The Thursday Update

Lakeshore Friends—

There is not a lot to hope for in our world today.  COVID, war, inflation, crime, violence and so much more have taken a quantum leap up and that has in turn threatened to take our hopefulness down… down in a big way. 

But the Good News is that Jesus Christ can give us hope in any and every situation because of His resurrection!  Facing the most hopeless situation of all time, death, Jesus rose from death into a new resurrected life; a first in human history.  And 1 Peter 1:3 tells us that His resurrection can also give us a new life that fills us with a living hope, that is, a hope that is enduring despite everything happening around us today. 

On Easter weekend, we’ll learn how to find and experience this Easter hope through the resurrection power of Jesus Christ!  The services on Saturday night and Sunday morning are identical and will infuse you with hope like nothing else can.

I hope you’ll be here and that you’ll invite others to meet you here.  They will be encouraged as well! 

Please pray for the services to be used by God to help you and everyone who attends.

Warmly,

Vince

Lakeshore Friends—

Have you spent more time in prayer since we began the Power of Prayer series?  Our desire is to help you not only learn more about prayer but also to pray more every day.

One of the greatest signs of a quality relationship is the level of communication that takes place between the two parties.  Unfortunately, when a married couple is not relating well, their communication tends to be absent, short, or even toxic.  On the other hand, when a couple relates well, they communicate regularly, lovingly, and healthily.

The same is true of our relationship with God.

If you want to feel closer to God, prayer is one of the most important ways to do that.  He wants us to pray so that we get to know Him (remember, He already knows us really well).  Prayer helps us see God better, see Him at work in our everyday life, learn to trust Him, and find his answers to our dilemmas in life.  And so much more.

So, I hope you’ll pray more to get closer to God.  And while you’re at it, let’s pray for the people in our lives to attend church this Easter.  God wants a relationship with them too.

Warmly,
Vince

Lakeshore Friends—

If you’re like me, prayer is hard work.  It rarely comes easy to me.  I used to think that I was alone in this perspective… but I’m not.  So many people I talk to tell me they feel the same challenge in their own lives.

That’s unfortunate because prayer is simply amazing.

Think of it.  Where else can you have unlimited access to someone like God?  Where else can you have your burdens relieved so completely?  Where else can you find hope for a heart that is filled with despair?  Where else can you experience the God of the universe so personally?  And yet, somehow, despite all of this and so much more, we struggle to pray.

Maybe we need to see prayer for what it really is and not for the hard work that it may require?  Maybe we just need to remember that God loves to hear from us and to help us?

As we embark on our church-wide prayer effort (if you haven’t signed up yet, you can right here), let’s remember what we’re really doing and then let that inspire us to really do it— to really pray.

Warmly,
Vince