April 5, 2025
Hello Grace Vineyard Family and Friends,
Welcome to April! What a beautiful day we are having. Our daughter and son-in-law (who live in L.A.) stopped by for a visit this afternoon, and we sat in our backyard in the warm sunlight and the cool ocean breeze. I’ll never get over the wonderful weather we enjoy here. Such a blessing to live here and to enjoy visits with family and friends. I hope you are making sure in the midst of all the busyness we face, to spend time frequently with people who replenish you, enjoying the beauty that surrounds us in this county, thanking our great Provider for all His gifts.
Here’s my weekly update with a reminder of the many ways we are partnering together in Jesus’ great mission of loving God and loving people, making disciples of all nations, teaching them everything Jesus taught those first followers.
Easter Meal at the North County Lighthouse
On April 12th we will be serving the unsheltered community at The North County Lighthouse (San Diego Rescue Mission in Oceanside, also known as a the Navigation Center). It is from 3:00-6:30pm on Saturday, April 12. We need people to help with Easter Egg Hunt, making Easter Baskets for the kids, and providing drinks, desserts, and salads (the rest of the meal will be provided by SDRM). Venita will have a sign up table in the lobby this Sunday morning. Please contact Venita for more info at 760-573-4429. You can find out more about the North County Light house at https://www.sdrescue.org/what-we-do/oceanside/ This is a wonderful, practical way to extend the love of Jesus to our neighbors who are dealing with the struggles of homelessness. I love this opportunity for us to be a light! “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” — Jesus
Ladies Monthly Walk/Hike Next Saturday April 12
Ladies – next Saturday is our monthly Ladies walk. For April the walk is at Hosp Grove in Carlsbad. Meet at the playground off Jefferson at 9am on Saturday, April 12th. Please call Kathy Green if you plan to come at 760-583-1779.
Monthly Men’s Breakfast Next Saturday
Men – our monthly Men’s breakfast is also next Saturday. We meet at 8am at Ty’s Burgerhouse, just around the corner from the church on Mission Ave. This month our own Steve Rogers we’ll be speaking, sharing some stories from his latest around-the-world travels in missions. Great food, fellowship, worship, and inspiration. If you have any questions, please contact Snake at 760-622-4572.
Steve Rogers’ Mission Trip to Indonesia
Speaking of Steve and Missions trips, Steve will be leaving for Malaysia and Indonesia on April 28th through May 20th. Steve will be joined by David Yoder this time. The leader of Vineyard Missions-Asia has asked Steve to do a ground breaking trip for Vineyard Missions in Malaysia — what an honor! This is like reading the book of Acts — Steve and David will be breaking fresh ground walking the streets in prayer, meeting everyone they can, seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance for divine appointments. We need to be praying for the team starting NOW. In Indonesia they will meet up with a couple of young Christians that Steve has been discipling online since his last trip there. They are graduating from the Vineyard Institute in Bekasi, Indonesia, and have invited Steve to come to the graduation. These 2 have asked Steve to come to their home towns to meet their families and friends and pray together about starting Churches there. Prayer is essential for all of this work! In addition, there is a practical way we can join in this missions trip: they need to raise $4,000 by April 15th. To donate either bring an offering to church and write “Steve’s Mission’s Fund on the check memo line or the offering envelope, OR click on this link: Steve’s Missions Fund.
National Day of Prayer is May 1st.
Our May 1 Oceanside National Day of Prayer event, from 6:00 – 7:15 pm, will be at the El Corazon Senior Center courtyard. We’ll gather with Christians from all over Oceanside, and be led in prayer by a number of local pastors (including yours truly). I think those of you that were with us last year will agree that it is a really great event. I hope you’ll try to join us.
Vineyard National Conference West June 16-20
People from the Vineyard churches all over the United States are getting together this summer for our national conference. There will be a conference on the West side of the country in Denver, Colorado on June 16-20, and there will be one on the East side in Cincinatti, Ohio July 14-17. I am planning on going to the Denver conference, and I’d love it if a bunch of you joined me. There is great programming for the kids too. For all the info, check out it out at https://conference.vineyardusa.org/
Breath of Heaven Golf Tournament Fund Raiser
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN: Golfing for our Breath of Heaven children at Bear Creek Golf Club – Murrieta, CA
Come May 1, 2025 at 1PM for our Golf Tournament at the exclusive, members-only Bear Creek Golf Course!
Registration is OPEN TODAY! Join us for this special fundraiser benefiting Breath of Heaven Children’s Ministries, supporting orphans in Lusaka, Zambia.
Pricing Options:
Individual Golfer: $199
Foursome Package: $755 (Save $41!)
Dinner-Only: $55
Don’t miss this perfect opportunity to enjoy a spring day on this prestigious PGA course while making a meaningful difference in children’s lives!
Questions Contact Tom LaManna at 951-296-7530 or tom.lamanna@bofheaven.org
Women’s Clothing and Shoes Collection
Family Recovery Center Dinner (FRC) Saturday May 10th
Good Friday and Easter Services
Easter Weekend is almost here! On Friday, April 18th, we will be meeting at 6:30 PM for a Good Friday Reflection Service. Then on Sunday morning, we’ll meet as usual at 9:30 for our Resurrection Sunday Service. These are great opportunities to invite friends to come and hear the Gospel!
After Church Prayer Sunday, April 13
On the 2nd Sunday of every month, right after church for about 1 hour, we have pray for our City and our Church. I really hope some more of you will step into this vital ministry with us. I cannot emphasize enough how important prayer is for everything we are and everything we do!
Exploring Spiritual Gifts, part 2
I am really enjoying learning more about God’s Empowering Presence with you these last weeks. Last Sunday we began exploring the charismatic gifts that the Holy Spirit gives to us as He empowers us to join in Jesus ministry of Word and Works. This week will go a little deeper and learn some more about the gifts available to us. We are instructed to earnestly, zealously desire spiritual gifts, and one way we fulfill those instructions is to learn and study what the Bible has to say about these dynamic tools for ministry. I hope you can be with us to learn together this Sunday at 9:30, but if you can’t be here in person, here’s the link for the Zoom channel: Zoom Meeting ID 153 112 432, Passcode 684814, and here’s where you would go for the Facebook Live channel: facebook.com/gracevcf.
To hear the message from last week, you can go to our YouTube Channel here:
Or listen on our Gracetalks.org podcast here:
Building Funds Needed
You may have heard us mention a couple repair projects around our building that need funding. We are so thankful to have been given the opportunity to be the owners of this amazing theater. If you know anything about the real estate market, you know we are incredibly blessed. Along with ownership comes the responsibility of maintenance and repairs, and we have a broken air conditioner in the youth center that’s going to become an issue when the summer heat arrives. We have been given a quote of $4,000 to put in a mini-split system, which we are told will be substantially less expensive than replacing the current system. We also have approximately $12,000 more to raise to repair and repaint the giant GRACE sign. Would you consider giving a large donation above your normal tithe for these projects? Or perhaps begin giving a smaller donation on a weekly or monthly basis to help us raise the funds over time? Just use the donation button at the bottom of this email and mention “building fund” in the part where you can leave a note regarding the purpose of the donation. Whether or not you are able to give an extra donation at this time, please join us in prayer that God will provide these needed funds as well as the ongoing operating expenses that our tithes are meant to cover. God is our provider! He always comes through, and prayer is a big part of that process!
That’s all for this week. I am so thankful to be part of Grace Vineyard with you. See you in the morning.
with love and blessings,
Ron Ohst
Tithes and Offerings Online
THANKS for taking ownership in the life and ministry of Grace Vineyard! And thanks to all of you who are stepping into a lifestyle of generosity with your tithes and offerings. It really does take all of us doing our part with the income God has entrusted to us for His church. If you’d like to give your tithe or offering online, click the donate button below.