SERVICE: SUNDAYS AT 8:00AM & 11:30AM

Weekly Word from Pastor Curry: July 2, 2021

Greetings, Friendship Family!

I pray you are well this week. 

I pray for you to have new strength. 

I pray you are encouraged. 

Today begins a long weekend for many of us, with the Fourth of July Holiday on Sunday and being observed on Monday, July 5th. I hope you can enjoy the weekend and have a sense of God’s great grace extended towards you!

Prayer Focus this Month
Typically, the Friday before the First Sunday, we would have our monthly Friendship Family prayer service. However, since we know many are getting started on their long weekend, we ask that you carve out some time to pray for the Friendship Family on your own. I thank you in advance for your prayers. This month’s prayer focus is Faith Forward in Unwavering Commitment. 

✔️Commitment to God through Christ…
✔️Commitment to the Case and Cause of Christ…
✔️Commitment to Growing in Christ…

One of our key verses is 1 Corinthians 15:58, which states, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

Many things in this world are temporary or changeable. Some things we wish weren’t so unreliable. We make jokes about not being able to control the constantly changing weather. But it’s no laughing matter when we can’t depend on or trust what someone tells us, what someone promises to do, what they guarantee won’t change.

Steadfast is an old-fashioned word that applies to people and things and situations that we can trust. Trust that they won’t waver or let us down. We want people to be steadfast with us! Well, likewise, we must be steadfast with Christ. We must be committed to Christ. We want to be steadfast in our commitment to Christ! That’s what we are praying for this month. So many of us have grown complacent during the pandemic. It’s time to reaffirm our commitment to Christ, so that’s our prayer focus, Faith Forward in Unwavering or Steadfast Commitment. 

Things to remember…

SUNDAY WORSHIP ~ JULY 4th (THINGS TO REMEMBER):
  • Now, I pray you will join us on Sunday for worship. Remember our worship service Sunday is virtual ONLY. So log in and celebrate the God who has made us FREE INDEED. Our service will start at 9am. If you miss the service at 9am, it will be available on-demand through our app, church website, and Youtube.

  • Also, this Sunday is the First Sunday of July, so please remember to gather your communion elements so we can all take Communion together. For more information on how to prepare yourself for Communion virtually, please go HERE

  • EX HOUR: This Sunday Ex Hour will be Virtual ONLY via Zoom and will begin at 10:30am.  Join us for class via the link HERE

  • YOUTH EX HOUR: Our youth will be virtual as well and meet at 10:30am. Youth Ex Hour takes place via Google Meet. Parents, please encourage your students to join youth teachers for this biblically fun opportunity to learn God’s Word, connect with others, and grow. To join Youth Ex-Hour, follow the link HERE

  • Phone Line for Worship: For our members who may have a tough time connecting to our worship service online for whatever reason, we are now offering a way for those members to dial in and listen to service over the phone. To access the service via telephone, members and guests need to dial 1 216-930-8774‬ and enter the PIN: 464 267 559‬#. It is live for both the 8:00am and 11:30am worship services.‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

CHURCH OFFICES CLOSED
  • Please note that the church offices will be closed on Monday, July 5th, in observance of the holiday. We will resume operations on Tuesday, July 6th. 

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:
  • We are still looking for volunteers and would love to have you join the team. Whether you have a heart for serving others, are skilled with technology, or love to make people feel welcome, we have space for you to use your God-given passions and talents for the sake of the Kingdom and the community! There is work to be done, and we need you. If you want to volunteer, complete the CHANGEMAKER form by clicking HERE, and we will get you connected to the right ministry opportunity. We look forward to hearing from you!

INTERNS NEEDED
  • We also need interns in our media ministry. So if you are a student who needs an internship opportunity, we welcome you to be a part of the Media Ministry here at Friendship! To apply for a non-paid intern position, please email me at [email protected]

SIDE BY SIDE COUPLES MINISTRY
  • The Side by Side Couples Ministry class, “The 5 Love Languages,” meets virtually on July 9th at 7pm.  The topic for the next class will be “Physical touch.” You can join the meeting via Zoom HERE. Should you have any questions, you can contact Deacon Hilton McDaniel by email at [email protected] or call (949) 652-1489.

KINGDOM WIVES CLASS:
  • Lady Karima kicks of another session of her wife’s class. This session will explore the book, Sacred Marriage, Sacred Hearts. This discipleship study will focus on how wives can perceive the challenges, joys, disappointments, and celebrations of marriage as opportunities to draw closer to God and deeper in faith.  The Kingdom Wives group will continue to meet virtually on 2nd and 4th Saturdays starting July 10th at 9:00am.  This study is open to friends and family, so share this opportunity to grow in community with other Kingdom Wives.  If you are not already a member of the Kingdom Wives class, please click HERE to register.  Or you may visit our church website at www.wearefriendship.church/wives

SUNDAY WORSHIP ~ JULY 11th:
  • Remember we will gather for in-person worship on Sunday, July 11th, at our regular service times of 8am and 11:30am. Both services will stream live. And we will again offer our in-person and online Ex Hours classes. 

  • Mask Requirement: When we gather on July 11th, we will align our worship service requirements with the state guidance. Meaning we will make masks optional for vaccinated individuals. The current guidance is that vaccinated individuals can go without masks, while unvaccinated persons must wear masks when indoors. The physical distancing requirements no longer apply, but we will continue to space people out to the best of our ability. 

DISCIPLESHIP BOOTCAMP: 
  • Then on July 13th through July 15th, we will host our 2021 Discipleship Bootcamp, also known as Vacation Bible School (VBS). Join us in person for three consecutive nights from 7-9pm. This year’s theme is “Concrete & Cranes: Building the foundation of our faith on the love of Jesus.”

In this year’s Discipleship Bootcamp, we’ll discover that Jesus’ love provides a foundation that will last. When the storms of life come, we need the One who will be with us to the end of the age. When anxiety sets in, we need the assurance that true worth comes from being a child of God, not from what other people think about us. We’ll learn to be wise builders who continue in what we’ve learned and firmly believe. And we’ll discover that He who began a good work will be faithful to carry it on to completion. All of us are a work in progress. Life is a hard hat zone. But, ultimately,  Jesus’ love is our firm foundation.

While we are slowly returning to gathering in person, please note that we will NOT serve dinner during this year’s Bootcamp to keep everyone safe as a precaution in consideration of previous pandemic guidance. However, even though we will not have dinner, we still ask that you register to anticipate and plan for your arrival and have enough learning materials for you. It’s been almost two years since we’ve gathered together in person for our annual Discipleship Bootcamp, and we hope you will plan to join us. Please register HERE to join us for Discipleship Bootcamp 2021.

  • We are also excited to announce that we will have a children & youth version of Discipleship Bootcamp that will follow the same curriculum, Concrete & Cranes! The children’s portion will take place outdoors on our campus, and the youth will have an indoor-outdoor experience. Again, Registration is open NOW, and we invite you to register ASAP.

CHURCH PICNIC:
  • On Saturday, July 17th, we will host our Church Picnic. I am looking forward to this. The church picnic will occur at Craig Park with the Health Care Ministry 5K Walk at 8am and the actual picnic beginning at 10am. 

  • Chick-Fil-A will supply our picnic meal. The picnic and food are FREE, but again, we would be grateful if you could register to have enough food. Registrants will receive a colored wristband to receive their meal on that day. We will also have drinks and snacks provided by the church. All you will need to do is bring your tents, pop-ups, lawn chairs, blankets, etc. and enjoy the food and fellowship. Register HERE for the 2021 Picnic.

BACK TO SCHOOL GIVE AWAY:
  • During the week of July 11th, the same week of Discipleship Bootcamp, we will have our Back to School Give-A-Way through the outreach ministry. This giveaway will occur at our Care & Concern Center from 2:30-4:30 pm on Tuesday, July 13th, through Thursday, July 15th. We will give away school supplies and clothing. If you or someone you know is in need, we encourage you to stop by. 

BAPTISM SERVICE:
  • On Sunday, July 25th, we will host a special baptism service. The service is for all who desired to be baptized but, due to the pandemic, were not able to do so. It will take place at Friendship at 10am in the Sanctuary. If you plan to be baptized, please register HERE.  

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION UPDATE:
  • To serve you better, we need your most up-to-date contact information. Would you please follow the link HERE and update your personal information and the information for all household members? Thank you in advance for your participation in this.

General Church things to remember:
 
  • WEDNESDAY Prayer Day: Join us each Wednesday for Prayer. We pray at 6:30a, 12p, and 6:30p. To connect with our prayer services, please follow this link HERE or dial in at +1 (413) 418-4274 and use the PIN 287683504#. 
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  • FBC FOOD BANK OPEN: The FBC Food Bank is OPEN with a new drive-thru system where our clients will receive a pre-packaged food box and a bag of groceries.  The Food Bank’s hours of operation are Tuesday - Thursday 2:30p-4:30p.   

  • COVID Recovery Kits:
    We still have Covid Recovery Kits through Providence Health and the Yorba Linda Rotary Club. These kits help individuals who have been diagnosed with Covid-19 and are recovering at home. Each kit includes a pulse oximeter to monitor breathing, a thermometer, a box of masks, and a package of sanitizing wipes in a small canvas bag. If you or someone in your family could benefit from one of these kits, please call the church office and arrange to get one. 

  • COVID Membership Assistance Fund: We are STILL accepting applications for the COVID Membership Assistance Grant. If you are experiencing financial distress due to COVID19, we invite you to apply for one of our $500 assistance grants. The guidelines are available HERE, and the application is available HERE.

Thank you for your reading! 

Thank you for your prayers and support! 

Continue to Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, Stay Connected!

God loves you, and so do I!


In His Service,
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/lK6ri-mjKfB2sIhmcqg2Hi5NyudCSRNzgARr3Mf2K6eUJbquKsJKTjRH8bwIsoC_hqMxDcBGgvz_iM-bLMT8GRoG7ZyW8HAgJwXEgcNgXaSzgCXTwPnItGvBjZf7eqWKVIIalN7w
Rev. Kenneth C. Curry, Jr.
Your Pastor
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