Dear Friends,
In Christ we are Overcomers! Amen! (We had 93 adults and 38 children in worship Sunday).

No single event in human history has changed more lives around the world. He was despised and rejected for the brokenness of ALL humanity. One act by one man for ALL!
Whether you are a long time follower or just curious about the death of Jesus Christ, join us for a series that will explore the last 24 Hours of Jesus Life on earth.

Begin your season of preparation for Easter with a time of personal reflection.

Devotion: I John 5:1-5
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

As we wrap up our series DejaNu: Getting Past Your Past, I just want to encourage everyone once again. “Everyone born of God overcomes the world!” What a statement. It echoes what we heard Sunday about being more than conquerors in Christ Jesus. We can overcome trials, struggles, temptations, addictions, pains, etc., etc. with which this world will burden us. This all begins with Christ who died and conquered death. First and foremost we believe Jesus Christ is God’s Son! Second, we love God and His children by obeying God’s commands. Loving takes work though it is not a burden. I pray we all will find a group of people through which we love and are loved, we have grace to grow, and we experience God! WE ARE NOT ALONE! GOD IS FOR US! And the followers of Christ at The Ridge are for you also. May we OVERCOME together!

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
How good is our God! How great and wonderful is God’s love for us! Oh how God makes us new! Oh how God reshapes us when we are shattered by this world! May we know God’s unearned favor, loving care, and guiding hand as He makes ALL THINGS new! (We had 89 adults and 53 children in worship Sunday).

Does your past still have a hold on you? Would you like to move beyond the labels, anger, doubt, pain, and grief? Join us as we experience how God makes all things new in our lives!
This week’s sermon will deal with addictions.

Devotion: Romans 8:38-39 Who Am I Now?
38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Many if not all of us have faced rejection, and many if not all of us have asked this question: Who am I now? People face all types of rejection in life from the worlds of school, work, relationships, you name it. When we experience rejection no matter how small or enormous, somewhere inside us we ask this question. Then we have a decision to make. What/who will define us? In all situations the rejection feels personal and it comes from someone. So maybe in those moments, we can consider what God says about our worth to Him and allow God to define who we are.
The writer here (Paul) states that he is convinced that nothing in all of God’s creation can separate us from God’s love in Jesus Christ. In defining who we are, we cannot skip over the reality that GOD LOVES US! This is what should define us. We are loved! No matter what happens in this world, what rejection we may face, we are loved. This love is proven by Jesus death on the cross for our failures and resurrection from that death to bring us life. It is most powerfully experienced as we receive His forgiveness and follow His guidance as our Master. So, before we allow the voices of rejection to overwhelm us, let us stop and receive the love God has for us allowing God to define who we really are. Amen!

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
I pray for all those who are facing grief right now. I hope and believe that you are moving forward with God’s comfort and Jesus’s hope of resurrection not only for your losses, but also for the new thing God can and will do in your life! (We had 87 adults and 47 children in worship Sunday).

Does your past still have a hold on you? Would you like to move beyond the labels, anger, doubt, pain, and grief? Join us as we experience how God makes all things new in our lives!
This week’s sermon is on divorce, separation, & rejection.

Devotion: Matthew 5:4
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.

God never promises that life will be easy; in fact God clearly states that in this life we will have trouble. However, God does promise that when trouble comes, He will be there. Everyone faces loss! It may be a loved one, a job, a relationship, a dream – the list could go on and on. The reality comes crashing in for everyone. Yet, Jesus states in this passage, that when we mourn, we will be comforted.
I will never forget the moment when the church through my pastor became the comfort of Christ in my life. My Grandfather was living with us during his last days of earthly life. One particular day I had gone in to visit with him and he was not making any sense. He was talking with people who weren’t there and it shook me. As I left the room, our pastor showed up. He became God’s strong hands, God’s listening ear, and God’s comforting words. That day, I was held by God through His body, the church.
The Bible calls us to weep with those who weep and mourn with those who mourn. Who in our lives needs God’s comfort? How can we become the hands and voice of God for those who are dealing with loss? May we never ever forget that God uses us to accomplish His promises upon this earth. May each of us be aware of those grieving around us and take the time to listen, empathize, understand, and support them as Jesus Christ has done for us. Then, those who mourn will be comforted and we all will be blessed.

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
We have had two great weeks of worship as we continue to experience how God makes all things new in us, in others, and in the world! I pray you are hearing God’s creative voice speak newness into your life every day. (We had 86 adults and 32 children in worship Sunday).

Does your past still have a hold on you? Would you like to move beyond the labels, anger, doubt, pain, and grief? Join us as we experience how God makes all things new in our lives!
This week’s sermon is on death, loss, and grief.

Devotion: Matthew 11:25-30
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.
27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Continuing our consideration of how God makes all things new, I wanted to say once again to those of you who have experienced the church or “churched” folks as disappointing, oppressive, and judgmental, I am sorry. There are times “we” have become just like the Pharisees and teachers of the Law with our rules and our judgmental looks and words. “We” have forgotten Jesus statement that he “desired mercy not sacrifice.” With that apology, I want to invite you to read the passage above, then close your eyes and hear Christ say to YOU, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

A few things to note here: 1. Christ invites those who are burdened, not those who burden others. He calls those who are weary, not those who believe they are strong. He invites all of us who have the big and small struggles of living every-day life. 2. Christ is a gentle and humble teacher who knows who we are and know who we can become. He is not waiting just to “Zap” us. He is walking the road of life with us and desires most to help us. 3. There is still work to do in and with Christ. He does not say that there will be no burden and no yoke (what on ox would wear to pull the plow). He says the yoke will be easy and the burden light, but there is still the field of our lives to plow and the weight of our faith to carry. Jesus does not oppress us into submission, he invites us into growth!

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
What a great celebration we had yesterday! Happy 2 Birthday to The Ridge, to all of us who have been a part of the Life God has given us over the last two years. May God’s name be praised! Thank you Bishop Whitfield for celebrating with us and for bringing the Gospel message to life for us. (We had 87 adults and 51 children in worship Sunday).

Does your past still have a hold on you? Would you like to move beyond the labels, anger, doubt, pain, and grief? Join us as we experience how God makes all things new in our lives!

2 Corinthians 5:16-21
So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Well a New Year has begun. We are far enough into the year now that some of our resolutions have bit the dust. We may be wondering how this year will be any different from others. We still have hope that this will be the year that… fill in the blank. In and possibly through all of this, I pray that we will hear the words of the passage above. In Christ we are new and are being made new. God has gone to the ultimate level to have New Life born in us today! May we all allow this message to wash over us, to energize us, to change how we view ourselves and others, to truly make us NEW! God loves us, may we receive that love and favor and begin, renew, and restore our relationship with God through Jesus Christ. This year, will we truly allow God to love us?

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
May we take the challenge to live our faith by doing good, doing no harm, and staying in love with God! May we live this way knowing that the God who calls us is faithful and will do it! (We had 66 adults and 40 children in worship Sunday).

Receiving an encouraging note or letter from someone we love can change our lives forever. Join us for a life changing Christmas Season as we read…

See you Saturday for Christmas Caroling
Franklin Heights Nursing Home
11:00 a.m.

All I want for Christmas…(3)
Luke 2:10-11a
10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord”.

JOY: to experience great pleasure or delight.
The angels told the shepherds that their good news was to create great joy for all people. We know Jesus was born that day and would become the Savior and Messiah. So, what does this have to do with joy for the world? Yes, all of us love seeing new born babies and the feelings they produce in us. We see innocence, potential, future, and hope. However, it was more than seeing a baby born that brought about Rejoicing…

Romans 5:6-11
6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

So, this baby Jesus would become the one who would bring us (the world) back into right relationship with God. He would reconcile our relationship with God and begin the process of making all things new—including those who don’t believe they deserve it. He would become hope for the hopeless, strength for the weak, and forgiveness for us all. He loved us before we could even consider loving Him! No greater joy comes from knowing you are loved and accepted…

I Peter 1:8-9
8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

This Great Joy comes to life in us when we choose to believe. It is not our circumstances or happenstances that will bring us joy this Christmas. It will be the Christ being welcomed into our lives to come and live among us! It will be His love, forgiveness, grace, and salvation coming to life in us! Joy to the world, The Lord is come!

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
What a wonderful weekend we had with our Christmas Dinner Saturday and worship yesterday! It was wonderful to meet some of our new families and guests. I pray that you are being blessed and challenged so far through our Advent series. I look forward to seeing everyone again this Sunday. (We had 71 adults and 43 children in worship Sunday).

Receiving an encouraging note or letter from someone we love can change our lives forever.
Join us for a life changing Christmas Season as we read…

SAY CHEESE: Pictures are being taken before and after services the next two Sundays for our church directory.
Dress as you desire and come with a smile!

All I want for Christmas…(2)
Colossians 3:12-15
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

I suppose one of the greatest prayers during the Advent/Christmas season is for peace. Peace in our hearts, peace in our minds, peace in our bodies, peace in our lives, peace in our jobs, peace in our marriages, peace with our children, peace in our families, peace in our relationships, peace in Juarez, peace in the Middle East, peace around the world. Where will this peace come from?
This past Sunday we talked about the patience of God and how it brings salvation. As I looked around the Bible I found it quite interesting how many times peace and patience are together or very close in proximity. Maybe this is a clue for the peace we desire. For, it is the very patience of God that brought THE PRINCE OF PEACE into the world. Could it be the key to peace in all aspects of life is tapping into the patience of God given us in Christ Jesus our PEACE? Maybe the next time we begin to lose our peace with our families, friends, neighbors, colleagues, acquaintances, etc., we stop, breathe, and think of the Christ Child, The Prince of Peace, The Spotless Sacrificial Lamb of God; we allow Him to wash over us. Then and only then do we respond.
If we want peace this Christmas, let’s live out the patience God has for us and allow the PEACE of CHRIST to rule in our hearts! How wonderful it would be if at the end of this season, we gave thanks to God for the gift of peace we gave and the gift of PEACE we receive!

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Dear Friends,
Be encouraged as you enter this Advent/Christmas season that God gives you His Grace and wants you to have abiding Peace! (We had 76 adults and 55 children in worship Sunday).

Receiving an encouraging note or letter from someone we love can change our lives forever.
Join us for a life changing Christmas Season as we read…

I look forward to seeing you all at Western Hills 524 Thunderbird Drive in the Stewart Family Life Center
for our progressive dinner turned all church & friends pot luck this Saturday at 5:00 p.m.

All I want for Christmas…
Titus 2:11-14
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

As I have become older and less self-centered, my Christmas list has changed. Maybe it is because I am older, but hopefully it is because God is working within me. Over the past weeks, months, even years as I watch what is happening in our world my heart aches. From the news casts to the twitter accounts, what I see and read either makes me want to cry or puke. In the depth of who I am, I know this world was not meant to be this way. My prayer for this Christmas for you, for me, for the world is blessed HOPE! You may feel the way I do when observing our world, you may feel hopeless because of your own life situation. Either way I pray that The Blessed HOPE of Jesus Christ would be born into our lives once again, or for the very first time. That HOPE which states that we are wanted, we are loved, we are forgiven, and that God’s glory in Christ Jesus WILL make all things right in this world! That is what I want for Christmas.

If you desire, share the HOPE you have in Christ Jesus here. Maybe your HOPE will help HOPE come alive in someone else!

In His Grace,
Bill Case

Join us this Sunday as we begin our Christmas/Advent Series:

Dear Friends,
I am so grateful to be a part of such a wonderful community of faith at The Ridge! You all are such a blessing to me and to our community. Please read the following and celebrate.
(We had 82 adults and 25 children in worship Sunday).

We just finished putting together the Blessing Baskets and I wanted to let you know how it turned out. The long and short of it is… Wow!!

Keep in mind that when I say “baskets” I am using the term very conservatively. We actually overfilled the big baskets that were in the foyer at church, as well as one 23″ x 17″ x 12″ bin per family, plus the turkey and roasting pan. The pictures really only give you a small idea of what was donated, because I couldn’t get everything on the table and the turkeys were in the fridge. In the “baskets” each family received:

13-14 lb Turkey, roasting pan, cooking bag, fresh potatoes (5 lbs +), 32 cans vegetables (green beans, corn, yams, peas, carrots, beets, pinto beans, cranberry sauce, mushrooms, cream of mushroom soup, broth), stuffing mix, gravy, instant potatoes, rolls, corn muffin mix, French fried onions, brown sugar, marshmallows, apples, oranges, green chiles, tuna, rice, mac ‘n cheese, spaghetti, spaghetti sauce, peanut butter, crackers, salt/pepper, pies, cake mix, frosting, cookies, hot chocolate mix, pepsi, ice tea, plates and cups.

The baskets will be delivered to four families in Westway by DeeDee , Michael and, I believe, her granddaughters. Dave, Zach and Taylor are going to help, as well. The ladies in Westway were asking how they could thank the people who donated, so DeeDee invited them to join us in worship next Sunday.

The other two baskets will go to military families identified by Chaplain Steve Glenn. He was so appreciative of the generosity of The Ridge and knew right away of families who need the help. I will be meeting him in the morning.

The Ridge is filled with a generous spirit and I am so thankful to be able to witness the results first hand. I know that everyone would agree that the success of projects like this are attributed, not only to the generosity of our congregation, but also the spiritual guidance and leadership you provide. What an awesome combination. I am thankful to be part of it. Happy Thanksgiving!

Melanie Jones

In His Grace,
Bill Case