Great Day at Lifepointe Church

"Was that the Holy Spirit, or what," one lady said, blotting tears from overflowing eyes.  "A Wow morning," another said.  "That was one great morning," said another man.

It was an excellent Sunday at Lifepointe!  So many great comments about the ways that God was at work.

The message of "emotional healing" at the 9:30 bible study was very impacting.  The worship singing was expressive all day.  The little letter to the Philippians continues to serve up rich and relevant words for living.  And the testimonies from Rod Farney, Jim and Betty Moore about the Jamaica Construction Mission were heartfelt.

People remained long after the service talking with each other.  It's a warm fellowship of believers that has gathered at Lifepointe Church.  Praise God for the ways that He is working in our church.

Biblelands Cruise - The Trip of a Lifetime!

BIBLELAND'S CRUISE

November 11-23, 2010

Join me for the "Trip of a Lifetime" to all the best New Testament sites from Jerusalem in Israel to Mars Hill in Athens, Greece.

Get all of the details by clicking HERE

or

linking from the calendar page of www.lifepointeindy.com

When it Dawns

God empowers people to help people.  That is an amazing thought really.  God doesn't need.  There is no such thing as a 'needy' God - that goes against the whole definition of God.  God is completely self-sustaining and literally, ultimately independent.  Not dependent.  So, God doesn't need me or you to get his purpose accomplished here on earth.

God chooses to bring you in on His activity.  It's His choice.

It's your choice, too.  You can choose to go along with His invitation or let it pass by unacknowledged.  God's work will move on.  His work will get done through others.  Why not choose to be used?  He will empower you, guide you, give you the words to say, the gifting that fits the need, the faith to see it through.

When it dawns on us that the Christian life is more about helping others in the name of Jesus (Mark 9:41) than a check-list of daily duties then we will see God's Kingdom advance in our world.

Seahawks Chaplain to speak

Karl Payne

Chaplain of the Seattle Seahawks

will be speaking at Lifepointe on

Sunday, March 7, 11:00 AM

Should be really fun - invite some friends!

Jamaica Construction Mission Photos

Two for Two

Another great night discussing and applying Bruce Wilkinson's new book, You Were Born for This.  The book presents miracles in a whole new light, an accessible one.  He speaks of 'everyday miracles' and truthfully most every family has some story of when God intervened.  But mostly, we are discussing how God wants to involve His people in the delivery of 'miracles' that meet needs.  In fact, God is more willing to provide miracles than we are available to deliver them!  So my small group study is inching closer to using the Master Key to predictable miracles:  that is, the prayer of not just availability but commitment to delivering God's miracle to the person of His choosing whenever we get the nudge.  More on how that is done as we proceed - what an adventure!

Jamaica Construction Mission Update

Here is a report from a ministry partner in Jamaica to Mike Yost, our Missions Director, telling of how our construction mission is progressing...

Hi Mike,
It has been a great week so far.  God has blessed us with some great weather
to work in.  We have enjoyed some wonderful fellowship working arm and arm
with the members of Maranatha doing some wonderful improvements on the
church.  The tile is progressing, sidewalk is done and the entry way has
been moved.  Today will be more tile and doors followed by an evening of
bible club with 90 children from our neighborhood.  The team has been a
blessing in all aspects of service.  Better go for now.  God Bless, Harold

Guest Blogger

Want to be a contributor to LPClive?  Let's say you are involved in Ladie's Bible Study and would like to express some thoughts about how it's going, what you are learning, or an encouragement to attend.  Or say you are involved in the Thursday Prayer Time --- or maybe you participated in the Third Thursday Praise night --- and you want to write about your experience.  Or maybe God is doing something in your life and you want to let others know.  We welcome guest blog posters.  All you have to do is write your blog post copy and email it to woody@lifepointeindy.com.  Put "blog post" in the subject line.  You have to be willing for your name to be signed to the post.  You then will be a proud resident of cyberspace!

Comment

One purpose of a blog is to create conversation, solicit opinion.  I encourage you to comment.  All you have to do is click 'comment' at the bottom of any post.  So, for example, Josh has a couple of blog posts on here.  Would it be good to encourage him?  It's easy.  Just click "comment" and post your own thoughts!

Jamaica Construction Mission

The Lifepointe Construction Mission Team has arrived in the Mango Valley area of Jamaica.  Mango Valley is east of Ocho Rios which is on the north side of the island. Mango Valley is a mountain community.  The construction mission is focussed on improvements to Maranatha Baptist Church, which serves the people of Mango Valley and is the location of Lifepointe's summer VBS mission.  Pray for the safety, health, energy and ministry of the men and women working on this construction mission.

New Youth Group Meetings

For the past year, our youth students have all been meeting together on Sunday nights. This has been a good experience, but now it is time to change things up a bit. So here are the changes:

Jr high students  (6th-8th grade)
Thursday nights at 6:30  pm
Pullen House (160 Irongate Drive, Zionsville, IN 46077)

Sr high students (9th-12th grade)
Sunday nights at 6:30 pm
Cook House (12420 Windsor Drive, Carmel, IN 46033)

Hopefully these changes will encourage all of the students to bring more friends as well as promote more in depth discussion. As always, please keep all of our students in your prayers.

- Josh Riedy

WhiteOut Weekend

Ohh wow...where do I even begin?!?! WhiteOut Weekend was absolutely amazing! For those of you who don't know what I am talking about let me give you a little background. Last Friday 10 of our students left for Camp Amigo in Michigan to meet up with another church for a weekend retreat. The weekend had tons of activities planned like cross country skiing, snow tubing, engleball, dodgeball, volleyball, etc. We played so many different games I honestly can't remember them all. But more importantly than that the foundation and main reason for the weekend was to build our relationships stronger and closer with Jesus. The theme for the weekend was lukewarm (still makes me laugh a bit considering it was freezing cold there). Every day the students were challenged with what it means and looks like to be lukewarm and what to do about it. It basically boiled down to needing a crazy love for God.

Mark 12:30 - Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

The students were really challenged to be more than a Sunday morning Christian. This Sunday morning you can hear a couple of testimonies from the students themselves about the weekend and what they learned. You won't to miss it.

For me, this weekend was a huge encouragement. Not only was I challenged with being lukewarm, it was so amazing to see the students respond in the way they did. Every morning during devotional time and every evening during cabin time the students lead the discussion and kept it focused. They really  wanted to figure things out, hold each other accountable, and grow in their own personal relationship with Jesus. Nothing could have made me more excited than that! God is sooo good.

- Josh Riedy

Off to a Strong Start

The kick-off edition of Third Thursday Praise went exceptionally well.  It was, as the planners had hoped, very different from Sunday morning - anything other than "Sunday morning warmed over."  It was a creative, expressive, open, varied, self-pacing, self-accessing and intimate time of worship.  There was joy, there were some tears, there were private commitments and deepened relationships.  I hope that you will mark your calendar for the "third Thursday" of the month - bring an open heart and bring a friend. Thanks to Phil and Denise for excellent musical worship leadership.  Thanks to Sheila for helping with the set-up of the auditorium.

Third Thursday Praise

Third Thursday Praise - 6:30 PM - Feb 18 - Lifepointe Church

I am excited about our first "Third Thursday Praise" night.  It is going to be an informal, fun, creative, different, expressive, participatory, varied, real loud & real soft, celebrative & contemplative, visual, verbal, non-verbal, personal, private, open and public time of praise to Jesus!

What I am saying is that Third Thursday Praise is not "Sunday morning warmed over."

There is no sermon.  It is not a concert.  It's not 45 minutes of standing up singing one song after another until you scream, "make it stop."  Oh, and this will be very important to a few folks, there is no 'forced intimacy' small group prayer time.  LOL  Though you may choose to pray with others at any time during the evening. 

Third Thursday Praise is about your opportunity for personal and corporate praise.  There will be a lot of worship 'elements' made available to you.  It will be your choice as to how which elements you choose to include in your worship mix this Thursday.  It's like a worship buffet-line.  You can choose any combination that you wish -- one combo this month and another next month.  You can choose to nibble around the edges or jump in with both feet.

We will have some snacks and fellowship afterward.

Invite a friend.  Bring your family.  You will enjoy it on whatever level you choose.

Third Thursday Praise starts at 6:30 PM at Lifepointe Church.

"Thursday Night Prayer Time" is still offered at 5 PM.  Usually the Thursday Night Prayer group lasts less than an hour.  I encourage all who attend the prayer time to remain for the Third Thursday Praise at 6:30 PM.

See you tomorrow!

You Were Born For This

Tonight I started a new small group study using Bruce Wilkinson's book, You Were Born For This:  7 Keys to a Life of Predictable Miracles.  It's one of the best books that I have read recently so I got pretty excited about helping some others get exposed to Wilkinson's insights.  Plus, at least some of what he says is close to some experiences that I have had through the years - but he has packaged it in a way that helps others sense that they can be part of God's miracle in another person's life.

As soon as the first session was over, the excitement in the room was obvious!  "This is going to be a really good study," one participant said.  Another said, "I'm going to start reading this book tonight!."

It's not too late for you to join us.  It's Tuesday evenings at 7 PM.  If you'd like to do the snacks and fellowship then plan to arrive a little early - anytime after 6:30 PM.  For more info, email Woody at woody@lifepointeindy.com or call the church office at 571-0630.

Joy Under Pressure

Tomorrow I start a new verse-by-verse series on Paul's letter to the Philippians.  It's a small book with a large message about experiencing joy even when under pressure.  The Christians who originally read Paul's letter were regular folks who had everyday emotions and situations:  worry, conflict, hope, opposition, poverty, sickness, ambition, grumbling, love, pride, and faith.  In it all, it's possible to find joy.  In the Lord, you can rejoice regardless of the circumstances!

Philippians is loaded with block-buster verses - words of promise and prescription for Spirit-filled, Christ-centered living in the real world.   It's a book that's so short that you can read it in five minutes yet it's truths  will live long in your heart.  It's a book for new believers as well as people who have known Jesus for many years.  It's a book for seekers who wonder if Christianity 'works' in everyday life.

I hope that you will join me Sunday at 11 AM at Lifepointe Church for the start of this new series.  Bring you bible and bring a friend.  By the way, at 9:30 AM we have a Bible Study and table-discussion time that's perfect for meeting new friends and going deeper in your faith.

Back from the Desert

I am back from the desert where it was anything but dry and hot.  It was rain and cold every day!  Not much of a break from the cold of Indiana.  Still, it's good to take some time away and I appreciate Lifepointe leadership encouraging me to be more intentional about taking more personal time way this year.

Josh Riedy, our Youth Minister,  did an excellent job preaching in my absence.  It was his first ever Sunday morning sermon.  He will remember that day as all preachers do.  Thank you to everyone who encouraged him after the morning worship.  Thank you and God bless you, Josh!

Some have said that the test of a church is how many show up to the mid-week prayer meeting.  That may be one test.  In my opinion, a larger test of church is how many show up when the pastor is away.