baptism
Have you been undecided on baptism? Do you have questions about being baptized because you’re not quite sure what it really means? Following the message from Pastor Phil today, there will be a baptism service. We encourage you to use this opportunity to take the next step in your faith and commitment to Christ. It’s not too late to be baptized today! If you would like more information regarding baptism, please mark THE FLAP.

HIGH SCHOOL BREAKFAST
Attention High Schoolers!! On May 27 at 10am here at the YMCA, we will be holding our annual High School Breakfast. If you are finishing grades 8-12, it is required that you come because it’s going to be awesome! Plus, there will be FREE food. Come hang out, eat, and share your ideas about what you would like to see in your high school ministry. (Okay, you’re probably wondering…. well, this is not a weird, high-pressured thing; so please, please, please come and eat FREE food!) Any questions, contact Jonny at jonny@lifepointchurch.com.

ROOTS LOCK-IN 
Get “locked in” on June 2 at 8pm here at the YMCA! Anyone just finishing 5th through 12th grade is invited. The cost for this event is $10, but no one will be turned away because of money. There will be pizza, swimming, games, inflatables, and a bunch of grumpy leaders when 4am rolls around! All students can be picked up after service on June 3. If you have any questions, please contact Jonny at jonny@lifepointchurch.com. Hope to see you there!

GRADUATION SUNDAY
On June 3 we will be celebrating some important milestones in our students’ lives. We will be recognizing students moving from elementary school to middle school, and from middle school to high school. We will also have a special ceremony just for our graduating seniors. If you have a child in one of these groups please contact Jonny at jonny@lifepointchurch.com, mark THE FLAP, or call the church office for details of what we’ll need to make this day special. Be sure to invite all your family members because they won’t want to miss it.

HAVE YOU HEARD?
Perhaps you’ve been wanting to serve in the church. We have lots of areas in which to serve here at LifePoint. Some current opportunities are a Keyboard Player for the Worship Band, Team Members to man the LifePoint booth at Red, Rock and Blue on June 30, and an Omelet Bar Chef. Please consider using your natural talents, abilities, and servant’s heart to help with some of our current needs. Look on the back of this Weekly for more opportunities, or contact the church office to see where you can put your servant’s heart into action. See something you’d like to sign up for or want more information on? Call the church office at 407-327-6468, and we’ll get in touch with you.

Traci Smith, LifePoint Partner

Okay, so LifePoint wants to know your God Stories. Here’s the deal… Read what our very own Traci Smith writes…

“They tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, so that all people may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.” Psalm 145: 11-12

Have you ever thought about how great it would have been to be a disciple of Jesus when he was showing his glory through miracles? How amazing it would be to see a crippled man walk, and Lazarus raised from the dead! Imagine how seeing such incredible things would strengthen our faith.

We know that the Holy Spirit is here on earth with us today, continuing Jesus’ work. However, we often miss the current work of God. We don’t mean to ignore his work. We are simply so entrenched in our lives that are full of distractions from the secular world and our enemy.

One way to guide our minds towards God’s present day work is to share our personal God Stories with each other. As a church, we would like to make sure that God’s stories are well known and celebrated.

If you would like to encourage your brothers and sisters in Christ by sharing your experiences of God’s work in your life, please let us know. There are many ways to tell of your God stories. It is not limited to speaking on stage, so cast any fears aside. There are no obligations… just an opportunity to share of your personal experience with God in a manner that suits your personality and comfort level. Just think of how your willingness to share will honor your God and encourage your church family. How awesome is that?!

Contact me at Traci Smith for more information or to discuss. I look forward to hearing from you.

We encourage you to share your God Story with your church family.  What an inspiration you will be to others.

That being said, you won’t want to miss the last four messages in this teaching series. If you’ve been frustrated with the economy, politics, or challenges at work or at home with family, you will want to hear what James has to say about a few timely topics. Among them: patience and perseverance. Turns out, he’s an expert on these subjects. Remember, as the brother of our Lord Jesus Christ, James had a front row seat to witness the most patient man that ever lived. And talk about perseverance? You might be surprised to find the source of true perseverance comes from an unlikely source.

I hope to see you every Sunday in March for the stirring conclusion of an amazing letter in the Bible. Invite your friends!

Pastor Phil

“The match was the first of it’s kind in the area – not a scramble or best ball tournament – but a real Ryder Cup style match. It was a blast” said Ayres, LifePoint’s team captain. The score after the first round of matches ended with a tie at two points per team. However, the St. Peter’s crew rolled to a decisive victory during the final week’s matches, most of which were played in a singles format. They hoisted the cup after winning with a total of 7.5 points to just 4.5 for LifePoint. The Congregational Cup trophy will reside at the St. Peter’s facility in Lake Mary until next year’s replay of the event.

When asked about the victory St. Peter’s team captain Wes Sharp said, “We’re glad to have won but the real winners are the children. We hope to play again next year and maybe even increase the team size to raise more money for the kids.” Wes is also the presiding worship leader for the St. Peter’s congregation.

In all, about $2,000 was raised, all of which will go to help the efforts of Families in Transition, a program establish to serve the educational needs of homeless students in Seminole County. For more information about Families in Transition see the foundation website at www.seminolehomelesskids.org.

It’s because of this busy schedule of activities that I want to remind us again about the importance of prayer at LifePoint. As a leadership team of staff and elders, we are making sure that as a congregation we don’t forget about this very important part of the Christian life. As a matter of fact, I’m reminded that it was when Jesus was at his busiest that he took time to seek God in prayer. We need this prayer on every level within the congregation. We expect to reserve more time in the Sunday morning service for congregation needs and prayer, as well as regularly opportunities for congregational members to receive prayer during the month at regular intervals.

I hope that you will remember to pray for the church and congregation whenever you can. I know that God has so much planned for our people, but there are a lot of obstacles as well. Pray for the church finances – that God would work through His people to continue to tithe and give regularly. Pray for our future location – we know that God has something amazing picked out for us already! And please pray for the staff and elders of LifePoint – that God would keep each of strong and energized to serve the congregation boldly.

Lastly, how can we pray for you? Always know that we are willing to pray for you, no matter the circumstance. If you have a prayer need you may call our prayer line at 407-327-6467 option 3, or send an email to prayers@lifepointchurch.com. You may also send us a prayer request at www.lifepointchurch.com

Praying for you,

Phil Ayres

Each member of the team is a LifePoint partner, and each has dedicated their time, energy, and finances to find a 24/7 facility for the congregation to call home. Progress so far includes a geographical study of the congregation to help identify reasonable boundaries for the search. The team is also working with a commercial real estate professional who specializes in facilities for churches. Empty retail stores and unused warehouse space are the most likely options when it comes to finding a place, however, we are not ruling out any opportunity that God may bring our way.

The CVT will give a monthly update on the first Sunday of the month during Sunday’s worship service. Stay tuned for more exciting details and please, please continue to pray for their efforts.

It’s a special year not only because of what we are expecting God to do in the future, but also because of what He’s done in our past. That’s right, on January 22 we will celebrate our 10th year as a church in Lake Mary. God has been so faithful over the past decade and we can’t wait to see what he has in store for us over the next 10 years.

For now, the upcoming year is shaping up to be a great expression of faithfulness in our community. We will continue to stock the Lake Mary Elementary Food pantry and provide meals at Grace & Grits. We will continue to work with the Lake Mary Police Department’s Senior Intervention Group to provide assistance to the elderly. And we will continue to be faithful to teaching the Bible and worshipping Christ passionately each week during our Sunday morning service.

One of my hopes for 2012 is to put a greater emphasis on prayer at LifePoint. At our recent Elders retreat in October we felt led by God to make more room for prayer during our Sunday morning service and to also pray as a congregation on a regular basis. The early church considered group prayer to be one of the four essentials functions of the church and so we are also going to make that one of our top priorities for the new year. If you have any prayer needs please send an email to prayers@lifepointchurch.com or call our office.

We are also refocusing our efforts to find a permanent facility for our church family. Starting again in January, the Campus Vision Team will meet monthly to pray and seek God’s will for our new home. If it’s God will, we hope to secure a facility that can be our own – a 24/7 location to worship weekly and to serve the community. We know that this won’t be easy or cheap, but we continue to move in this direction as we believe the God has prompted us to go forward with this plan. Stay tuned for regular updates the first Sunday of each month during Sunday morning worship.