START OF SOMETHING NEW
"Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness... Isaiah 43:19
4TH WORSHIP SERVICE STARTS 2010 Last February, the Session of Lake Grove Presbyterian Church voted unanimously to support a 4th worship service to begin the second week of September, 2010. The capstone vote marked the culmination of a 30-month process which included a robust study endeavor as well as formulating a strategic plan for extending the love of Christ to families in our own back yard. There are numerous challenges to our ability to grow the Kingdom of God during our Sunday morning service times. Members and attenders know well the trials of the L.G.P.C. Sunday-morning shuffle: finding a parking place, getting a good seat, and having to teeter between the needs of fellowship time and freeing up parking for the next service.
One purpose behind
Space constraints on a Sunday morning limit our
launching a 4th worship
ability to be the guest-friendly environment that we are
service at L.G.P.C. is to
called to be. It is a commonly accepted rule within church leadership circles that, once your church grows
attract and reach younger suburban families. Did you
past 80% of its seating capacity, its ability to grow is
know that there are 4,250
seriously compromised. The Session and the
of these households in the
leadership of the church recognize that we’ve hit a
SW Suburbs (Lake Oswego,
ceiling in our physical ability to extend the love of
Tigard, Tualatin, and West Linn)? Sadly, it is believed
Christ and to fulfill our mission. We must open the doors to more opportunities for people to worship. 4th
that only 14% (620) of these
Beyond creating more hours for worship, the
households attend a church
service plan, developed by the worship (cont. back)
service on a regular basis.
(4th Worship continued) study team, seeks to address the needs of an aging congregation. A Christian congregation is always one generation away from extinction, but with an average age of sixty-two, L.G.P.C. has a clear objective to engage a younger age group. The worship study team visited and observed nine different reformed or semi-reformed westcoast churches from Los Angeles to Seattle who had demonstrated success at reaching a 20s - 40s cohort. From those observations along with feedback from an all church worship survey, the study group made recommendations concerning styles and worship service times and laid out a strategic framework for building a new but integrated community of believers at L.G.P.C. The 4th Worship Service Plan calls for hiring a new Director of Modern Worship as well as an Evening Coordinator for Children’s Ministries who will serve on an oversight team together with Bob Sanders, Brent James, Graig Flach, and Mark Evers.
The Importance of KIDS Any strategy geared towards reaching out to younger families must have its foundation set in excellent and engaging children’s programming. LGPC. is searching for a part-time evening coordinator for Children’s Ministry. If you or someone you know are interested please contact Director of Children’s Ministries Susie Graham susieg@lakegrovepres.org
EXPANDING THE ORCHARD
It is exciting to be on the ground floor; the start of something new, the start of a new ministry endeavor: our teams have already watched the Lord move in significant ways ,and our leadership can feel the Holy Spirit at our back. We look forward to working together with our Lord in reaching those He’s called as His own.
Prepare your hearts to give a financial gift to support the 4th Worship Service Pentecost Sunday May 23, 2010.
WE BELIEVE A NEW 4TH WORSHIP SERVICE ENABLES US TO... • • • • •
Reach more people for Christ Reach a younger generation Create an alternative worship hour Enhance current worship offerings Increase our overall attendance
• Offer the same dynamic preaching with a musical style which is “familiarly different” • Utilize more fully our remodeled sanctuary • Create a more guest-friendly environment • Expand our caring community for Christ