Lakeside Community Presbyterian Church

“That which was from the beginning, 

which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, 

which we have looked at and our hands have touched—

this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.”

1 John 1:1 (NIV)

Knowing what we believe is an important part of being a disciple of Jesus. We need to know what we believe, what are the fundamentals, the basics.

This Sunday we begin a new sermon series entitled, The Basics, that will explore the basics of the Christian faith as we look at the letter that the Apostle John wrote and learn what are the basics of being a disciple of Jesus.

I hope that you can attend (or watch online) as we learn what are the basics of the Christian faith and how that will help us to live as Christ followers in our world.

Have a great rest of the week.

I am away this week on study leave but I wanted send along this poem from Gregory of Nazianzus (He was a 4^th-century Archbishop of Constantinople) which is a great summary of Jesus’ life and especially appropriate as we come away from Easter Sunday and the resurrection of Jesus.

Untitled*
by Gregory of Nazianzus (AD 329-390)

He began His ministry by being hungry, yet He is the Bread of Life.
Jesus ended His earthly ministry by being thirsty, yet He is the Living Water.
Jesus was weary, yet He is our rest.

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Jesus paid tribute, yet He is the King.
Jesus was accused of having a demon, yet He cast out demons.
Jesus wept, yet He wipes away our tears.
Jesus was sold for thirty pieces of silver, yet He redeemed the world.
Jesus was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, yet He is the Good Shepherd.
Jesus died, yet by His death He destroyed the power of death.

*This poem by Gregory of Nazianzus is from the April issue of the periodical “Cultivare” (https://www.cultivare.net) It is a great electronic periodical that digs deeper into different topics seeking to “cultivate contemplation, engagement and deeper understanding” to deepen our faith in Christ. If you would like to find out more about “cultivare” or subscribe, click on the link above.

Hope that you have a great rest of the week.

Today is Thursday and the church down through the ages has used these next three days for worship in preparation for Easter and the celebration of Christ’s resurrection from the dead on Sunday.

The three days, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, are three days of worship that are intended to be one service stretched over three days. It begins with Maundy Thursday, a service of remembrance when Christ was in the Upper Room with His disciples. The second service is Good Friday, when we remember Christ’s trial and walk to the cross. The third service is the Easter Vigil or Holy Saturday, a service of waiting in hopeful anticipation of Christ’s resurrection on Easter morning.

Now most churches don’t offer all of these services but at LCPC we observe two of the three. We are having a Maundy Thursday service on Thursday evening at 6:00pm where we will remember Christ’s Last Supper and a Good Friday Service at 6:00pm where we will have a service that includes the “Rites of Nails” remembering that it was our sins that nailed Christ to the cross.

Let me also encourage you to invite someone to our Easter service on Sunday at 9:45am. The best way is to give a verbal invitation but another way can be through an email. Here is something that you can send:

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Dear ______________,

I wanted to invite you to check my church’s Easter service this Sunday.

We meet at 9908 Channel Road in Lakeside and the service starts at 9:45am.

It is going to be a service filled with some great music (we have a wonderful organ in our sanctuary) and a sermon that I think that you will enjoy. We also are going to have some delicious goodies to eat after the service. You can find out more information on our website:  http://www.lakesidepc.org

Thanks in advance for checking it out and I hope that if you don’t have a place to worship this Easter then come and meet me at LCPC. Have a blessed Easter.

With Love,

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The way our church will be a thriving growing church will be through personal invitations that you and I make. Be praying about all of the upcoming services and I hope that you will invite a few people to be a part of our Easter celebration.