The Wednesday Update

Lakeshore Friends—

This is Jill, your friendly Children’s Director, coming to you this week. Pastor Vince is letting me hijack his usual blog spot. I wanted to do so for a very special reason. Back in August, you all completely surprised me by celebrating my 20^th Anniversary as Lakeshore’s Children’s Director. I was deeply touched by your recognition and your very kind words.

Twenty years is a long time; it has passed by in the blink of an eye. There are more memories than I could ever count- multiple locations (yes, I was part of those “build a church every Sunday” days), thousands of lessons planned and prepared, hundreds of teammates over the years – so many who became and remain dear friends, and the kids... every single one of them. Watching kids grow in their faith from infancy to young adulthood has been a tremendous joy in my life. Walking through devastating circumstances with kids and their families has allowed me to see God working in the incredible ways only He can. Getting to experience Lakeshore’s growth over the years has continually grown my own faith as well. 

And then, last week, I received a check from my Lakeshore family. I knew it was coming (my hearing is still pretty good) but I could not have imagined the very generous amount! And yet, why am I surprised?! I’ve been doing life with so many of you for so long. I’ve experienced your love, kindness, and generosity for years. With all of my heart, I’m saying THANK YOU for blessing me so generously and I’m thanking our God for allowing me to be in this place at this time.

While I cherish every memory behind us, I am just as excited to see what God has in store for the generations of children and families still to come.

Looking forward to seeing what God will do through all of us together,

Jill

Lakeshore Friends—

The kick-off of our new series, “Can You Relate?” and the start of the new three-service format have finally arrived.  As I was thinking about both of these events, I realized that they have one thing in common: they both require risk.

There is a lot of risk involved in adding a third service.  Not only does the workload increase for everyone at Lakeshore who serves, there is the risk that the church will not keep growing and that we’re doing all of this for no tangible benefit as a result.  There is also the risk that people won’t like some aspect of the changes involved, like the new service times, new tighter schedules between services, traffic changes in the parking lot, and the like.  But we press on with three services for one simple reason: it’s worth the risk!  We want to make room for more people and we are willing to sacrifice, if necessary, to do so.  Time will tell if this initiative works, but I am trusting God that it will over the long haul.

There is also a lot of risk involved in trying to make friends and then go deeper in those relationships as we started to learn last Sunday in our new series.  There are no guarantees how people will respond to our desire to become friends or deepen our friendship with them.  They may reject us or just keep their distance.  But wise people know when to take risks and how to take them for one simple reason: it’s worth the risk!  Going deeper with people in your relational orbit is what every human heart craves and needs, so we are willing to take the risk.

So how do you go deeper in your relationships?  I’ll talk about the four strategic risks that you and I have to take to deepen our relationships with others, including with our spouse, fiancée, children, parents, coworkers, neighbors, extended family, teammates, and even people that we meet.  We’ll see how the Apostle Paul models this in 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12 and draw some timeless truth from it.

Thanks for your support and patience as we navigate all the new challenges that adding a third service creates.  We’re working hard to try and make this the best experience for everyone.

Look forward to seeing you on Sunday,

Vince

Lakeshore Friends—

Change isn’t always easy, but it is often necessary and beneficial.  We often like the results of change but sometimes we’re not as enthusiastic about the work required to get there.  Maybe that’s why there’s a saying that “the only person who likes change is a baby with a wet diaper.”

But because so many people have worked and planned for this week since last April, most of the hard work is behind us and we’re excited for all the new things kicking off this week.  The three biggest are:

1. Midweek Bible Study kicks off on Wednesday from 7 - 8pm in the Auditorium. 

Midweek Bible Study is designed to help you go deeper and grow deeper in your faith.  On Wednesday, we are beginning the most important Midweek series we have ever taught— Life Foundations.  It is a 21-week series that will teach you the key beliefs and theology of the Christian faith.  We’ll look at why theology is not boring but critical to our lives, the nature of the Bible, understanding God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, Angels (good and bad), human nature, salvation, sanctification (how we grow in our faith), the church, the resurrection, the afterlife and God’s prophetic plan for the future.  It’s designed to help you know why we believe what we believe while also helping you learn how to think through your faith so that you understand the Bible and God in every area of life.  And we have created a 115-page workbook that we will be giving everyone who attends free of charge! And there are classes for your younger kids – infants through 5^th grade!

2. Lakeshore Students also kicks off on Wednesday from 6:30 – 8:30pm in the Student wing.

Our student ministry is for kids in 6^th through 12^th grade and meets weekly to help kids understand their faith, grow in it and have fun with other kids all in one night.  We have kids who are exploring their faith, new in their faith and those who are advanced in their faith, so it really will meet your kids right where they are.  Our student Pastor Nate Zablotny as well as our new Student Administrative Assistant Erin Ortiz, lead a great team of leaders who will help your kids get closer to God, know more about the Bible, and form great positive relationships in an impactful environment.  And the good news is that it starts before and ends after Midweek Bible Study so you can make it an evening that your whole family enjoys!

3. We begin our new three-service format on Sunday as we make room for more people in Rochester: 8:30, 10:00 and 11:30am.

We’re also beginning a great new series in the New Testament book of 1 Thessalonians called, “Can You Relate?”  Thanks to the increased use of digital devices, hyper-individualism, information overload, shrinking attention spans, rising polarization and more, people are struggling like never before to communicate and relate well face-to-face with people.  As a result, relationships today can be shallow, superficial, unsatisfying and even more short-term than they could or should be.  So how can we build and maintain meaningful relationships with the important people in our lives as we navigate the realities of our day?  The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians.  This series will help you learn how to relate great to all kinds of people!

I hope you’ll make the time to be here for all of these faith-building experiences  and invite people who may need them to join you.

Warmly,

Vince