We are enjoying settling into Lakeview UMC and getting to know more and more of you. This is a welcoming and vital church and it is a joy to learn more about our ministries and your life of faith. One of the most important parts of my ministry for this next year is getting to know all of you. I’ll be sitting at a different table each week at Amazing Grays and TNT to be able to visit with a different group of you each time. This fall we’ll have a series of get-acquainted gatherings where Kim and I will look forward to getting to know you and have some conversation time together.
The mission of Lakeview UMC feels significant to me. It is a powerful statement, Changing Lives: Caring for Mind, Body and Soul. This is what Jesus did in his ministry. This is what God wants to do for all of us.
We all reach a point where we need our lives changed, refreshed at some time. That’s what faith is about. As we get older or face life’s ups and downs we may find our body or mind is not what it used to be. We need God’s care to get through the challenges of each day and we need the spiritual care of the church to help us in those moments. I have faced countless times in my own work and family life where the pressures were severe or bad news had arrived or that I was unable to find a solution to a large problem on my own. I could only turn to God to help me face and navigate a needed change.
As we come through the pandemic we may feel that our souls have been battered and are weary. We may feel worn down by what we’ve experienced and the loneliness the last year has brought to us.
I think of the words in Psalm 94, 18 “When I thought, ‘My foot is slipping,’ your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. 19 When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.
I want everyone who comes to Lakeview to discover the presence of God that can revive, lift and cheer us from the depths of our being. I have found God’s help to be powerful and real in my own life. I want others to know this gift as well. I’m sure you do too. I look forward to hearing how Lakeview and your faith has been able to help you in body, mind or soul. Please let me know!
I will be taking Friday as a day off. I always like to practice what I preach so when I encourage us to have a time for sabbath I know that I need that as well to restore balance in my own life. All of the pastors like to take Friday off. However, if you have a pastoral need on a Friday or Saturday when the office is closed, please call the office and you will receive information on how to reach us.
In Hope and Confidence, Pastor Dave
