Views from The Ridge 8.6.25
Sunset Ridge is a church that desires to follow Jesus, reach people, and radiate God’s love and hope to all.
Worship
Sunday
9 AM, Chapel, Acapella
11 AM, Sanctuary, Instrumental
Romans 12:1-2
We are going through the lectionary this summer.
Watch previous sermons here.
Discipleship
Sundays, 10:15 AM, Bible Class & Discipleship for All Ages
Studying Romans 12:1-2
Fellowship Hall
Adult Bible Class: Open to all
BEMA Podcast Discussion group
Chapel Classroom, Discipleship Group
Room 218, Youth Group, 7th-12th grade
Roots: Children’s Discipleship through Godly Play
Bible Story Focus this Week: Matt 3:13-16
Key Verse: John 8:12
Room 102, PreK - Kindergarten
Room 122, 1st - 2nd Grade
Room 203, 3rd - 6th Grade
Tuesdays, 7 AM & 9 AM, Men’s Discipleship
Scott Heare’s Office, Limited spaces; Contact Scott to join a group.
Wednesdays, 6 PM - 7:30 PM, High School Tableship & Study Group
Chapel Classroom, Contact Den to join this group, open to 9th-12th Grade
Connections
Non-perishable food drive on Sunday, August 10th.
Our goal is to have our community come together on a regular basis to help us maintain a working inventory of shelf-stable food, and other essentials that will bless those in our neighborhood in need.
Through our "Fill the Fellowship Hall” kick-off, we hope to begin a working inventory that our Church Community can use to continually bless our neighborhood.
If you have any questions about this upcoming food drive, please don’t hesitate to contact Kyle Fry or Den Slater, our Pastor of Belonging.
This Week
Thursday, August 7th, 5 PM - 9 PM, Parents’ Night Out
Thursday, August 7th, 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM, Community Fitness with Lauren, Charis Park
August 9th, Second Saturday, Charis Park
8 AM - 1 PM, One Another Coffee
8 AM - 12 PM, Sunset Ridge Farmers Market
8 AM - 12 PM, Kids’ Market
9 AM, Yoga with NYX Wellness
9:30 AM, Storytime with Miss Anastasia
August 10th, Milestone Sunday
We will have a special time during the 11AM service to recognize our children who are transitioning into elementary school (incoming K), middle school (6th), high school (9th), senior year (12th), and anyone starting college. These groups will all receive a special blessing.
August 10th, Food Drive Collection
Coming Up…
August 16th, 10 AM - 12 PM, Soap Making with Sarah from Enchanted Acres
August 31st, Promotion Day
Every Wednesday, 11 AM - 1:30 PM, Open Studio Painting
Every Thursday, 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM, Community Fitness with Lauren, Charis Park
Every Saturday, Sunset Ridge Farmers Market, Charis Park
Every Sunday, Worship at 9 AM and 11 AM
Beyond Sunday
Living a Beautiful Life
Den Slater, Pastoral of Belonging, Sunset Ridge Church of Christ
In Sunday’s sermon, Scott spoke about the man who demanded that Christ tell his brother to share an inheritance. The man’s request prompted Jesus to tell the story of a farmer who hoarded food in his barns (Luke 12:13-21). Jesus warns that greed (or covetousness in some translations) is something destructive—something from which we must guard our hearts. From the parable, we see greed for food, but for many of us, our thoughts probably turned to money. Food and money, of course, are not the true problems. The issue is our desire to live lives that are free of lack, and I think that if we have families, we don’t want our family members to live in a state of lack either. We want “beautiful lives” for ourselves and for our loved ones.
If we struggle with greed, perhaps we might benefit from realigning our perspectives about what qualifies as a beautiful life. God can certainly help us out with a realignment. The psalmist reminds us “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23), and in Dallas Willard’s book, Hearing God, he suggests that the psalmist speaks for all of us because we all long to feel the embrace of the caring shepherd who meets all of our needs. Our faith in God’s love transforms our “fear of lack” into thankfulness for what has already been given and an appreciation for the overflow of God’s goodness. God’s goodness offers a beautiful life—one filled with love and community.
Discovering God’s beauty ultimately changes our perspectives on what we desire. It may even change how we see beauty in the world. I continue to find pleasure in music, art, architecture, and gardens, but I’ve also come to appreciate that such joy originates in God. We can only fully appreciate beauty when God reveals it to us, and we don’t need to covet it because God will provide more than enough to sustain us. As gratitude replaces greed, we also find ourselves encouraged to live in an ongoing state of compassion. It is the reason so many of us desire to cultivate justice for all people…so that everyone has enough. When we care for the needs of others, we find our “fear of lack” eradicated. Love deals a fatal blow to greed because our underlying fears succumb to God’s infinite beauty––and that is the only way to live a truly beautiful life.
Praises
A big thank you goes out to the teens from our high school group who helped distribute backpacks and sort clothing donations at CAM last week!
Prayers of the People
Please join us in honoring the life and legacy of Kathy George, Sunday, August 31st. We will gather to celebrate her memory, reflect on the joy she brought into our lives, and give thanks for her many years of devoted marriage to her loving husband. There will be a service in the Chapel at 1:30 PM, followed by a reception in the Fellowship Hall.
