November 1, 2024
Dear Radiant, Enough talk about politics! How about some prayer?
I resonate with the words of Abraham Lincoln:
“I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had no where else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day.”
This Sunday we are going to worship and pray and seek Jesus for our city and our nation in this weighty, charged time.
In worship and prayer, we remember who God is. And as we look to Him we remember who we are.
In prayer, we ask that God’s kingdom would come. In prayer, we ask that the broken places would be mended, that hurts would be healed. In prayer we ask for soft hearts, for wisdom, and for strength. We lift our needs to our loving, all-powerful Lord.
So, it’s going to be a different kind of Sunday as we brace ourselves for Tuesday’s election. No prayer experience or expertise needed, just a desire to seek God honestly. We’ll meet at 10AM at Modesto Jr. College Recital Hall & 5PM at Emanuel Lutheran Church.And don’t forget, we’ll have the Chili-cook-off following the 5PM worship service (about 6:15PM at ELC’s fellowship hall).
EVENTS CALENDAR
Ongoing — Home Churches — plug in now!
Ongoing — The Alpha Course Thursdays 6PM at ELC
11/3 – Chili Cook-off and Kids Crafts
11/5 – Rad YTH Night 6:30PM at ELC
11/6 – Men’s Gathering 6-7AM at ELC
11/27 – Thanksgiving Eve Service w/ Emanuel Lutheran 7PM
12/1 – First Sunday in Advent
12/8 – Homecoming Sunday for Radian’t third anniversary.
3rd ANNUAL CHILI COOK-OFF – 11/3
Start prepping the beans. Radiant’s 3rd Annual Chili Cookoff will be this Sunday, November 3rd at ELC following the 5PM service. Bring the kids for some fun fall crafts. Let Laura know if you plan on bringing a Chili to compete! Sign up in at welcome table.
TWO SERVICE EXPERIMENT FEEDBACK WANTED
We are about six weeks into our two service experiment and are curious how it has been for you. We went into this process with the hopes of discerning what service times/ locations/ configurations would be best for Radiant as we seek to make disciples of Jesus in Modesto. We (Zach and the Vision Team) are aiming to decide on the path forward by Sunday November 17th.
Here is what we are deciding between:
1) Keep doing the 10AM at MJC and 5PM at ELC services as we’ve been doing over the past six weeks.
2) Go back to 5PM services only at Emanuel Lutheran Church (this would go into effect on 12/8).
3) A single 10AM service at Modesto Jr. College’s Recital Hall (this would go into effect on 12/8).
This is a big decision for us and we will take into account feedback from everyone: ministry team leaders and volunteers, staff, new attenders. There are a couple of ways for you to provide feedback.
- fill out this feedback form.
- share at your Home Church (HC leaders will share what they’ve heard)
- attend one of our feedback/sharing meetings: Wednesday 11/6, 7-8PM at Zach and Jill’s house — 1128 Mills Ave. Tuesday, 11/12 7-8PM at ELC’s fellowship hall.
- Of course, you can always feel to reach out to Zach or any other Vision Team members (Grace Gilham, Victor Chen, Anna Hatton, Luis Bautista, Cindy Femino) to share.
Please pray for our church in this time — we are excited about what God is doing in our community and excited about what is next, but we know that any decision we make will also bring its own challenges.
MEN’S GATHERING – THIS WEDNESDAY – 6-7AM
6am, this Wednesday. At the ELC fellowship hall.
BAPTISM AND CHILDREN’S DEDICATION SERVICES 11/24 & 12/1We are excited about new life in our community (babies being born!) and new life in Christ (people deciding to follow Jesus and be baptized). We are planning a baptism service on 11/24 (tentatively) at 5PM and a child dedication service on 12/1 at 10AM. If you are interested in either please let Zach know – 209.497.3710.
RADIANT THREE YEAR ANNIVERSARY AND HOMECOMING CELEBRATION 12/8.Can you believe it’s been three years! It seems like longer and shorter to me. We are going to give God thanks for his three years of work in this church plant and ask for him to do even greater things than these. We want to spread the invites wide and involved everyone who has been involved in any way in our story. More details to follow, but mark your calendar for 12/8/2024!
NEW RIPON HOME CHURCH – THURSDAY 6PM
*Phil and Elisa Krueger are hosting a Ripon Home Church at their home on Thursdays from 6-8PM! They can be contacted at 209.681.3045
Home churches are just beginning this fall. Radiant Home Churches are communities of discipleship in the way of Jesus and are foundational to our life as a church. Here’s a list of home churches. Each leader would be glad to connect with you. 
BAND APP
One way to connect at Radiant is to join our BAND APP group. Think of this as a sort of Radiant message board — our own little social media space. People can extend invites, share about needs and opportunities.
GIVING
Thank you for your generosity and partnership in Radiant’s ministry! Here’s the link to online giving.
Grace and Peace!
Zach
zach@radcov.org
209-497-3710
www.radcov.org
