October 19, 2024

Happy Saturday, my Grace Vineyard Family and Friends!  Yet another week has flown by, and it’s time for our weekly update.

A couple weeks ago Kim and I were on Catalina Island with Kevin and Shannon Frye, and we had the opportunity to sit on the front lawn and share with about 20 people from their church.  Wonderful people.  One man in had a particularly interesting life experience – he had run over 40 marathons on consecutive years.  (I think the number was 44, but I can’t remember for sure. Needless to say it was a lot of them!) Now, if I were ever going to train for a marathon, that’s the guy I would want to talk with! Wouldn’t you?  Well, this week on Sunday I’m going to interview a couple with over 100 combined years of experience in missions.  That’s the kind of people I want to talk to about training for life and ministry.

I’m calling our Sunday morning “Gleaning Wisdom” this week, because we are hoping to glean some wisdom from 2 people who have been joining God in His mission for over 50 years, doing Bible translation in Peru.  They have a thriving marriage, children that grew up on the mission field and are all serving the Lord as adults, and the legacy of a people group who now have the entire Bible written in their own language.  Churches there are experiencing the unique power of preaching the Word in their own language. They are writing scripture-worship songs in their own language.  They are praying Bible-inspired prayers in their own language.  The task was immense – live among the people and learn their language, create a written version of the language, build a team to help meticulously translate the entire Bible into this newly written language, teach the people how to read and write in their own language for the first time, and finally after decades of faithful work, enjoy and celebrate as the Word of God spreads throughout the community who share this language.  It’s a truly stunning story, and we’ve been privileged to be partners with them for the last 20 years of this journey.  David and Heidi Coombs will be with us, and I’m going to spend Sunday morning interviewing them in front of Grace Vineyard to learn principles we can each apply to our own lives and ministries.  This will be a unique morning, and I hope every one of you will do your best to be with us.  If you are not able to be with us in person this Sunday, you can always join online via the Zoom app with this info:  Zoom Meeting ID  153 112 432, Passcode 684814. You may also join us on Facebook Live at facebook.com/gracevcf.

By the way, if you haven’t ever thought much about the missions work of Bible Translation, here’s a short video from Wycliffe Bible Translators that will be helpful:

A Very Special Luncheon for David and Heidi Coombs

Please plan on staying for lunch after church tomorrow.  We are having a Retirement Celebration Lunch for David and Heidi right after church tomorrow and we wouldn’t want you to miss out.  When we started our Missions Program almost 20 years ago in 2005, among our very first missionary partners were Wycliffe Bible Translators David and Heidi Coombs.  They are officially retiring, celebrating over 50 years in Missions Work and Bible Translation! What an incredible life and legacy they are leaving.  I can only imagine the joy we will be celebrating in eternity with them and the many who heard the Gospel and responded because they had a Bible written in their own language.  We are planning on starting that celebration now!  Lunch will be on the terrace at the back of the auditorium right after church.

Last Sunday’s Sermon

Last Sunday we had Duke and Marie Lancaster with us for the 2nd time.  They talked about the simple but powerful, foundational truth that Jesus Loves Us.  Wasn’t that great?!  If you missed it, or just want to hear it again, you watch the Youtube video right here:

By the way, did you know you can be notified every time we publish a new video on our Grace Vineyard Youtube channel?  Open this video on YouTube (click on the YouTube icon), and then click on “subscribe”.

Operation Christmas Child

If you’ve been in our lobby the last couple of weeks, you’ve seen our Operation Christmas Child table.  It’s that time of year again, when we box up Christmas presents in shoeboxes to be sent around the world.  Many of you already know about this program, but if you don’t, check out all the info at samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child.  They have a very complete website with everything you would want to know about the mission and history of this great ministry as well as instructions for how to pack a shoebox.  Also, stop by the booth in the lobby and pickup a shoebox and get more info.

Being The Beloved Women’s Retreat is Next Week

By now I think everybody who is going to the Being The Beloved women’s retreat is all signed up. It’s just the weekend after next.  There’s still time for those who would like to give scholarship money to do so.  Just click on the donate button at the bottom of the page and mention “Women’s Retreat Scholarship” where you can put a note about your donation.  All of us, let’s be praying this week for our women to have life changing encounters with the Lord and with each other next weekend!

Convicted For Christ Golf For Hope Tournament

Our friends at Convicted For Christ are having their 2nd annual Golf For Hope Tournament/Fundraiser on November 9th.   I hope as many of us as possible can also join the Golf For Hope Tournament.  Check it out by clicking here: https://www.convicted4christ.org/2nd-annual-golf-for-hope-fundraiser.

Encounter Night 2024

Get ready for Encounter Night 2024, on Sunday,  November 3 at the Oceanside Pier Amphitheater.   Encounter Night is a night of worship and prayer put on by the churches of San Diego at the Oceanside Pier Amphitheater.  It starts at 6pm on Sunday night, November 3, and it sounds like it’s going to be awesome.  There will be a combined worship band with singers and instrumentalists from a bunch of different churches in San Diego.  There will also be worship led by Chris Quilala. This will be a great time of unity among the churches of San Diego, gathering with just one purpose – to exalt the name of Jesus!

And with that, I’ll get back to my Saturday routine.  I hope you all are having a great weekend, and I look forward to worshipping with you tomorrow morning.  It’s going to be a great day!

with blessing and love to each of you,

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.