Fall Week of Worship: Destined for God

From October 6 to 10, Pacific Union College held the fall Week of Worship service featuring guest speaker and ‘15 PUC alumnus Pastor Josue Hernandez.

On Monday, Pastor Hernandez began his sermon by reminiscing about his experience as a student at PUC, where he met his wife, Emily, and formed some of his best memories, despite facing challenges along the way. After sharing this, he shifted the direction to Matthew 24:13, where Jesus says, “But the one who endures to the end is the one who will be saved.” Pastor Hernandez stated that this chapter in the Bible serves as a God-given life guide, especially amid the fear and anxiety circulating in the world today.

He continued by sharing that many people across generations have endured and navigated turbulent moments, but those who thrive in these difficult seasons have chosen to build their lives on the assurance of God’s love, making Jesus the center.

Pastor Hernandez then enlightened students with the perspective on abiding, offering three points: embrace each season, slow down, and trust God. With that, he also shared the story of a moment that changed his life, which was when he found out his father was brain-dead five years ago. He expressed gratitude to Emily for being by his side and emphasized how he abided and trusted God by embracing that season, as hard as it was.

Throughout the week, the theme of the sermon continued with messages from Matthew 24 about living well in times of turbulence, because pain and suffering are inevitable in human life.

“The kinds of people we are called to be as followers of Jesus are people of hope, especially in distressing situations,” said Pastor Hernandez.

With hope comes preparation for Jesus’s second coming, faithful and grateful in the everyday ordinary moment, habit, and pattern. Pastor Hernandez tied this example to his own marriage, stating that his relationship with Emily is one he intentionally invests in, with the small moments amounting to bigger, more impactful moments, growing their connection further.

“Faithfulness is showing up every single day, doing what God has called us to do, no matter how small and insignificant it might seem. The best relationships are built that way, and I believe the best relationship that we can have with God is also built that way,” he said. “The season that we are living in today– the times that we find ourselves in, the challenges that we face, I hope you will find some source of encouragement in the reminder that Jesus walks every single day with us.”

“Embedded in this day are unique experiences, encounters, meetings, schedules, and moments that no other day has,” said Pastor Hernandez as he passionately continued the mid-week worship sermon.

He pointed listeners to Matthew 25:1-13, referring to the parable of the 10 virgins– five with oil in their lamps and five without– signifying the sense of preparedness for Jesus’s second coming, “for we do not know the day or the hour.”

In this chapter, Jesus tells the five unprepared women that He does not know them. Pastor Hernandez further emphasizes the need to be prepared by the connections and prayers we invest in our relationship with God, because what truly matters beyond the physical realm is spiritual readiness. One must foster and seek this intimate relationship with God, embracing silence and slowing down in the midst of the motions of school, life, and career. The theme of this sermon was that it is up to each person to embrace readiness even when motivation runs out or inspiration fades.

“Readiness is the ability to stay on course, be faithful, be committed, and to embrace the challenge– keeping at it when it gets boring and you think to yourself that you’re tired of this,” Pastor Hernandez stated. “It’s about showing up and doing the things that you are called to do.”

On Thursday, Pastor Hernandez changed gears and asked two students to join him at the pulpit. He asked the students to point out what they saw in the church, to which they said many things: students, windows, familiar and unfamiliar faces, and the list went on. He then shifted his attention to the audience, asking them what they noticed about the students and their findings, and someone answered that both students wore glasses. This occurrence led Pastor Hernandez to the next theme for the week: your perspective of God will shape your outlook on life.

He referenced Matthew 25:14-29– the parable of the talents– where Pastor Hernandez highlights how a master gives each of his servants according to their ability, just like the kingdom of Heaven. Two of the servants invested the money and produced more than what they were given, and the other servant buried his talents in the ground out of fear.

This parable teaches the reader that they could either multiply their gifts fruitfully or hide them out of laziness or neglect. Pastor Hernandez ties this parable back to how God gives every one of His children a gift that is special to their capabilities.

Before ending his sermon, Pastor Hernandez left the audience with a pondering question: “What are you looking for today?”

“Maybe it’s time for us to realize that we have a God who sees us through eyes of compassion and mercy like a loving Father over His children who sees them full of potential,” said Pastor Hernandez as he looked into the crowd, proclaiming the diversity of majors and the uniqueness of each individual’s path.

“God will now say 'go,' and He won’t give specific instructions about what you should do with your gift,” he said. “God will say, just go– I trust you and I believe in you. I know that you’ve been destined and built for great things.”

He ended his impactful sermon of the week by telling the congregation to take what God has given each of them and do great things fearlessly. “You will be on the receiving end of the Father’s words, saying, “Good and faithful servant! Let us celebrate together.”