Blood Drive Raised $1,660

By Carol Hawkins, Missions Coordinator 

Thank you to all who participated in our third annual blood drive for missions. We had a great turnout! Thanks to you, we collected 83 units of blood that will reach into our community by supporting local hospitals that can ultimately help up to 249 patients. And as a result of all those units, $1,660 will be sent to Wycliffe Bible Translators to help the Berthiaume family serving in Mexico. So your gift reaches into our local area as well as reaching out globally. Some who were not able to donate graciously gave $20 to help with the project. So that’s more than an additional $150.

The Garage was definitely buzzing with activity with all of the workers from Lifestream Blood Bank and all of our LBF family coming to help out. It was really a special time for me to meet many of you and get acquainted. You blessed my life tremendously throughout the day, and I’m smiling now as I reflect on it.

Thank you for your willingness to take the time to give blood and for the many lives that will be touched as a result. God Bless you.

This Weekend's Message: Whose Side Are You On?

By now it is impossible to be unaware of the fact that 2012 is an election year. Campaigns are in full swing and people all around the country are taking sides.

Are you?

Is God?

Both sides certainly seem to think that God is on their side. This is nothing new. For the next several months Americans everywhere will be called to take a side, and part of the appeal will be religious in nature. Both sides of the debate will claim that they are led by God’s values (perhaps even Christian values) when it comes to their positions and policies. This can be confusing and frustrating. It can bring us to a point of looking upward and asking God, “Whose side are you on?” God has something to say in response.

Dan Franklin

This Weekend's Message: Who are we and where are we going?

A mission statement is a statement of the purpose of a company or organization; its reason for existing. The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a path, and guide decision-making. It provides "the framework or context within which the company's strategies are formulated." 

Every organization has a mission statement. Here are a few from some well-known companies:

Apple Inc.: Apple Inc. is committed to protecting the environment, health and safety of our employees, customers and the global communities where we operate. We recognize that by integrating sound environmental, health and safety management practices into all aspects of our business, we can offer technologically innovative products and services while conserving and enhancing resources for future generations. Apple strives for continuous improvement in our environmental, health and safety management systems and in the environmental quality of our products, processes and services.

Chevron: At the heart of The Chevron Way is our vision to be the global energy company most admired for its people, partnership and performance.

Ford Motor Company: We are a global family with a proud heritage passionately committed to providing personal mobility for people around the world.

Harley Davidson Inc.: We fulfill dreams through the experience of motorcycling, by providing to motorcyclists and to the general public an expanding line of motorcycles and branded products and services in selected market segments.

Hershey Company: Undisputed Marketplace Leadership

Microsoft: At Microsoft, we work to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential.

Nike Inc.: To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world.

Walt Disney Company: The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers of entertainment and information. Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, services and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world.

As I read through these mission statements, and understand their motivation to get me to buy their product, the thing that strikes me is how temporary - and limited in scope for who they are trying to reach - it all is.

At Life Bible Fellowship Church we want to be about the eternal, not just the temporary. On Sunday we will be unveiling the new Mission Statement for Life Bible Fellowship Church. That means a mission for you, me, and anyone who walks through our doors and chooses to call LBF home. A mission and vision designed to guide us specifically and strategically to reach people for Jesus Christ, and love and serve in the way that Christ calls His followers to love and serve.

Join us on Sunday for very special and unique services where we hope to clearly communicate who God is calling Life Bible Fellowship Church to be, and how He is calling all of us to get there.

See ya Sunday!
Jeff

This Weekend's Message: Hold On

In 2004, hurricanes in Florida left many residents without power. One resident used a portable generator to supply power until the electrical lines could be repaired. While waiting for power to be restored, some audacious criminals stole the generator. The owner didn't discover the theft until he went outside to put gasoline in the generator. So how did the thieves cover up such an obvious crime? They started another gasoline engine and left it running right beside the generator. The robbers took off with the generator, while the owner was lulled into a false sense of security created by the sound of his own riding lawnmower.

This week we will be looking at a passage in which Peter points out how we need to be alert to the reality that we have an enemy and there are consequences when we are deceived. We hope that you will join us at one of the three services as we look as Peter’s commands as we live in a home away from home.

Matt Sasso
Pastor of Student Ministries

This Weekend's Message: Surprised?

Imagine a group of Olympic track athletes training. During the practice one athlete stops and says, “Enough is enough!” When the coaches approach him, he says, “This is ridiculous! It’s hot, I’m sweaty, and I’m exhausted! I’m tired of this training and I want to be done!” The response of every person around this athlete would be the same. They would all want to ask, “Are you really surprised by all of this?” After all, when an athlete signs on for Olympic training, he should expect all of the pain and all of the difficulties that go along with that training. In other words, while he certainly has a right to find the training to be difficult, he has no right to find the training surprising.

Similarly, in his letter, Peter tells believers in Jesus that they have every right to find their suffering and oppression to be difficult. But he says that we shouldn't find it surprising.

Dan Franklin

This Weekend's Message: Stand-out

During the teenage years, most of us wrestled with a deep desire to be normal. We wanted to fit in and feel at home with those around us. So we adjusted the way we talked, the way we dressed, and activities we did in order not to stand out too much. As adults, we are not so different. We still feel the pressure to fit in with our families, with the people at work, and with the people in our neighborhoods. It is hard to stand out. It can make us feel alone and vulnerable. Most of us would rather blend in.

In his letter, Peter says that those who embrace Christ will not fit in with the world around them. Instead of feeling at home, they will stand out. They will face the loneliness and vulnerability that goes along with the fact that this world is not their home. So, how do you make a conscious choice to stand out?

Dan Franklin