The Master’s Plan: Bridging the Generations

Change 2

Smart Start: Building on a

Strong Foundation

2

MOVE 3

VBS 3

My Macedonian Man 4

Inside this issue:

Summer 2013

Volume 10 Issue 2

We purchased our current home during the

height of the seller’s market in the early

2000’s, which forced us to top dollar for a

“fixer upper.” Our home didn’t need fixing

because things were broken and falling

apart. It needed fixing because everything

in it was outdated. All the fixtures, metal

kitchen cabinets, shower stalls, etc. were

built in the 1940’s and were well kept, but

didn’t suit the type of lifestyle we were lead-

ing in the 2000’s. We decided to remodel

our house and now enjoy it so much more

because it is designed to match how we live

life.

As with our house, God has provided a

wonderful opportunity for us to build and

leave a legacy of faith and sacrifice for the

next generation. We stand ready to launch

our redesign project which will upgrade our

facilities; thus those who follow us can con-

tinue to serve God faithfully for many years

to come. It began with Pastor Dave Shi-

gekawa’s vision to move Los Angeles Free

Methodist from Boyle Heights to the San

Gabriel Valley in 1978. This faith journey

was called “The Master’s Plan.” We believe

that God has called us to go on our own

spiritual journey of “The Master’s Plan:

Bridging the Generations.” Because the

previous generation sacrificed to leave us a

property that is debt free, we have the op-

portunity to build a facility that will allow

the next generation to effectively MOVE

people closer in their relationship with Jesus

Christ.

It won’t be easy. I believe that we will feel

the uneasiness of God stretching us as He

challenges us to walk by faith not by sight.

Reason tells us that it’s not a good time to

launch a building campaign because of the

economy or the size of our church. God

does His best work when from a human

standpoint, things don’t make sense. This

decision has been bathed in prayer, and we

feel that God is calling us to step out in faith

and trust Him as we move forward with His

project.

Just because we believe God is calling us to

do this doesn’t mean this project will be

problem free. I believe that God will use

everything, including both the successes

and mistakes, to transform us into the like-

ness of His Son Jesus Christ. It’s been my

experience that many times it’s not about

the project itself, but what God reveals

about us as a result of the project, that is

important.

When we are faced with a challenge such

as this, it is understandable if we feel like

one of the spies who were sent to scout out

the Promised Land. The land was fertile,

but full of people who were large and pow-

erful. I pray that we all have the attitude of

Caleb when he said, “We should go up and

take possession of the land, for we can cer-

tainly do it.” and also the attitude of Joshua

when he addressed the Israelites, “If the

Lord is pleased with us, He will lead us into

that land, a land flowing with milk and

honey, and will give it to us.”

The Lord has given us a wonderful opportu-

nity to step out in faith and trust Him in or-

der to see Him work in ways that we can’t

imagine. I look forward to hearing the sto-

ries that will serve as powerful testaments of

God’s goodness and blessings He shows to

His children.

On the journey with you,

Pastor Dave

Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Psalm 127:1

More updates to follow…

Save the Date

Sat, August 17

Angels vs. Astros

6:05 PM

Sat, October 26

Fall Festival

5:00-8:30 PM

Sundays

Adult Bible Class

9 AM

Worship Service,

Youth Sunday School,

& Kid’s Church followed by MV Café

10 AM

Communion 1st Sunday of each

month

Kid’s Church (birth - 5th grade)

Youth Sunday School (6th - 12th grade)

Change By Pastor Phil Sakanashi

Change isn't always easy. Sometimes we look forward to change, but many times we dread it simply because we move towards the unknown. When I think about change, I immediately think about the Israelites and how God brought them out of Egypt. It was definitely better to be free from slavery, but they still grumbled to Moses when they found themselves in a desert of un-certainty. This year we had a lot of 8th grade graduates who will begin the new journey into high school in a couple of months. I asked one of our guys, Alan Lim, if

he would be willing to share his feelings about starting high school. Here's what Alan wrote:

"I have many feelings about high school, differing from being excited to nervous. High school is a place where I know I will have fun and meet new friends, but I also know it'll be the first step into a new part of my life and into adulthood."

Please pray for Alan and our other students who will

begin a new journey at school and in life. And be en-

couraged as you yourself try to move into new things

and a closer relationship with God. The same God that

brought the Israelites out of Egypt was also faithful to

lead them to the Promised Land. Follow God. Move.

Smart Start: Building on a Strong Foundation by Ethan Dupree

In my time at APU, I had the pleasure of taking classes geared toward preparing worship leaders in the church. As I see it, they were not

simply for teaching leaders how to lead worship, but also how to approach worship as a whole---and even at times how to worship. One

such class focused around the text: “The Worship Architect: A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Ser-vices” by Constance M. Cherry. The whole premise of the book and class is the idea of viewing planning worship services as a structure

being built up from the foundation. This book offers a sort of blueprint.

As Mission Valley continues moving forward in redesigning the church campus with the building/redesign project “The Master’s Plan,” I

find myself looking back to this class and some of the terminology we used as a perfect lens with which to view and build.

A building begins at the foundation of a structure because structures are built from the bottom up. The foundation of any structure is what

provides stability and longevity for the rest of the building. If the foundation is poorly constructed, then the potential for the entire struc-

ture is severely limited.

Though today foundations are typically poured concrete, back in the days of Jesus, the foundation of a building was built with stones

fitting together like a mosaic.

This mosaic of foundational stones, if you will, was always launched from a single stone called the cornerstone. This cornerstone was

usually set at the front corner of the structure, and its orientation and setting dictated how the rest of the stones would lay out. So it was

imperative that the cornerstone was laid out true and straight and level. If not, it compromised the stability and beauty of the entire struc-

ture.

Leading us to 1 Peter 2:5-10:

Though this passage is a physical analogy of spiritual reality, we see that Jesus is the critical foundational component of the spiritual

structure being built. In fact, for anything to be considered “Christian” in the first place, it has to be founded on Jesus the Christ, the Son

of God, the First and Last, the Beginning and the End. If anything else is used as the cornerstone, the entire structure built upon it fails at

being “Christian.”

So I implore you, Mission Valley, to examine your lives and the Church we are building, where is the strength of the foundation? Do we

find strength and longevity first in the direction and guidance of our Cornerstone?

Being such as it is, this is where I leave off for now. But I plan on continuing this conversation about worship and building its structure in

the next issue of MV Life; for now, continue to worship with fervor--- always building on the foundation already laid which is Jesus

Christ.

I Corinthians 3:10-15: “Each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already

laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be

shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's

work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but

only as one escaping through the flames.” (NIV)

As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him — you also, like living stones, are

being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in

Scripture it says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to

shame." Now to you who believe, this stone is precious.

MOVE

I started going to our old church, L.A. Free Methodist Church, when I was 3 years old. I attended Sunday school where I learned classic Bible stories and memorized a lot of verses that I remember and cherish. Those were my first steps in my walk with our Lord. I accepted our Lord when I went to Camp Radford at 8 years old. Our family later moved to the Silverlake area, and I attended Christ Presbyterian Church. After Bob and I got married, we started attending Mission Val-ley. There we were baptized and then became members.

After we became small group leaders in the 90's, I believe I went through the exploring and growing in Christ stages

of MOVE. Saturday night services really helped me develop a deeper relationship with God and my brothers and sisters in

Christ.

Since then I feel I am in the third stage of MOVE, being close to Christ. Bob and I pray daily in the morning for guid-

ance and for others. I read my Bible to understand what God wants me to know in order to complete written assignments

for our small group.

I really feel that God has called me to use my gift of teaching that He gave me. I taught for over 30 years in L.A. and

have taught Sunday school for over 10 years. In order to teach the Bible lessons to the children, I read the Bible and try to

give concrete examples of the Bible stories so that the children can relate to them. I always show the children exactly

where the memory verse is found---Old or New Testament, book, chapter and verse. I feel God has gifted me to teach in

order to spread His word to the children. I feel I am just passing along what I was taught in Sunday school at our old

church. I feel I am planting a seed here at Mission Valley so that the children will learn and love God and remember what

they learned in Sunday school. I know the Sunday school teachers here at our church do a wonderful job of teaching God's word since we used to

bring our grandchildren here every Sunday. They say they learned the most about Jesus, Bible stories and verses here

rather than at the churches they are currently attending.

I still remember that as a child I always took offering to put in the offering plate at Sunday school in order to spread

God's word to non-believers. It helped me to learn that tithing faithfully is an integral part of my Christian life and my desire

to lead a Christ-centered life.

~Kay Hirose

The Children's Ministry is blessed to have Kay Hirose as a teacher and leader. She faithfully teaches our first and second graders and also partici-pates in VBS. She has been instrumental in MOVEing our Sunday School students towards a more loving and inspiring life with Jesus. Kay's faith and dedication is a model for others in our ministry and she can be counted on to volunteer for all the assorted jobs we do on Sundays. I know you will be uplifted by her MOVEing message. ~Dr. Karie Nambu-Moore, Children's Ministry Director

Hey parents!

Ready to drop a TON OF FUN right into your child’s summer ?

Then MEGA Sports Camp is right for you!

Mission Valley Free Methodist Church in San Gabriel is offering kids

in first through sixth grades one awesome time. “We want to give kids

the chance to learn more about sports, discover character-building con-

cepts, and have a whole lot of fun,” says Pastor Dave Fukuyama.

At MEGA Sports Camp Breaking Free, kids can choose between Basket-

ball, Golf, Cheerleading and Cooking. It doesn’t matter if they’ve

played all their life or just started yesterday, MEGA Sports Camp helps

kids improve their skills. All sorts of drills and practice games will get

kids focused on

the fundamentals that make athletes great. Plus, MEGA Sports Camp

creates a positive and encouraging environment that pumps up their

confidence and self-esteem.

Between Sports Sessions, coaches lead in songs, tell stories, and do cool object lessons that help character-building themes take

hold in kids’ hearts. And most importantly, kids will discover God’s great love for them.

So come on over! You can join the MEGA Sports Camp team at Mission Valley Free Methodist Church. It starts on August

12th and lasts through August 16th, from 8:30 a.m. to Noon. For complete information contact Children’s Ministry Director at

knambumoore@aol.com or register at www.missionvalleyfmc.org.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

1201 S San Gabriel Blvd

San Gabriel, CA 91776-3116

626.285.6788

office@missionvalleyfmc.org

www.missionvalleyfmc.org

Rev. David Fukuyama, Senior Pastor

Rev. Stanley Nishikubo, Associate Pastor

Rev. Yutaka Tanabe, Nichigo Pastor

Pastor Philip Sakanashi, Youth Director

Karie Nambu-Moore, Children’s Director

Ethan Dupree, Worship Director

NONPROFIT

ORGANIZATION

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

SAN GABRIEL, CA

PERMIT NO. 42

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

TIME SENSITIVE MATERIAL

My Macedonian Man

In Acts 16, Paul receives direction from God via a vision of a Macedo- nian man calling to him to come (Acts 16:9). My Macedonian man is pictured here. His name is Justin Omine and he is my grandson. I sense the Lord is using Justin just as He used the Macedonian man in Acts for Paul to call me to a differ- ent minis-try. I am resigning my position at Mission Valley in order to watch and n u r t u r e Justin during the week. I have always believed my first place of minis- try is in the family God has given me. Justin is part of that family and I feel that God wants me to take a more active role in helping Justin to grow into God’s de- sign for him. I will also be looking for part time work in the area of spiritual di- rection. I am also planning to enroll in a program that will allow me to obtain a certificate in spiritual direction. I have treasured the opportunities this position at Mission Valley has given me. I am grateful to the community at Mis-sion Valley for allowing me to share what God has given me with them. My last official Sunday will be Septem-ber 1st. I will not be attending regularly after that but if you would like me to pray or just fellowship, the church office will have a way to contact me.

Let me express again my personal thanks via this impersonal media to each of you. I will remember you all in the same manner as Paul remembered the Philippians with thanks (Philippians 1:3). I appreciate you remem-bering me in your prayers and specifically for the boldness Paul asks for in Ephesians 6:19.

~Pastor Stan Nishikubo