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New Hope's Sermon Series and Sunday School Series

Worship Service - 10:30 am
Current Sermon Series: We do a verse by verse studies of a book of the bible. We are in the Book of Genesis.
Sunday School - 9:00 am
We are doing a verse-by-verse study of the Prison Epistles (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians & Philemon).

Missionary Bulletin Board

Don't forget to check out the Missions Bulletin Board for the latest news from our missionaries around the world and the U.S. They are a true blessing and servants of God.

Editorials

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Page 4, Opinion Page, Reader - "Celebrating Gay Pride is Rebellion" Pastor Frank Nolton, New Hope Community Church - June 03, 2021

"Celebrating Gay Pride is Rebellion"

Editor: So Lodi is getting on the bandwagon and having a Gay Pride festival. It's being labeled as 'family-friendly," and includes proudly promoting the LGBTQIA+ lifestyle, drag queens on display, etc. Family-friendly?

When a society takes "pride" in its rebellion against God's moral absolutes (in this case God's clear teaching regarding sex and gender) and when a society defiantly and brazenly snubs its nose at God and defies Him openly and proudly, can judgment be far behind?

When you read the Bible's accounts concerning the end times you'll see references to nations from the North, East, and South, but never from the West. Why is this? I believe it's because the western world crumbles and falls as the end times draw near.

Look at our world today. Western Europe is weak and is inconsequential on the world stage, Canada is totally irrelevant, and the United States is disintegrating before our very eyes. No one, be it an individual or a nation, can defy our hold God and expect to escape His righteous judgment. Ancient Israel found this out the hard way. They rebelled against God and followed the way of idolatry and immorality and were conquered by the Assyrians and Babylonians.

If God did not spare His covenant people from judgment, can the United States think it will get a free pass?

I know many will read this and vilify me as a homophobic, intolerant, hateful jerk. I don’t write this out of hate, but the truth is the truth, and Christians have to stand up for God’s absolute truth. Christians don’t hate homosexuals, transgender people, or pro-abortion people. We just love God with all of our being and can’t just sit back when His name is denigrated by those who defiantly oppose Him (those who oppose His laws are ultimately opposing Him).

Is God’s judgment coming on the United States? It’s time to humble ourselves and repent before it’s too late. Or is it already too late?

Pastor Frank Nolton

Lodi

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Page 12, Religion Page, Readers Reflection - "We Need A Revival" Pastor Frank Nolton, New Hope Community Church - June 13, 2020

"We Need A Revival"

A ravaging pandemic. Freedoms being lost. Unemployment at 15%. Businesses closing down. Hatred and racism at a boing point. Cities burning. Politicians at war with each other while ignoring the citizens that elected them. Scandals at every level of government. Continuing infanticide. Sexual perversity now accepted as normal.

The United States of America, the once-great nation, is crumbling. Obviously, we were never a perfect nation, as history reveals. But, all in all, America was always a beacon of hope because we were blessed beyond measure. We were blessed because the foundation of America was built on Biblical truth.

While the founding fathers didn't intend America to be a literal "Christian nation," it is undeniable fact that Biblical principles were at the heart of the philosophy of our foundation, and, because of that, America basked in God's presence and He blessed the nation tremendously.

Where did we go wrong? We turned our back on God, rejecting the very One who was the source of our blessings, and now His presence has left. When His presence leaves a nation, the people left to their own sinful devices, which we are seeing played out before our very eyes.

What will stop our plunge into destruction? More "dialogue", education, or programs won't. These might address the symptoms but won't get to the root of the problem, which is the sinful human heart. Only Jesus can transform the human heart, and He is our only hope. We need a revival!

History records that when revival comes to an area, hearts are transformed and the light of Jesus dispels the darkness of evil. Church, when will we wake up? Will we ever wake up? Or will we dawdle in mediocrity and luke-warmness while our nation falls apart? Revival starts within the church, and it's time to fall on our faces before God in humility and genuine repentance and cry out to Him for mercy.

It's time to stop playing church and get praying! If it's not too late we still have an opportunity to see Him move powerfully in our midst. Will we pray?

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Stockton Record - "Do Black Lives Matter?" Pastor Frank Nolton, New Hope Community Church - June 2020

"Do Black Lives Matter?"

Do Black lives matter? Yes, they do. All life is sacred because every human being is an intentional, specific, unique creation of God made in His image. So, yes, Black lives matter. As do Asian lives, Latino lives, Native American lives, and White lives. So does the life of the 93-year-old with Alzheimer's who doesn't recognize his wife or kids and the child born with Down's Syndrome. All life is precious, and the horrific death of George Floyd should outrage every human being, and the protests around the country show that it did. But where is the outrage and where are the protests over the horrific murder of approximately 19 million innocent Blacks through abortion since 1973? Did these 19 million Black lives matter? Evidently not. Every human being should be outraged at the murder of these 19 million human beings, along with over 48 million babies of other races who have been aborted. Their only "crime" was being conceived. Don’t be fooled by the politically correct term “reproductive rights”. That term is meaningless. It is now proven scientific fact that life begins at conception, thus these aborted babies were murdered in cold blood. But the loud voices of the Black Lives Matter movement are strangely silent about these Black babies who were chopped up in their mother's wombs and sucked out like a piece of garbage. Do all Black lives matter or only the ones that fit the cause of protesters? Where is the outrage against abortion?

Thanks!

Pastor Frank :-)

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Page 16, Religion Page, Readers Reflection - "No Need To Fear" Pastor Frank Nolton, New Hope Community Church - April 25, 2020

"No Need To Fear"

Editor: The COFID-19 virus has gripped our nation with fear. For those who don't believe in an afterlife or are not sure of what will happen after this life is over, the fear of death is real because, in their minds, this life is all there is.

However, for those who have trusted in Jesus as Savior; death is not feared because we are convinced that there is life after this and are guaranteed eternity in the magnificent splendors of heaven (as described in Revelation 21-22).

In John 14:1-3 Jesus said: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."

So believers in Jesus live with an eternal perspective and are anchored in a living hope. 1 Peter 1:3-4 says "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you." Yes, we still take the necessary precautions to be safe (handwashing, social distancing, etc.), but we don't fear death because our hope is in the risen Jesus. Do you fear death? Remember, you're not ready to live until you're ready to die, and this readiness comes only from trusting in Jesus as Savior.

There is life after this, either heaven or hell, and no one who understands what hell is would ever want to go there. Jesus is the only way to avoid the horrible miseries of hell and enter the incredible splendors of heaven. One can have peace in the midst of pandemics, droughts, wars, or tragedy when life is anchored on the Prince of Peace - Jesus Christ.

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Page 16, Religion Page, Readers Reflection - "Have We Lost Our Way?" Pastor Frank Nolton, New Hope Community Church - February 8, 2020

"Have we lost our way?"

Editor: In Ezekiel 23:35 God said this to Judah: "...Since you have forgotten me and turned your back on me, you must bear the consequences of your lewdness and prostitution."

God's covenant people had forgotten that He was the source of their existence and blessings and that He alone was to be worshipped. As a result, they turned their back on Him, plunged into gross idolatry and immorality, and experienced His judgment.

Are we paying attention United States? The U.S. is not God's "covenant nation" in the same context as Israel, but even though our Constitution allows for the freedom of religion, it is undeniable fact that the U.S. was founded squarely on Christain principles, and because of this, He has blessed our nation enormously since our founding.

However, in the last few decades, we have forgotten this and turned our backs on Him. He has been expelled from our schools, voted out of our government ideologies, fired from our businesses, disregarded by science, and ignored in discussions on morality. His moral absolutes have been replaced by the perverse ideology of relativism, and now transgenderism and gender "choosing,' homosexuality, premarital sex, abortion, and secularism have become the accepted norms.

We have brazenly and unashamedly thumbed our nose at our holy, sovereign Creator who alone is to be worshiped and obeyed. Ancient Israel did the same and fell under God's righteous judgment.

It is pure arrogance to think that the U.S. will not experience the same type of judgment for the same type of sin.

Our only hope is to humbly repent and cry out to God for mercy, and the church must lead the way. Sadly, however, the church is in no better shape than the "world." We have lost our first love, Jesus, and replaced Him with "self," and are only a shadow of the holy bride He's called us to be. Zechariah 1:3 says: "Return to me...and I will return to you." Church, we will heed God's call to repentance, come back to Him, and then lead the nation back to God?

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Letters to the Editor – 12/14/2019

“Don’t take ‘Christmas’ out of Christmas"

As a nation, we have become so fragile and spineless, and nowhere is this seen more clearly than at Christmas time. We have holiday trees, schools have winter break, and we send holiday cards. Heaven forbid we use that phrase that strikes terror in people and causes lasting mental and emotional distress – that dreaded phrase “Merry Christmas”.

For decades, hearing the words “Merry Christmas” never caused stress and anguish that drove people to a psychiatrist, but in the last twenty years or so the phrase “Merry Christmas” has turned our culture into mental and emotional mush.

Parents are afraid their kids will receive irreparable damage to their psyche if they hear “Merry Christmas” at school, and I’ve read that some schools have even banned red and green during December. How absurd! Additionally, businesses tell their employees to wish customers “Happy Holidays”, avoiding the words “Merry Christmas” like they avoid bad customer reviews, lawsuits, and the IRS. They have become terrified of offending customers, as if the word “Christmas” is really offensive.

Businesses have cowered down to the bullying tactics of the politically correct police, which are like vultures circling around waiting for someone to violate their self-made and self-enforced rules of what is offensive and what is not. Everyone is so afraid of being labeled insensitive or intolerant that they spinelessly march lockstep with the politically correct parade.

Admittedly, the word “Christmas” is Christian, designating the birth of Jesus, but saying “Merry Christmas” isn’t shoving religion down anyone’s throat. Goodness, people need to grow up and get over it. Quite a few generations survived quite nicely when they heard, and, horror of horrors, even used those words “Merry Christmas.”

Sorry, but December is the Christmas season and December 25th is Christmas day, the day the church celebrates the birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and no one will ever change this. You’ll never take Christ out of Christmas.

If someone doesn’t believe in the Christian view of Christmas, they don’t have to celebrate it at all, or they can just make it a secular holiday (which most do anyway).

MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Religion Section – 08/31/2019

America has gone stark raving mad – myriads of gender “choices”, gay marriage, abortion, legalized drug use, mass shootings, racism, sexual promiscuity – and the list goes on. We’re on a collision course with destruction.

And where is the church in this mess? The church has fallen asleep. It’s time to wake up Church!! It’s time we get our head out of the sand and take a realistic look at what’s going on. We’ve deluded ourselves into a “lala” land of “positive and encouraging” while our nation crumbles around us.

Wake up, Church! It’s time to stop putting our energy and time into showing the world how “cool” we are with our latte bars, smoke and mirrors music, and “me” centered sermons filled with jokes and cute stories so attendees can come to church and have “fun”, feel good about themselves, and laugh. I’m sorry, but there is nothing funny about the condition of our country. Church, we’ve amused and entertained ourselves to death.

Wake up, Church! Jesus never called us to be cool. He called us to be holy surrendered disciples. Wake up, Church! We’ve settled for a shallow, mediocre walk with Jesus, knowing more about the newest iPhone app, fantasy football stats, and top box office movie than we do about the Bible and theology. We’ve lost our first love –Jesus, become lukewarm, and played the harlot with the world.

Wake up, Church! The most powerful entity on the planet, the church of Jesus Christ, has become powerless to impact our world. We’ve become powerless because we’ve become passionless, and we’ve become passionless because we’ve become prayerless. And we lost the culture.

Wake up, Church! We’ve lulled ourselves into a false sense of God’s approval and have become blind to our own sin.

Wake up, Church! We live in desperate times and need to repent with a sense of urgency as we humbly cast ourselves at His feet for mercy and cry out for revival. This is our only hope. If we fail, His judgment could be near, and it will begin within the walls of His church.

OH, CHURCH, WAKE UP!

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in the Lodi News-Sentinel, General Letters to the Editor Page – 08/08/2019

In the wake of three more senseless, brutal mass shootings, the finger pointing of blame has begun – guns, the NRA, Trump, racism, etc. There is, to be sure, many factors that cause someone to perpetrate such a heinous crime – mental illness, family dynamics, radicalized ideas, personal ideologies, etc. – but there is one factor that is dismissed by most and ignored by others - Darwinian evolution, which took God out of the equation of life and drained the human soul of hope and purpose. Our kids are taught that they exist by random chance as byproducts of primordial ooze over billions of years of evolution. There is no purpose or reason for life, just chance. This life, they are taught, is all there is, and death ends their existence. Evolution, in effect, teaches that life is not sacred or valuable because only chance and blind fate determine who survives. The natural results of this teaching are hopelessness, selfishness, and anger, which we see played out in senseless violence. Have we had enough yet? Since evolution has been proven to be false, why is it still being taught in schools? Because our nation has turned its back on God and refuses to acknowledge Him as the sovereign creator of the universe. If our kids were taught the truth that they are intentional, unique, purposeful creations of God, that they are loved by Him, that He has a plan and purpose for their lives, and that there is hope beyond this life, would there be as many angry, desperate people in our country? Do you think that life would be looked at differently because each life is a purposeful creation of God? Oh, I’m not blindly naïve to think that teaching creation instead of evolution would end all violence and crime. We live in a fallen world and sin still is entrenched in the human heart. But I believe that we would see much less anger and violence if the truth – creation – was taught. If we continue to eliminate God from our country, these awful acts of violence will only get worse. Have we had enough yet?

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Editorial Page – 07/2019

In discussing the task of engaging the culture with biblical truth, Christians usually quote 1 Peter 3:15 “…Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”, with the emphasis always being on “with gentleness and respect”. The thought was that being so would make Jesus attractive to the culture. We were wrong. While we should never be obnoxiously smug and arrogant in presenting biblical truth, being meek and sweet will not attract people to Jesus in our current cultural context. We have taken “gentleness and respect” to the extreme and have become so syrupy sweet that we’ve been bullied into submission by those who oppose Christianity, to the extent that we are considered irrelevant, and even dangerous, in any theological, moral and ethical discussions. In the past, atheists and Christians would disagree but the dialogue remained civil. However, in the last twenty or so years the rules of engagement changed, the “new atheist” mind set burgeoned, and those against Christianity have become militant in their verbal attacks (i.e. Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, etc.). Christianity was over run and, sadly, we lost the culture. Church, it’s time we add polemics (a strong verbal attack against an idea) to our apologetics (a defense of what we believe). We have the truth, and we need to be fearless and bold in attacking the beliefs of those who oppose Christianity, showing the fallacy of these beliefs with sound, logical, and tactful arguments (polemics), and then boldly present biblical truth (apologetics). Paul said in 2 Corinthians 10:5 “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God…”(polemics), and in Ephesians 6:19 “and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel”(apologetics). If we are to win the culture back for Jesus, we need to use both of these tactics. If not, the truths of Jesus Christ will fade into oblivion in America.

Editorial Letters - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in both the Lodi News-Sentinel and The Stockton Record, Editorial Page – 01/28/2019

New York just passed the Reproductive Health Act which, in reality, is an outrage against humanity. This diabolical bill erases the killing of a baby in utero from the criminal code, allows people other than doctors to perform abortions, allows abortions up to the actual delivery date, and repeals protections for babies who survive abortions. Yes, a woman could be 40 weeks pregnant and then decide that she is not emotionally ready to be a mother (her emotional state is not “healthy”) and abort her baby as he is coming down the birth canal. And if the baby somehow survives the savage brutality of the abortion attempt, the abortionist has no legal obligation to render medical aid to him. Basically, the abortionist will kill the baby by not treating him. This is beyond shocking. And the New York Assembly Chamber erupted in a standing ovation when the bill passed. In New York, the death penalty was repealed in 2004, so a convicted murderer, even a serial murderer, cannot be put to death for his crime. However, in New York, there is a legal death penalty on innocent babies, whether inside the womb or outside of it. What have we become? All elective abortion is murder because it is scientific fact that life begins at conception, but even though this heinous crime was legalized by Roe v Wade, at least there were restrictions on late term abortions. No more. That last time human life was devalued to such an extent was in Germany when an insane dictator names Adolph Hitler had the same view of Jews that the New York legislators have of babies – subhuman, unwanted, and expendable. The political left, the same people who say that a border wall is immoral, think that slaughtering babies, even at full gestation or even alive outside the womb, is not immoral. What have we become? We have become savage, immoral barbarians that openly flaunt our evil. A standing ovation for infanticide? God help us.

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in the Lodi News-Sentinel, Editorial Page – 01/19/2019

America enters this new year in serious trouble. We've turned our backs on God, and the evidence is everywhere. We continue to slaughter babies in their mother's wombs by the millions. His design for sexuality and marriage has been totally perverted. Gender is now determined by our own sinful whims instead of how we were created. Pornography, drug abuse, racism, anger, and hatred are rampant.

Have we finally exhausted the limits of God’s patience and crossed the line into certain judgment? Is it too late for America?

We don’t know, so we desperately need a remnant of God’s people to cry out for revival in this new year. We need a Third Great Awakening! We need a powerful move of the Holy Spirit in a heaven-sent revival, and it must start in the church. The bride of Christ, the church, has become like the Laodicean church, thinking we're just fine when we are actually lukewarm, wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked. We have become like the church in Sardis, thinking we are alive when we are actually dead. We have become like the churches in Pergamum and Thyatira, which compromised truth and tolerated sin. We have become the Ephesian church which had lost its first love.

We have become pragmatic instead of prayerful, entertained instead of worshipful, hip instead of holy, relevant instead of reverent, spineless instead of bold, casual instead of passionate, compromised instead of radical, and comfortable instead of convicted. We really like ourselves, but what does God think about us?

We need to fall on our faces before God and humbly repent of our own sins, because before we address the sins "out there", we must first address the sins within the walls of the church. We need God to break us of our lukewarmness, pride, and compromise.

We need God to break us of "self". It is only through a revived church that is totally sold out to God that the hearts of our nation will be transformed and our nation healed. We need God to rend the heavens and come down in revival, one more time.

And may the revival start with me.

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Editorial Page - 10/16/2018

The confirmation hearings on Brett Kavanaugh were absurd. The Senate Judiciary Committee had over one million pages of documents on him, but the Democrats still wanted more (like they were really going to read one million pages). Then, when it became clear they couldn’t stop his appointment, the process turned dark and ugly. An accusation of sexual misconduct, which could not be proven "surfaced" at the eleventh hour, even though this accusation was known weeks earlier. The day of the testimony from Kavanaugh and his accuser was disturbing. Kavanaugh was treated like a vile, loathsome scumbag by Democrats who threw out our constitution and considered him guilty unless he could prove his innocence. This fiasco shows how low the left will stoop to in order to keep a woman’s ability to murder her unborn baby legal. Make no mistake about it, this whole circus was about one issue - abortion. The left is terrified that Kavanaugh will be the deciding vote to overturn Roe v Wade. We are seeing, in shocking reality, how much the left is in love with murdering babies. They use the politically correct phrase "a women's reproductive rights", but this is a straw man argument. The question of whether life begins at conception is no longer a matter of opinion, it is irrefutable scientific fact. Since an embryo is a genuine member of the human family, the premeditated killing of him/her is murder. No, the issue of abortion is not about women's reproductive rights, it is about morality, plain and simple. Our society has adopted a casual view of sex, and babies, the natural result of sex, get in the way and must be eliminated so people can gorge themselves in even more casual sex. But, some argue, what about rape, incest, or health of the mother? These comprise a miniscule percentage of abortions, and there are solid answers to these objections (space limitations prevents me from discussing them). Abortion is a horrible stain on America, but the left thinks it’s so wonderful that they will destroy a man and his family to keep it legal. How tragic.

Editorial Letter - Pastor Frank Nolton- Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Religion Page - 09/15/2018

I believe that one of the major deficiencies of modern-day Christianity is our view of God. In order to attract more people to church and make them feel comfortable, the church has presented God as just a shadow of His true essence. We have made Him too ordinary, too common, and too plain. We have brought Him down to our level, thinking people will see Him as more approachable and more relevant. In this quest to make God more acceptable, we have portrayed Him as a cosmic genie who is just waiting to grant our wishes, or “Joe” down the street who we watch football and eat guacamole with, or as some cool dude who plays video games and lives on social media.

In short, we have created God in our image. How utterly tragic. Today’s Christianity has lost the understanding of the awesome holiness and majestic glory of God. In the Bible, everyone who caught a glimpse of the incredible awesomeness of God were overwhelmed beyond words.

Indeed, the very nature of God– His sovereignty, omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, eternality, holiness, righteousness, justice, and immutability- is so profound that it causes us to fall on our faces in worship of such a magnificent Being. Yet, this awesome God is our “Abba”, our daddy who we can have a deep intimate relationship with through faith in Jesus.

It is so crucial to have a Biblically balanced understanding of these two aspects – the transcendent majesty of God (the mental knowledge of who He is), and our personal relationship with (the emotional connection with Him).

Both of these, in proper balance, are necessary because having just mental knowledge (without emotion) leads to cold legalism, and just having an emotional connection (without mental knowledge) leads to lukewarm mediocrity.

No, we don’t need to “change” God to make Him relevant to our culture. He is always relevant, and He is enough! Know God intellectually and worship Him. Love Him intimately and have a deep relationship with Him.

When you have a healthy balance of these two, you will know our awesome God as He wants to be known.

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter – Pastor Frank Nolton – Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Religion Section - 06/2018

California Assembly Bill 2943, which passed in the Assembly and is now in the Senate, is a horrendous piece of legislation that is both unconstitutional and anti-Christian. The bill's digest reads, "This bill would include, as an unlawful practice prohibited under the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, advertising, offering to engage in, or engaging in sexual orientation change efforts with an individual." AB 2943 amends the Civil Code relating to unlawful business practices by adding the following to Section 1761: “’Sexual orientation change efforts’ means any practices that seek to change an individual’s sexual orientation. This includes efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions, or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward individuals of the same sex”, and adds the following as a fraudulent business practice to Section 1770: “Advertising, offering to engage in, or engaging in sexual orientation change efforts with an individual”. The bill’s verbiage is very broad, and, in essence, prohibits any financial transactions for books, pamphlets, conferences, counseling, or other communications that speak against homosexuality or encourages individuals to seek help who struggle with same sex attractions or who have gender identity confusion, as these would be considered fraudulent business practices. Since, the Bible is very clear that homosexuality violates God’s moral standard for sex, would the Bible now be banned from being sold in California? Remember, the bill’s wording is so broad that it could be interpreted to include the Bible. AB 2943 is unconstitutional in that it violates free speech - since when does the government dictate what written or oral communication can be sold, or regulate what a counselor says to his patient? This bill is also a direct attack on Biblical Christianity. If you don’t think so just hear what Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) said during the Assembly floor discussion on AB 2943: “The faith community, like anyone else, needs to evolve with the times”. No Assemblyman Muratsuchi, God’s moral absolutes don't need to evolve with the culture. The culture needs to obey God’s moral absolutes. Sadly, and tragically, California continues its brazen, defiant hostility towards God and Christianity.

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

Editorial Letter – Pastor Frank Nolton - Published in The Lodi News-Sentinel, Religion Section - 05/2018

We live in an angry, violent, and immoral nation. Mass shootings, racial unrest, political divide, road rage, bullying, lack of civility, abortion, gender changing, promiscuous heterosexual sex, homosexuality, gay marriage, and a soaring teen suicide rate. How have we degenerated into such an abysmal condition? While the “experts” and “scholars” give their opinions (which are usually just a bunch of politically correct drivel), I believe that what we are seeing today, and will continue to see in increasing measure in the future, is rooted in Darwin's theory of evolution. Kids are taught that they exist by mere random chance, not because of the intentional, purposeful will of a personal, creator God. There was just a big bang and billions of years of evolution. That’s all. Thus, there is nothing beyond this life – no heaven, no hell. Our entire existence consists of the few decades we live on earth, then we die and are stuck in the ground. And it’s over. With a philosophy like this the best humans beings can do is “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die”. No wonder there is so much anger and despair – evolution makes life void of meaning or purpose. No wonder there is a devaluation of human life – since everyone is here by random chance life has no real intrinsic value. No wonder there is so much hedonism and moral debauchery – since this life is all there is we might as well live for all the selfish pleasure we can get while we can get it. This leads to a self-centered “me” attitude, which leads to the breakdown of decency and morality, which negatively impacts society, which destroys the family structure, which leads to anger, rebellion, and immorality, which leads to the United States in 2018. You see, without God in the equation of existence, life is purposeless and is void of any truth or meaning. Without the one true God , there’s nothing left but us. And “us” ain’t so wonderful. God is the only answer to the problems we face. It’s time to put Him back into the equation that he Himself established.

Pastor Frank Nolton

New Hope Community Church

How Strong Is My Faith

This is from our June 10, 2018 sermon entitled "Foundations of a Strong Faith"

Sermon - "Foundations of a Strong Faith", the Pastor has asked us all to take this quiz. Could your faith be stronger? For all of us, I'm sure the answer is always YES! This quiz helps us to see where we can work on our faith, through prayer.

Rules of the game:

1) This is for your eyes only

2) This is to help you get closer to God

3) There are no wrong answers, only honest ones

4) If you score a "40", you win a counseling session with Pastor Frank Nolton ASAP - joke - but he does want to see you and discuss :-)

Score: 4 = always, 3 = usually, 2 = sporadically, 1 = seldom, 0 = never

When questioned about theology, I know where to turn in the Bible for answers ___
I am willing to stand up for what I believe, regardless of the consequences of my doing so ___
I have no doubt that God is in total control of my life and is with me every moment ___
When trials come in my life, instead of getting anxious or worried, I bring all my concerns to God in prayer ___
Prayer is a major part of my everyday life ___
My devotion to God is not based on my happiness, and gladly accept that life is not about me ___
I desire to surrender totally to God rather than be in control of my life, to be spiritually broken rather than be self-reliant and self-sufficient, and to die to self than be popular ___
My life is characterized by immediate unconditional obedience to God as He leads me in my life ___
My greatest joy in life is bringing glory to Jesus ___
I am growing deeper in love with Jesus ___

So how did you score?