The Thursday Update

AUGUST 1, 2024

Lakeshore Friends—

I’m sure you’ve heard about the opening ceremony of the Olympics and what was a blatant mockery of Christianity in general and Jesus’ last supper in particular.  I really appreciated what Pastor Frank had to say about it during his message last Sunday.  It’s sad that this always happens to Christianity and Christians, but never to other religious leaders or their belief systems.  Ever notice that?  Can you imagine if they had done this to Islam, Hinduism, or some other world religion? 

Neither can I. 

The reason for the open mockery of Christianity and not other religions by the world should be obvious— Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6) and many people simply reject it (and reject Him) for it.  So they do all they can to attack our faith to fight against it.  It’s a sad reaction to a Savior who bled and died for their sins out of love.

So what’s the answer?  We have to live “by faith!”  We have to live for God knowing that there really is a great reward ahead for all those who trust Him and live for Him “by faith.”

That’s why I believe that this summer series is so important for all of us to go through and learn from.  We need to live “by faith” and Hebrews 11 is God’s hall of fame list of heroes who have done just that.  I believe that God led us to teach this at a time like this for a reason.  We need models to help us live for Him “by faith,” even when we are opposed by people who don’t like our God and, as a result, don’t like us.  Who knows, it may be that it could lead to some of these people embracing Jesus “by faith?"

I hope you’ll be here Sunday as I return to continue this series.  I heard about someone who told me that he struggles with his faith and wanted to be here each week to learn more about faith and becoming a Christian.  He’s been here every week.  I hope you will share that same hunger to grow “by faith” as well.

Warmly,
Vince

JULY 18, 2024

Hey Lakeshore—

Now that we have a better understanding of what it's like to live in “tornado alley,” we can go back again to summering hard.  I don’t know about you, but the winds near our home on Monday and Tuesday were ferocious.  I was amazed as I watched wind drive the rain in sheets across the front lawn.  At one point I remember looking for the funnel cloud because there was a rotation to the wind that I had never seen before.  It was lashing the trees and knocking down branches.  It was mesmerizing to watch.

Obviously, I was not paying any attention to the warnings going off on my phone, or on the news.  I kept watching to make sure everything was OK.  Although if all of a sudden something wasn’t OK, I’m not sure what I would have done.  Going to the basement didn’t occur to me.  I’ve never had to do that.  I’ve never seen a storm like this before.

The Bible gives us warnings about things to come, things we haven’t seen before.  What do we do with those warnings?  Do we ignore them like the high wind warnings we had this past week?  Do we just hope for the best?  Maybe we can put confidence in our own abilities to deal with the situation?  All have been tried before. 

But what do we do when God warns us?  This Sunday, we'll look at how one of the heroes in “Faith’s Hall of Fame” (Hebrews 11) responded to the warning of God and changed human history.

See you Sunday!

Love and blessings,
Pastor Brian

JULY 11, 2024

Hey Lakeshore—

We are in full swing of the summer season here at Lakeshore!  With the start of our By Faith series, celebrating 5 student baptisms this week, and LOVE WEEK on the horizon, there is no better time to be part of what God is doing here!

We've also officially begun our final phase of technology and production updates in the auditorium and throughout the campus.  You’ve been hearing for a few weeks now that things are going to look a bit different.  This is the first week of that reality and we just ask for a little extra grace and patience as we do our best to navigate some temporary set-ups.  Of course, this is all to minister better to everyone and for the future generations.

I hope to see you this Sunday as we continue diving into Hebrews 11, looking at the next 'Hall of Faith-er,' Enoch.  It’s a fascinating story and super practical for our everyday!

See you then.

Pastor Brian