invitation, I invite you to join me in viewing each meeting:
If you have a blessing to share with the church, please send us your message to include in our next newsletter!
REMINDER:
Sabbath School this quarter we want to brainstorm ideas to be more effective both individually and as a church to share the love of God. Please join us to provide your testimony, experience, and ideas. Join us Sabbaths at 9:40am.
Reach Your Pastor: I am forwarding the church phone (310/541-1819) to my home phone (424/206-2949). You can call my cell phone (626/826-8448), text me, or email me: albertfrederico@gmail.com
This is the perfect time to share more uplifting messages online: if you have any social media accounts, follow and share post, messages, and comments with and from our church accounts on Facebook, Instagram, our youth Instagram, our local conference page. There are many people online who may not come to church, but may see a message that will encourage them to seek Christ.
A healthy body is the foundation for an optimally healthy mind that will also be the foundation for an optimally healthy spirituality. And optimal health is the greatest protection against COVID-19, which, unfortunately, is still out there. What is and how we can have this optimal health is a quest we will always be on in this world of imperfect understanding, so here are some new videos for you to keep learning from! Watch the latest videos from Modern Manna's online Health and Healing Crusade!
Online Giving: did you know you can return your tithes and offerings online? Adventist Giving enables us to return our tithes and offerings online easily.Go to Adventist Giving
Luke 24:29 But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them.
