Heart Condition
Proverbs 4:20-27
If I asked you to take your finger and point to yourself, where would you point? Most of us, I think, would not point to our heads. That’s interesting isn’t it? In spite of the great importance of good thinking, we instinctively know that what is most essential about us is not our brain. I’ve never heard anyone say to the person they love: “I give you all of my brain.” But I’ve also never heard someone say, “I dedicate my full bladder to you for the rest of my life’ or “I pledge to you my lungs.” In fact there is only one body part that we refer to when we talk of love or dedication or devotion; and that body part is the heart. When we talk about that aspect of ourselves that is most central to whom we are and what we want to bring to life, we speak of the heart. 

In saying this, of course, we don’t mean our myocardial muscle. No, in the Bible the heart is the center of the person, the control center of life. And the condition of that heart directs and dictates the kind of life we will live. What is the condition of your “heart?” This week we are going to look at some essentials to keep the condition of our hearts (not the muscle) healthy.

I hope to see you Sunday!
Gary Keith, Lead Pastor

Weekend's Message Reflection - Matt Sasso, Pastor of Student Ministries

This weekend we hope that you were encouraged and challenged as we looked at what it means to consider our lives for God's mission. I believe a commitment to God’s mission starts in our hearts, and is seen in the way that we live our lives in response to His mission.

As we look at scripture it is clear that people matter to God. He sent Jesus, to die on the cross to pay the penalty we never could pay. We’re saved by grace, through faith. We are adopted into his family and God becomes the perfect Father who loves us completely and unconditionally. In addition we get to do great things for God’s kingdom. Not only are we saved from the despair of the world; we are saved to make a difference at our schools, in our families, and with our friends. 

Here are some things to think about.

Tips for telling your story:

• Commit to praying and serving before you share your story with people.
• When talking to someone be a good listener.
• Share what it is that you love about being a Christian. Talk about the hope you have in Jesus.
• When you finish sharing, give your that person a chance to respond to what you shared.
• Keep it simple, keep it real, and be clear!

 Questions to that you might be asked:

• What does it mean to be a Christian?
• How do you know if someone is a Christian?
• How do you know what you believe is true?
• How can you say that Christianity is right and all the other religions are wrong?
• How do you know that God really exists?

I hope that this helps and that God gives you amazing opportunities to change someone’s life forever!

God Bless,

Matt Sasso

This Weekend's Message: Chasing Your Tail?

Chasing Your Tail?
Ecclesiastes 11:1-10

Have you ever seen a dog chasing its tail around and around? I heard about a guy whose dog chased its tail constantly. One day the neighbor came over and asked, "Where's that dog of yours that always chases its tail?" The man replied, "Well, he finally caught it, then fell over the embankment, and got hit by a car." Tragic, huh? The only thing sadder than a dog chasing its tail is a person chasing their tail.

Question: What are you chasing? Do you feel like your life is just going around and around? Have you ever caught the thing you were chasing, only to be disappointed, even hurt by it? Throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon describes life under the sun in terms of people chasing their tails. This weekend we are going to cut to the chase and learn how to avoid chasing our tails in "The Game of Life."

Spoiler alert: We are going to look deep inside Solomon's word picture of "life under the sun" in order to discover four mirages that people tend to chase.

Looking Forward,
Pastor Jim Botts

Membership Matters

By Gary Keith, Lead Pastor


I was looking over the records for the first six months of 2011 and noticed something very encouraging – we added 20 new members to our church. While we have several thousand people who attend our church, these 20 people took the step to understand our church mission and vision and in essence say, “I want to commit myself to that. I want to be part of that work of God.” I can still remember the time Miriam and I made the decision to become members of this church.

We consider membership at LBF both a wonderful commitment and a great privilege. As we prepare to return to life without vacations and with kids back in school, I thought it would be a good time to remind everyone of the value and importance of membership.

Membership at LBF starts with being a Christian. Every member of LBF has made a clear profession of faith and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Beyond that, people who are members are encouraged to live out that membership in six different areas:

1. Members build unity in the church by encouraging others, avoiding gossip and resolving conflict in a biblical way. This is so important because as representatives of Jesus in this community, people are looking at us and asking what a church is all about and how is it modeling the life of Jesus.
(Ephesians 4:3, Matthew 18:15-17)

2. Members financially support the ministry of the church. Our teaching on giving comes right out of 2 Corinthians 8, where each of the members first gave themselves to the Lord and then did what the Lord asked of them. Giving is an essential part of our worship to the Lord. If you haven’t gone before the Lord recently and asked what you should give to this church, let me encourage you to do so and then just do what God says.

3. Members participate in Sunday services. The gathering of the church family at our worship services is an essential component for spiritual growth. And while we don’t take attendance to see who is coming, let me encourage all of us to come often and join with the church family in experiencing all that God has for you. (Hebrews 10:25)

4. Members participate in small groups. With a church our size, the weekend services provide one type of spiritual growth opportunity, but they in no way provide a total plan for growing spiritually. We believe that gathering together in weekly small groups is essential for spiritual growth. If you’re not in one, I encourage you to find one soon and be faithful to it. (See a complete listing of Home Groups at lbfchurch.com/homegroups) (Acts 2:46-47)

5. Members serve according to their gifts and talents. One of the most memorable statements of Jesus is found in Matthew 20:28. In this passage Jesus says that He did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. As followers of Jesus we are to follow His example. God has gifted you; use that gift to serve as Jesus served.

6. Members reach out to others by sharing Christ and helping in practical ways. God has chosen to use people to get His message of Jesus and the salvation He offers out to others. Reaching out to others is not just about being a member of this church, it is also about being a Christian. God loves people and they matter to Him. We have the eternal message that will make an eternal difference – let’s share it!

Okay, so that’s what being a member of LBF is all about. I know we all enjoy the casual atmosphere and fun activities here at LBF, and those things are an important part of being a member, but as we start this new school year let me ask you to live out your membership by raising the bar of participation. And if you’re not a member, come to the next Meet LBF (see lbfchurch.com/meetlbf for details) and find out what you’ve been missing.

You’ll be glad you did!