Views from The Ridge 2.26.25
Sunset Ridge is a church that desires to follow Jesus, reach people, and radiate God’s love and hope to all.
Worship
Sunday, March 2, Chapel
9 AM Acapella
11 AM Instrumental
Shazam!
Main Passage: Luke 9:28-36
Children are welcome in the chapel at 9 AM & 11 AM services. Children’s Classes are available at 10:15 and 11 AM.
Discipleship
Sundays
10:15 AM Bible Class & Discipleship for All Ages
Adult Bible Classes: Open to all
Fellowship Hall 1: Bible Study, Jeremiah
Fellowship Hall 2: BEMA podcast discussion group
Women’s Discipleship Group: Studying Luke 9:28-36
Youth Group 7th-12th grade, Room 218, Studying Luke 9:28-36
Roots: Children’s Discipleship through Godly Play
PreK - Kindergarten, Room 102
1st - 2nd Grade, Room 122
3rd - 6th Grade, Room 203
Bible Story Focus this Week: Mark 12:41-44, Luke 21:1-4
Key Verse: Luke 21:2
Tuesdays
Scott Heare’s Office, Studying Jonah 1:1-3
7 AM Men’s Discipleship Group
8:30 AM Men’s Discipleship Group (currently full)
Contact scott@sunset-ridge.org to join a group
Connections
Wednesday, March 5th, 7-8 PM
Join us for our Ash Wednesday Service as we begin the season of Lent with reflection, repentance, and renewal. This special service will include prayer, scripture, and the imposition of ashes, reminding us of our dependence on God and the hope we have in Christ. All are welcome to attend.
Around the Community
Foundation News
The SUNSET RIDGE CHURCH OF CHRIST FOUNDATION is currently accepting nominations for the purpose of electing 4 additional Board members. The nominating committee, comprised of Betty Awbrey, Sean Carlin, and Glenna Miranda, will accept nominations through Wednesday, March 19, 2025.
The ANNUAL MEETING OF THE SUNSET RIDGE CHURCH OF CHRIST FOUNDATION will be held Sunday, March 30, 2025, at 10:00 AM in the Chapel for the purpose of electing 4 new Board members.
Watch for more information on the 2025 SUNSET RIDGE CHURCH OF CHRIST FOUNDATION APPLICATIONS.
Beyond Sunday
Putting the Word into practice this week
Jess Lowry, Executive Director, Sunset Ridge Church of Christ & Sunset Ridge Collective
"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real, you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."
You become. It takes a long time.
As I listened to Scott’s message on Sunday I couldn’t help but think of this excerpt from one of my favorite children’s books, The Velveteen Rabbit.
You see, in the order of the world we live in, arriving looks more polished, more successful, having it all together, perhaps a larger bank account, or a prominent address…there’s a strong emphasis on these and other markers of success that show the world—I’ve arrived, I’ve finally made it!
But Jesus came to flip everything right side up, to reorder the world to wholeness and flourishing…to reorder us to becoming real.
I celebrated my 42nd birthday this past Sunday, aware that this is a privilege not afforded to everyone—42 years of life, and yet I was disquieted by this general feeling of unease and discontentment that has been present for a few weeks now. As I sat quietly in my home office I looked at the shelves of hundreds of books I’ve read and then chastised myself—“you’ve read all of these books and have done all of this personal work and you still can’t figure this out?”.
My eye was drawn to the wall to the right where the Velveteen Rabbit excerpt above hangs.
You become. It takes a long time.
You and I haven’t arrived, because we’re still here with breath in our human lungs. We are becoming. That is the task, each day, and some better than others, we are becoming real. As Scott shared on Sunday, we have an invitation to create a community where we can be broken and show up anyway, a place where we can shed the ridiculous notion that we have to be the hero of the story. A place where we can shed the notion that we have to have it all together feels much closer to the community Jesus created.
The God who makes all things whole, desires to do this good work in each of us. Perhaps wholeness looks a little more like a shabby and worn rabbit, than one that is shiny and new. May we have the courage to continue on the journey of becoming - one beautiful, broken, sacred piece at a time.
Love Jess
Grace & Gratitude
Mary Lee Embry is hospitalized undergoing treatment for an infection.
Congratulations to Michael & Inessa Whitson on the recent birth of their daughter, Victoria Diane, in Las Vegas. The happy grandparents are Cyndi & Terry Whitson.
We express sympathy to Steve Gilbert and his family on the death of his mother, Joyce Gilbert, on February 24th. Visitation will be held in Katy, Texas, on March 1st from 4-6PM at Schmidt Funeral Home (1344 W. Grand Parkway S).
