Following the Evidence in the Universe Dear Church Family, As you will see this coming Sunday, it’s all about VBS this next week. I ask that you volunteer, invite kids to come, and pray. In fact, I would ask a specific favor of you all, and that is to pray and fast on Thursday, which is the day we share the Gospel with the children who are old enough to make a decision. Thank you in advance for being a Kingdom builder. I will also ask another favor and that is if you are able to help with the clean up on Thursday, that is where we always need lots of help. As my old sergeant used to say, “Many hands make the work light!” Well, I found another article that I thought you might enjoy— Antony Flew was one of the most influential atheist philosophers of the 20th century. He debated C.S. Lewis and shaped modern unbelief. Then, [...]

The Old Testament and the Cross Dear Church Family, This is a reminder to please sign up to work VBS if you are able. We have increased the level of our background checks this year, so it takes a little more time. This is essential in helping keep our kids safe! Also, please take one of the sticky bears off the column in the foyer to help us with supplies. We will have to be patient with the renovation going on in the Preschool Wing, but how exciting it will be when it is finished! The following is another great insight from Dr. Chad Bird I hope you’ll enjoy: Blink and you will miss some masterful biblical interpretation and preaching in 1 Corinthians 1. Paul the Apostle is also Professor Paul the Bible Teacher. Paul exemplifies how Jewish interpretation often worked. At the end of 1 Corinthians 1, he quotes a little section of Jeremiah 9:24, “Let the one [...]

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit Dear Church Family, This month I ask you to pray, serve, invite, and or bring stuff for our Vacation Bible School. This is a precious time with our children and the Gospel is shared. I’m so grateful for our staff and volunteers who transform our campus into a wonderland! Speaking of transforming our campus, please pray for our renovation of our preschool wing. I think it will make a huge difference as we reach young families. We have had over $500,000 given and we’d love to have $500,000 more to pay it off. Will you seek the LORD and ask Him what amount you might give? This is a great investment for the Kingdom! Wesley Huff is an up-and-coming theologian from Canada I recommend to you. I listened to Wesley Huff share the following about the Trinity (I’m also so thankful for Pastor Malcolm and his great knowledge of the Trinity) [...]

The Depth of God's Sacrificial Love Dear Church Family, As we get into Summer, I hope you will be praying about being part of the many activities such as VBS, mission trips, and camps. We are always in need of leaders in all of these areas. Pray this week for our team going to Chiapas, Mexico. This is a Compassion International trip, which is a great organization. I found a beautiful insight I thought I’d share with you this week: The commonly held interpretation of the parable of the pearl of great price and the hidden treasure does not fit the context. Look at Matthew 13, which contains a series of parables. In each one, notice who the primary actor is. The sower went out to sow. A man sowed good seed in his field. A man sowed a mustard seed. A woman hid leaven in flour. In each of these, the subject of the action is symbolic of [...]

Jeroboam's Idolatry and God's Mercy Dear Church Family, May is a month filled with life events. We dedicate parents and their babies, we recognize graduating seniors, and we remember those who gave their lives for their country so we might be free. Thank you for being a part of these events and praying for those mentioned. Also, I wanted to thank those of you who have given to our preschool renovation. We just made it to the halfway mark in our offerings to have it paid in full. If the LORD puts it on your heart to give, I promise it will be a blessing as you see young families bring there young ones to a beautiful place to learn about Jesus! Finally, I always love to share things that speak to my heart during the week. This is an article that reminds us to trust in the LORD and no one or nothing else: Whose sin is mentioned [...]

Learn to Love the Good and No Evil Can Withstand You Dear Church Family, What a precious time to pray over our young families with children on Mother’s Day. Hope you had some good reflection and gratitude for the mothers in our lives. I saw this article this week and thought it might encourage you. The devil appears in Dostoevsky’s novel, The Brothers Karamazov. To understand him, you have to understand his target — Ivan Karamazov: Ivan is a coldhearted intellectual who hates God, but his unbelief isn’t your typical atheism. Ivan rejects God because of human suffering: He says no God who lets children suffer could be good. Instead of having faith, Ivan is a humanist: God isn’t real, and religion is a crutch. Morality is man-made, and our only duty is to end suffering. This might sound noble… but Ivan is miserable. He claims to “love humanity.” But admits he “can’t stand people” By rejecting God, he’s [...]

Jesus in the Old Testament Dear Church Family, Thank you for the tremendous gift of sending me to North Africa. You can be proud of the team from Lakeside as we ministered to our sent ones there. They are doing such a great work in a difficult place. Also, thank you for loving our graduating seniors. Pray for their next step in life as they continue to express their faith as young adults. I found an interesting devotional that I hope will bless you: I love how the Old Testament gives us such a beautiful picture of Christ and how He saves us. Let’s look at some of the clues we find there. First of all, what is repentance and how does it fit in our salvation? Too often it has been conflated with confession. Actually, repentance simply means a change of mind. That's what the 95 theses are about that sparked the Reformation. It's a list of complaints [...]

In the Wilderness Dear Church Family, Thank you for giving me the opportunity to minister in North Africa with our sent ones. It’s been a joy to see what the LORD is doing in and through them. I appreciate Dr Street sharing last Sunday and look forward to being with you all this coming Sunday as I begin a new series on the fruit of the Spirit. I read the following this morning and thought it would bless you: We call the Bible’s fourth book “Numbers,” but the Hebrew name is better: בְּמִדְבַּ֥ר (Bemidbar), which means “in the wilderness.” ‎Not only does it tell us where the story unfolds, but it also reflects our own lives. The Midbar, the wilderness, isn’t just geography; it’s a spiritual, theological description of where we often find ourselves. ‎The Bible begins in a garden and ends in a garden-like city, but in between, there's a whole lot of wilderness. Israel wandered in the [...]

The Ascension of Jesus Christ: What Did Jesus Do After the Resurrection? After his resurrection and appearances to his disciples, Christ ascended to heaven. The ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven demonstrates he is the eternal King. Christ’s right to rule was always his as God, but now he places his humanity on the divine throne. The sequence is important: By his death, the human Christ atoned for our sins; by his resurrection, he defeated the devil and death; and by his ascension, he was declared the eternal King who had become the human Christ and ascended. At his ascension, Christ also presented his atoning blood sacrifice to the Father to gain humanity access to the throne. He also purified heaven by his victory over Satan. Significant Old Testament prophecies foretold this historic moment. Hebrews 1 repeats the prophets’ declaration that Christ is the Lord: God promised David that his human son would be God’s own Son, and that [...]

Join us for Resurrection Weekend! Dear Church Family, Hope you are looking forward to Resurrection Sunday! We would love for you to bring a friend or two or three! Praying for the Gospel to be planted in good soil. I loved this article by Chad Bird: What Biblical Chapter Is at the Center of the Torah? The opening five books or scrolls of the Bible are known as the Torah (“teaching”) or the Pentateuch (“five books”). Both in length and theme, there is a discernible pattern between the five. And there also appears to be a central chapter. The first and last books, Genesis and Deuteronomy, are about beginnings and endings. Genesis documents the beginning of the world, humanity, and the family of Abraham. Deuteronomy takes place at the end of the wilderness wanderings and right before a new beginning: the re-entrance of Abraham's family into the promised land, which they left at the end of Genesis. Both books [...]

Resurrection is Coming! Dear Church Family, I love this time of year. Hope you invite someone to one of our Resurrection Sunday services (again, I know every Sunday is Resurrection Sunday, but I like it better than saying “Easter”). Here are some of my favorite Resurrection quotes: You are not suffering from anything that a good resurrection can’t fix. - D. A. Carson In the resurrection, life puts death to death. - Mike Williams Jesus's resurrection is the beginning of God's new project not to snatch people away from earth to heaven but to colonize earth with the life of heaven. - NT Wright Genesis ends with Joseph’s death. Deuteronomy ends with Moses’s death. Joshua ends with Joshua’s death. The Gospels end with Jesus’s resurrection. And that changes everything. - Tony Merida The incarnation means he became like us. The resurrection means we’ll become like him. - Dan Dewitt Jesus didn’t just do weddings (Jn 2). He did funerals, [...]

Evidence of an Empty Tomb Dear Church Family, Thank you for your patience and flexibility for our “Old Fashioned Church on the Grounds” service and fellowship last week. It was a big help for our construction phase of our stage remodel. I’m so grateful for all of our teams that put in so much work—First Impressions, tech, worship, facilities, security and medical, student ministry, and our Holy Smokers. As we get closer to Resurrection Sunday (which I realize is every Sunday, but I like this term better than Easter), as you are sharing your faith and inviting guests to come, please let us know if you have a baptismal candidate for that day. It’s always a great encouragement and witness. I saw this article this week and thought it would bless you: Five Reasons Why the Evidence Points to an Empty Tomb 1. All Four Gospels Report the Empty Tomb The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all affirm [...]

Our Lord, Come! Dear Church Family, Thank you for your prayers, generosity, and flexibility as we go into this next phase of construction. I am excited to see, not only the transformation of our building, but of our ministries as well. Praying for a great unifying worship experience this Sunday. I want to thank our tech team, our first impressions team, our worship team, our custodial staff, and all our volunteers who have put in lots of work to make this a reality. I found this today and thought it might bless you: Q: What is the significance of "Maranatha" in the Bible? A: "Maranatha" appears in 1 Corinthians 16:22, where Paul writes, “If anyone has no love for the Lord, let him be accursed. Maranatha!” It is an Aramaic expression written in Greek letters, meaning "Our Lord, come!" Q: What is the linguistic origin of "Maranatha"? A: Though written in Greek (Μαράναθα), it comes from Aramaic, where Mar [...]

We Need YOU! Dear Church Family, Do y’all remember back in the day when we would have a work day at the church to clean and beautify the building and grounds? Well, in a similar effort, I’d like to invite those able-bodied folks to help after the third service this Sunday to help move some items from the Preschool wing into our storage pods in the parking lot. That gives you a great excuse to dress casually! These are exciting days at Lakeside. This is why we are needing to have an outdoor worship experience on March 30th because some of our building will be under construction. So, please pray for good weather as we meet on the North end of our building where our sports field is. We will have lots of chairs, but feel free to bring some or a cushion so you can sit on the slope. I love when we can all worship together. Yes, [...]

The Sanctuary Dear Church Family, These are exciting days at Lakeside! I am looking forward to having a new preschool wing and a new look in our sanctuary. And thank you for those who have given and prayed for these things. I believe the LORD will bless your generosity as His people desiring to see others come to Christ. Please pray for good weather on March 30th as we gather for one service outside on our sports field. This will be a great time of unity and fellowship and also allow for our construction transition to be complete in the sanctuary. I found this great description of the tabernacle and temple I thought you’d enjoy: The tabernacle and later the temple of Yahweh were alive with angelic, animal, and plant images. As such, visiting the sanctuary was like visiting the replacement Garden of Eden for the worshiping Adams and Eves of God’s people. Here are some examples: two golden [...]

The Tabernacle Dear Church Family, We are about to see some movement on our preschool renovation, so please be patient with us as we shuffle classrooms here and there for the next few months. This project will have lots of interactive elements and create a great new space for our preschoolers to learn about Jesus! Please pray about what you might give to this project. The total cost will be about $2 million and praise the LORD we have already received some great offerings. I read this and thought it may bless you from Dr. Chad Bird: The tabernacle and later the temple of Yahweh were alive with angelic, animal, and plant images. As such, visiting the sanctuary was like visiting the replacement Garden of Eden for the worshiping Adams and Eves of God’s people. Here are some examples: -two golden cherubim, with outstretched wings, were atop the mercy seat. -images of cherubim were embroidered into the veil outside [...]

In the Ascension and Resurrection Dear Church Family, I just want to thank you all for your prayers while I was out. I sure do love my church family! Also, I want to thank all of you who volunteered, prayed, led, and taught during our DNOW. Pastor Paul has been such a blessing to our student ministry. He is such a believer in bringing the generations together, which is such a beautiful picture of God’s Church. I ran across the following devotional and I hope it encourages you: In Eph 4:8, Paul quotes Psalm 68:18 in a form that is often a bit perplexing. Especially in the second part of the verse quoted ("he gave gifts to men"), it's pretty different from how it survives in the Hebrew or in the Old Greek of the Psalms, but I want to spend a moment asking why Paul uses this psalm at all, and why he focuses on what he does. [...]

We Need Each Other Perhaps because of our American tendency to be individualistic, and especially our Texan tendency to go ruggedly on our own, we forget that we need each other. Our need for one another is and undeniable truth in our spiritual lives. A leader of worship in ancient Israel, a priest by the name Asaph, once went through a personal theological crisis. You can read about what happened in Psalm 73. Asaph’s story went like this.  Asaph knew that God is good and that he blesses righteous people (v. 1). Yet he questioned God. “My feet almost slipped; my steps nearly went astray” (v. 2) His problem was this: Asaph saw people who were evil but still prospered (v. 3). Asaph dwelt for a long time on the problem of the existence of evil (vv. 4-12) His crisis became so severe that he wondered if he should leave God (v. 13). He even wondered whether he should [...]

Stringing Pearls Dear Church Family, Please pray for our students as they gather for DNOW in a couple of weeks. Pray for Pastor Paul Pakebusch and his leaders as they guide them. Thank you for your investment in this next generation! The following is another nugget of wisdom from Chad Bird: Suppose you came across this odd sentence: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but serving your country in freedom, be the change you wish to see in the world, fearing nothing but fear itself as you live by the rule: Give me liberty or give me death.” Here we have a mixture of partial quotes from John F. Kennedy, Gandhi, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Patrick Henry. Yes, it is far from seamless, but I put it forward as an example of what someone might do who wove together bits and pieces from several sources. We see a mixture of partial quotes from various sources in the Transfiguration [...]

The Lord is My Shepherd Dear Church Family, I shared this at a funeral this weekend and thought it might bless you: The Lord is my Shepherd. That's a relationship. I shall not want -- that’s supply He maketh me to lie down in green pastures -- that's rest. He leadeth me beside the still waters -- that's refreshment. He restoreth my soul -- that's healing. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness -- that's guidance. For his name's sake -- that's purpose. Yea, thou walk through the valley of the shadow of death -- that's testing. I will fear no evil -- that's protection. For thou art with me -- that's faithfulness. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me -- that's discipline. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies -- that's hope. Thou anointest my head with oil. That's consecration, my cup runneth over -- that's abundance. Surely goodness and mercy [...]