Views from The Ridge 4.15.26
Sunset Ridge is a church that desires to follow Jesus, reach people, and radiate God’s love and hope to all.
This Week’s Scripture: Luke 24:13–35
Watch previous sermons here.
Wednesdays
You’re invited to Wednesday Nights at Sunset Ridge Church. Join us for a community supper at 6:00 PM in the Fellowship Hall, followed by programming for children and high school students and a communal Scripture study for adults beginning at 6:30 PM. We wrap up by 8:00 PM. Come be part of our midweek rhythm. Contact Den with questions. April 29th will be our last community supper for spring.
Sundays
Worship
9 AM, Chapel, Acapella
11 AM, Sanctuary, Instrumental
10:15 AM, Bible Class & Discipleship for All Ages
Fellowship Hall
Between the Words: A gathering between our community’s two worship times where we unfold the facets of weekly Scripture together. Join us from 10:15 - 10:45 each Sunday in the Fellowship Hall. Each week stands on its own; come as you’re able. Adults and teens welcome.
BEMA Podcast Discussion group
Room 220
BOYS 5th - 7th Grade, Formation Study w/ Bryan Wolfe
GIRLS 5th - 7th Grade, Formation Study w/ Den Slater
Roots: Children’s Discipleship through Godly Play
Bible Story Focus this Week: On the Road to Emmaus
Key Verse: Luke 24:13-35
Room 102, PreK - Kindergarten
Room 122, 1st - 2nd Grade
Room 209, 3rd - 4th Grade
Sunday Setlists
What if worship started before Sunday morning? Listening to these songs during the week can help build familiarity and allow the words to begin forming our hearts before we sing them together.
This Week’s Setlist
All 2026 Songs
Community Connections
Join Us for a Baby Celebration!
The shepherds of our church family are delighted to host a Baby Celebration honoring three precious new arrivals—Baby Sample, Margot Villareal, and Baby Gohlke! Come shower these families with love and well wishes as we celebrate the beautiful gift of new life.
Join us Sunday, May 3rd at 12:30 PM at Charis Park. Registries are available at Babylist.com under Emily & Chris Gohlke, Sammie & Zach Sample, and Sarah & Jacob Villareal.
Celebrating Our High School Seniors
Senior Recognition Sunday is a meaningful moment in the life of Sunset Ridge Church, where we pause to honor and bless our graduating seniors as they step into what’s next. We believe this season matters, not just as a milestone, but as a sacred transition where identity, purpose, and belonging are being shaped in deep ways. By surrounding our seniors with encouragement, prayer, and community, we are reminding them that they are deeply known and sent with purpose. Please join us at the 11AM service on Sunday, April 26 to celebrate our 3 seniors: Kendall Barker, Ethan Heare, and Luca Lowry.
Sunset Ridge Church of Christ Foundation
Welcome to Our New Foundation Board Member
Congratulations to Randy Rutland, our newly appointed Sunset Ridge Church of Christ Foundation board member!
Grant Applications Now Open
The Foundation funds Missions, Education, and Benevolence Ministries beyond regular church operations. Applications are due by Thursday, April 30, 2026. Pick up a 2026 application in the church office.
Upcoming Community Events
Every Saturday, 9 AM - 1 PM, Sunset Ridge Farmers Market, Charis Park
Saturday, April 18, 9 AM - 1 PM, Garden Work Day, Charis Park
Friday, April 24, Office closed for Battle of Flowers
Sunday, April 26, 11 AM Service, Senior Recognition Sunday
Saturday, May 9, 8 AM - 1 PMOne Another Coffee Birthday Celebration
Beyond Sunday
Until I Held Him
Den Slater, Pastor of Belonging and Formation, Sunset Ridge Church
When my son was born, things didn’t unfold the way I expected. I had a reaction to the surgery medication, and instead of staying with my little one, I was moved alone to another room for additional care. My husband was able to stay with our boy. He held him and cuddled him as I was trying to recover. When I was stabilized, Todd was the first to tell me how beautiful Colton was. I heard the words, and I believed him, but I had not seen Colton for myself. There was a kind of ache in that space—a sadness and a growing eagerness to see with my own eyes.
I wonder if that is something like what Thomas felt when the other disciples told him they had seen the risen Jesus (John 20:24–25). They had already witnessed something world-changing. Jesus is alive! But Thomas was not there, so he must struggle with both distance and a deep longing to see for himself. Maybe that’s why Jesus comes again into the same room with the same people present. He comes close to Thomas and meets him exactly where he is. The distance is removed, and Thomas is invited to fully encounter the presence of Jesus.
There’s a gentleness that permeates the scene, but poor Thomas gets labeled as “Doubting Thomas” in our church vocabulary. That moniker is a bit unfair because Thomas was not unique in his disbelief; he was simply the last of the disciples to see the risen Christ for himself. Mark’s gospel tells us that the disciples did not believe the testimony of those who had already seen Jesus—not the women who first bore witness, nor the others who encountered him along the road (Mark 16:11–13). Thomas, then, is not the only disciple to experience doubt, but he is the one to whom Jesus says, “You have believed because you have seen me. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29). With that, Christ’s blessing widens, reaching beyond the room and the moment.
The idea of credible testimony begins to take on new weight. As a 21st-century community, that matters to us. The Spirit bears witness to the truth of the gospel, but our faith rarely moves in straight lines, and it certainly doesn’t arrive fully formed. It grows, shaped over time by questions and wonder. There are people among us who believe with clarity and confidence; there are others who are still unsure of what they hold. Perhaps many of us live somewhere in between, carrying both trust and doubt at the same time.
And yet, we are here together. We all want to believe.
I think back to that moment when Todd told me about Colton. My sweet husband was believable. I trusted him. And still, I wasn’t living in the same truth that Todd was living in. I wasn’t there yet. I needed more.
Maybe that almost feels like listening to the resurrection accounts. We hear the stories, and we trust the apostles who have handed them down to us. But still, something in us longs for our own encounter.
What a gift that Jesus is not distant from that place. He meets Thomas there. He meets the other disciples there. And he meets us there, too. We are invited to bring our whole selves to Christ—our confidence, our questions, our clarity, and our longing. The risen Christ meets us in all of it, calling us forward one step at a time. As a community of faith and wonder, we can learn to step together.
Prayers of the People
Bethany Hill is now home following knee replacement surgery. Please pray for a speedy recovery.
