FINISH LINES AND THE STARTING GUN

May 29, 2015
Volume 49, Issue 6
Garden Grove Church of the Nazarene
13411 Euclid Street Garden Grove CA 92843
(714) 534-5770 church-office@ggnaz.org www.ggnaz.org
F INISH L INES
AND THE
June is a month of
a lot of “events.”
For children, this is
the month they
have been eagerly
awaiting; the time for school to
be out for summer! Some students graduate from their current
school and move to a new school
or the next phase of their life. It’s
traditionally a popular month to
get married so there are ceremonies and anniversaries. In my
own little family we mix in a couple of birthdays. (One from a person who is enjoying getting older
and one who may not be as excited!) In my childhood, June was
the month where we looked forward to “warm” weather.
But school being out can quickly
transfer into “I’m bored!” Graduations turn into the stress of
“what’s next?” Wedding ceremonies turn into marriages that require work to flourish. Birthdays
become reminders of the passing
of time, the responsibilities of
growing older and the aches and
pains of growing even older.
When I grew up, warmer weather
meant that the mosquitos would
soon be out and if you listened
carefully enough you could hear
S TARTING G UN
them praying. They would
thank God for the food they
are about to eat before they
feasted on you for dinner.
Life’s milestones are simultaneously finish lines and the
starting gun!
In the scripture there came a
time when Moses needed to
pass on his leadership of the
people of Israel before they
were to enter the Promised
Land. When he did, he gave
this charge before the people
to their next leader, Joshua:
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you;
he will never leave you nor
forsake you. Do not be afraid;
do not be discouraged."
Deuteronomy 31:8
The writer of Hebrews reminded us of that promise
when he wrote, “Never will I
leave you; never will I forsake
you."
Hebrews 13:5b
I challenge you to remind
yourself and remind each
other that the Lord is with
you. You don’t have to feel it,
you don’t have to have abso-
lute certainty about it and you
certainly don’t have to understand it. God desires to have a
relationship with us! If you decide to forget about God, he
won’t forget about you. If you
run from Him, he doesn’t run
from you. Even if you don’t believe in Him, He believes in you.
Hopefully you’re not running
from a relationship with God;
and if you’re reading this that’s
probably not you. But you still
need reassurance from time to
time. And, other people around
you need that same reassurance. We can read it from the
scripture, we can hear it from a
pastor or a teacher but it often
is mostly loudly “heard” from a
friend. Be that friend to someone!
GGNAZ has an amazing summer planned and believe it or
not plans are being made for
the fall already! The life of the
church doesn’t take the summer off; so stick around!
Encourage someone!
GGN AZ M EMBERSHIP C LASS
On Wednesdays June 3 and
June 10 Pastor Dan will teach
a two part Membership Class
during the Bible Study hour
(7:00 - 8:15 p.m.) for
anyone interested in becoming
a member of our church. We
would love to have you there,
even if you just want to know
more about how our church
operates. Membership is
open to all ages (but anyone
17 and under
needs the
permission
of their
parent or
guardian).
Celebration of Freedom and
Picnic on the Grounds
Come to our
Combined Celebration of Freedom Worship
Service on June
28 then stay for our annual
potluck “Picnic on the
Grounds.” This is always a
great time of food, fellowship
and fun.
The church will supply hamburgers, hotdogs, buns, condiments, sodas and coffee.
own lawn
chair /chairs to
sit in.
Our congregations are being
asked to supply side dishes,
salads, fruit and desserts.
Bring enough for your family
and plenty to share with others. Also, if you can, bring your
Mark the date
on your calendar and let’s have a wonderful
time together. This is a great
day to invite someone to come
to church with you!
G G N AZ F I R W O R K S S T A N D AN D J U L Y 4 T H A C T I VI T I E S
ITS THAT TIME AGAIN!
W N
A
H
W
C
G !!!
GGNaz is having a fireworks
stand to support our Youth
Camps, Children’ s Camps,
and our Church Ministries. If
you are willing, and able, to
help work the fireworks stand,
please contact Jason Kindell
either through the church office, his cell phone, or before or
after Church services. You
must be 18 years old to actually work with the fireworks in
any capacity but teens and kids
can help in other ways.
GGNaz Fireworks Stand
This year we will be offering:

July 1 - We Pay the Tax!

July 2 and 3 - Drawing for a
Bicycle!

July 4 - Drawing for a
Large Assortment of Fireworks!
Raffle Tickets will be sold for
these drawings, or you can receive a raffle ticket with every
purchase of $10 dollars or
more.
• Military & Veterans Discount!
In honor of our military, all U.S.
military service members and
U.S. military veterans will receive 20% off (with proof of
service). This offer may not be
combined with other discounts.
4TH OF JULY
A
B
C
P
“B B
/A N
”
GGNaz will be having our 2nd
“All Church Block Party / AllNighter.”
BOARD M EETINGS - JUNE 2 0 1 5
Bring your own
food, beverages,
lawn chairs,
and/or blanket. Also, if you
would like– bring or purchase
your “SAFE AND SANE” fireworks. We will have a designated area to set off fireworks as
well as a designated area to
watch fireworks.
Also, if you have a trailer, RV
or tent– feel free to bring them
with you as we will have designated areas for overnight
camping.
NOTE: Due to state laws and
safety, illegal fireworks are not
permitted or tolerated in the
city of Garden Grove. Possession or lighting off of illegal
fireworks on campus will result
in being asked to leave the
campus immediately.
WORSHIP M INISTRIES
Church Board - Tuesday, June 9 at 7:00 p.m.
Discipleship Board - Thursday, June 18 at 6:30 p.m.
Both of these boards meet in the fellowship hall. If you
are on one of them, please call the church office before 3:00 p.m. that day, if you will be unable to attend
your meeting.
Church Office: (714) 534-5770
If you are interested in
participating on the
Praise Team or assisting in the sound booth please
contact Michelle Ruth.
Church Email: church-office@ggnaz.org
STAFF AND MINISTRY LEADERS
L EARN, SHARE, C ONNECT
SUNDAY S CHOOL AND SMALL GROUPS
S
9:00 . .
Children’s and youth classes are grouped by age or
school grade. Nursery—
grade 2 meet downstairs;
grades 3—6 meet in the Children’s Center. Grades 7—12
are in the Youth Center. Ask
a greeter where your child’s
group meets. Our Children’s
Center and Youth Center
are upstairs (above the
fellowship hall).
Adults:
College & Career meet
above the fellowship hall—
last room on the west side.
The Friendship Class which
uses the Nazarene curriculum
and The Books of the Bible
Class meet in the fellowship hall.
T
7:00 . .
Champions! Men’s Life Group
Meets upstairs, above the
fellowship hall (more information on page 6).
W
7:00 . .
Adult Bible Study led by
Pastor Dan meets in the fellowship hall. College/Career
meets above the fellowship
hall on the west end.
Teens meet with Pastor
Gina in the youth center.
Rev. Dan Keeton - Lead Pastor
(pastordan@ggnaz.org)
Pastor Tony Falealili
The Huddle Pastor
Pastor Maged
Interim Arabic Pastor
Rev. Noé and Sherly Guevara
Hispanic Pastors
Pastor Gina Anson - Youth Ministries
(pastorginaanson@yahoo.com)
Pat McHargue - Children's
Ministries
(pat4kids@ggnaz.org)
Debbie Kindell - Office Manager
(church-office@ggnaz.org)
Michelle Ruth - Women’s Ministries
and Worship Ministries
(women@ggnaz.org)
C HILDREN’ S M INISTRIES
Sunday School
Join us for Sunday
School Sunday mornings at 9:00. Donna Alves
teaches the younger set, KGrade 2; she also teaches the
preschoolers during church
time. Pastor Pat teaches
Grades 3-6 in the upstairs Children’s Center.
Caravan
Our Caravan season is coming
to a end for the year. Our closing dinner and awards ceremony will be Sunday, June 14 at
5:00 p.m.
Kids’ Kamp
Anaheim District Kids’ Kamp
will be held July 6-10, 2015.
Cost is $305. Registrations are
due to Pastor Pat by June 7.
We need help with transportation, and prayer warriors for our
kids and the camp. Parents can
help earn camp scholarships
by working our fireworks
booth in July. If you can help
sponsor a child financially
and/or in prayer, contact Pastor Pat.
Vacation Bible School
VBS will be held August 3-7,
from 6:30-8:30 p.m. This is a
terrific opportunity to have a
positive impact on our community and in the lives of our
children and their families.
Our theme this year is
Hometown Nazareth. We will
transport kids back to Nazareth where they'll learn
firsthand what it was like
when Jesus was a kid.
We need help in set design/
construction, teachers, crafts,
games, snacks, photography,
registration. Come join the
fun! Contact Pastor Pat for
information or to sign up.
Church Office: (714) 534-5770
Pat’s Thoughts
The school year is wrapping
up, and thoughts of summer
are with us. Time for lazy
days, loose schedules (?), going swimming, cold watermelon, grilled corn and summer
fun. We also have great opportunities to invite friends to
church and fun events. Pray
for our kids as they go to Kids’
Kamp. This can be a tremendous time of growth and
learning experiences. Pray for
our camp staff also. You can
get involved in Vacation Bible
School. You can be a part of
the fun, too! We pray that we
can work together to allow
God’s Word to
come to life like
never before…
touching lives,
changing hearts,
and drawing kids
and adults closer
to Christ.
Church Email: church-office@ggnaz.org
GGN AZ YOUTH MINISTRIES
"For I know the
plans I have for
you," declares the
LORD, "plans to
prosper and not
harm you, plans to give you
hope and a future."
heart. We have to be open to
Him in order to find Him.
Third, no matter how long it
has been since you have experienced God's presence, He
wants to have a relationship
with you. Seventy years is a
Jeremiah 29:11 long time to be separated from
God's promise and presence.
This is a very popular verse,
God is always faithful though.
especially around graduations. Even during the time of exile,
The problem is, most people do God still spoke to people in exile
not read the verses before or
(Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach,
after to understand the full con- Abednego, and some of the
text. This verse is in a letter to
minor Prophets to name a
exiles. It comes right after God few). No matter what is going
tells them they will be brought
on in your life, or what will hapback to the Promise Land after pen in the future, remember
seventy years in Babylon. This that God wants a relationship
verse doesn't end the passage with you. Continue to search
either. The passage goes on
for God though prayer, reading
with (12) "'Then you will call up- His Word, talking to other beon me and come and pray to
lievers and getting involved
me, and I will listen to you. (13) where God's people are reachYou will seek me and find me
ing out to our communities.
when you seek me with all your
Enjoy this summer, but also
heart. (14) I will be found by
search with all your heart for
you,' declares the Lord." This
God and where He is working.
passage goes on to tell them
they will return from exile. I am
J
pretty sure that very few people
Graduation Sunday: June 14
reading this have been exiled,
but we still need to recognize
We will recognize those who
what this passage means for us. have completed High School, a
College degree and those beFirst, God has a plan for your
life and he will never leave you. ing promoted form Jr. High
Even in the difficult times of life, School during Morning Service.
God is with you. Whether those We will have a cake and punch
difficult times are because of the reception in the fellowship hall
actions of someone else or be- after the sermon has finished.
cause of our own actions, God
Movie Days: June 18 and 25
has hope and a future for you.
We will have movie days at the
Second, when we seek and
church. The first movie will
pray to God we will find Him.
start at 11:00 a.m., the second
God is always with us, but if we movie will start between 2:30are not looking for Him we are
3:00 p.m. and finishing by 5:00
not going to see Him in our
p.m. We will have a break for
lives. This passage says "when lunch and pass out fliers for
you seek me with all your heart, our church fireworks booth beI will be found by you." Our retween the movies. Bring your
lationship with God is about our lunch or bring money to get
Church Office: (714) 534-5770
lunch at Subway. Popcorn and
punch will be provided, bring
any additional movie snacks
you want to share.
Teen Camps
July 20—24
If you plan to go to camp, get
your camp packet from Pastor
Gina; fill it out and turn it back in
as soon as possible.
Martin Salisbury ................... 01
Maria Gamez ....................... 02
John Johnson ...................... 06
Conny Craig ......................... 07
Kenzie Nguyen .................... 08
Bob Gibbs ............................ 09
Nick Keeton ......................... 09
Becca Keeton ...................... 12
Justen Ramage ................... 12
Marilyn Cheetham ............... 14
Jayden Galloway ................. 14
Dreanna Hilton ..................... 15
Trudy Lewis ......................... 15
Daniel Nessaouni ................ 16
Dennis Harmon .................... 17
Arlene Sado ......................... 18
Kassandra Vargas ............... 23
Donna Alves ........................ 25
John Erhart .......................... 25
Ahzira Faletoi ....................... 25
Santos Havier Zeldon Ruiz .. 25
Margaret Puentes ................ 27
Aiden Amerson .................... 28
Roger Asiata ........................ 28
Harry Brown ......................... 29
Bob & Eileen Gibbs ........... 06
Jack & Texie Tisor .............. 18
Rick & Michelle Ruth .......... 22
Church Email: church-office@ggnaz.org
WOMEN’ S M INISTRIES
God’s Standards
In God’s kingdom,
comparisons are
not allowed. Women make a
terrible mistake comparing.
God doesn’t have a standard
by which He measures us
against each other. We do that.
His standard is far higher. Holy
God measures each of us
against His Son, Jesus. That
should change your focus. God
will not ask us if we wear specific clothing labels. He will
want to know if we are clothed
in Chris Jesus.
The biblical truth is that each
woman of God is uniquely cre-
ated and gifted for the purpose
of bringing glory to God. This
sets us apart from the world. We
don’t take our standard from the
world’s fashion designers. We
take our standard from the Master Designer!
- Esther Burroughs,
Splash the Living Water
Craft Days
June 27 ...... 10 a.m. — 4 p.m.
July 25 ...... 10 a.m. — 4 p.m.
If you want to work on crafts that
you have in progress, start a
new project, learn a craft or just
come and fellowship then this is
where you want to be. Bring
snacks to share. Any questions please see/contact
Michelle Ruth.
Ladies Luncheon
Thanks to all the people who
donated gifts for the door
prizes, men who served
lunch and the committee for
their hard work in putting together the luncheon. A great
time was had by all. And remember, God always “Finds
the Beauty in our Brokenness!”
N M I ( N AZARENE M ISSIONS
WMB! World
Mission Broadcast
One of the best
ways for getting the gospel to
people in remote, isolated, or
captive areas, WMB outreach
covers radio, TV, and all computer type messages. For example, in the Middle East,
viewers of Ayman Kafrouny's
television programs, which air
on Arabic MTV, are hearing the
good News and are finding
their way to local Nazarene
churches to learn more about
Jesus. Here in America, a Hindu radio program in Northern
California is the catalyst for a
new church plant. In Ukraine,
broadcasters are developing
Web-based video programs
because the government is not
renewing airtime licenses for
Russian Christian stations.
WMB's Russian program will
be produced from Ukraine in
the Russian language. These
are just a taste of what the
Lord is doing through WMB.
There is now a revolutionary
"Back Pack Studio" which is a
literal recording/broadcast
studio all housed in a backpack. Throughout the month
of June we will be giving you
more information on some of
the exciting things happening
through this ministry.
Our New LINKS Missionary
Our LINKS (Loving, Interested, Nazarenes, Knowing, and
Sharing) missionary, Paul
Hetrick Sr., states, “My call to
missions came during my
second pastorate, Providence, Rhode Island. I had a
number of young people in
our congregation and I earnestly prayed for the Lord to
call some of them into the
missionary work. Within my
heart, there seemed to be a
sweet, loving, gentle voice
that said, ‘Why don't you offer
Church Office: (714) 534-5770
yourself for the service?’ I
asked the Lord to please let
Mae, my dear wife, bring the
subject up if this was his voice
working in my heart. I had not
shared with her anything that
was taking place in my heart.
That evening she looked at
me and said, ‘Honey, what do
you say, we go to Africa as
missionaries?’ God had given
me the assurance I had
sought.” Paul is now 98,
wheelchair bound, but still
ministering at the beautiful
Atherton Baptist Home in Alhambra, CA. Please keep
Paul Hetrick in your prayers.
It's an exciting time to be a
part of the Lords Great Commission, both here at home
and all around this beautiful
planet.
In His Love,
Deborah Johnson
Church Email: church-office@ggnaz.org
OUR REGULAR WEEKLY SCHEDULE
C HAMPIONS!
M ENS’ L IFE G ROUP
Sunday
Hispanic Prayer ......... 7:30 p.m.
Sunday School .......... 9:00 a.m.
Hispanic Study .......... 9:00 a.m. Wednesday
Morning Worship ..... 10:00 a.m. Adult Bible Study ....... 7:00 p.m.
Hispanic Worship ... 10:00 a.m. Huddle Bible Study .... 7:00 p.m.
Arabic Worship ....... 12:00 noon Teen Study/activity .... 7:00 p.m.
Caravan..................... 5:00 p.m. College Bible Study ... 7:00 p.m.
The Huddle Study ..... 4:30 p.m. Worship Music ........... 7:00 p.m.
Huddle Worship ......... 5:00 p.m. Friday
Hispanic PM Service .... 5:00 p.m. Huddle Rehearsal ....... 6:30 p.m.
Hispanic Study .......... 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday
Men’s Life Group ....... 7:00 p.m. Arabic Study .............. 7:00 p.m.
If not specified, the times listed above apply to the
English congregation.
The Champions Men's Life
Group will start up, once
again, on June 16 at 7:00
p.m. They will be covering
an 8 week series on Part 2
of Becoming a FullyDevoted Follower of
Christ. Leader of this group
is Paul Eyskens. All men
are encouraged to come!
J U N E
SUNDAY
7.
MONDAY
TUESDAY
1.
2.
8.
9.
HONORING
GRADS 10:00AM
15.
4.
NMI Council
Meeting 6:30PM
10.
16.
22.
23.
FRIDAY
5.
17.
11.
12.
18.
Movie Day
11:00AM
19.
13.
25.
20. Women’s Book
Club 11:00AM
Huddle’s Grad Party
1:00PM
Hispanic Watch
Night 8:00PM
26.
Movie Day
11:00AM
29.
6.
Farmer’s
Market 9:00AM
Discipleship
Board Meeting
7:00PM
24.
SATURDAY
Lunches for the
Homeless
9:30AM
Membership
Class 7:00PM
FATHER’S DAY
28.
THURSDAY
Membership
Class 7:00PM
Champions
Men’s Life
Group Resumes
7:00PM
Caravan Awards
Dinner 5:00PM
21.
WEDNESDAY
3.
Church Board
Meeting 7:00PM
14.
2 01 5
27.
Women’s Craft
Day 10:00AM
30.
PICNIC ON THE
GROUNDS
(AFTER WORSHIP)
This calendar reflects special events for the month as
well as new studies, group meetings, or services.
Church Office: (714) 534-5770
Church Email: church-office@ggnaz.org