Welcome to our February newsletter. We hope you will take the time to read and stay up to date with all that is happening at Village Green Community Church.
FEBRUARY SCHEDULE
February 5 – This is our regular Communion service. Remember to pick up your communion cup as you enter the auditorium and for those of you online, have the elements ready if you want to participate.
February 5, 12, and 19 – For the first 3 weeks of the month we continue to look at the character and nature of God through our series, God Is…
Starting the last Sunday of February (the 26th) is a new 4-Part series entitled The Grudge. In a world of cancel culture and deep social divisions, forgiveness is becoming a lost discipline. Yet, to be a believer means that forgiveness must be a necessary part of our faith journey.
Don’t miss this timely series on forgiveness. It promises to be both challenging and inspirational. Hope you plan to join us.
Life Groups continue as well through February and will conclude this session the week of March 19th.
TWO FEBRUARY RESTARTS!
Our coffee ministry is now up and running (It actually started the last week of January). You no longer have to battle the drive-through on a Sunday morning in order to get a coffee or tea. Our freshly brewed coffee will be waiting for you in the foyer. This is also a great opportunity to connect with others. A big thank-you to the team of volunteers who have made this a reality.
Another welcomed addition this month is the return of the Ladies’ Bible Study. They are starting with a 10-week study based on the book of Hebrews. It begins on Wednesday, February 15th at 10 am, with a “meet and greet” time of fellowship.
The official study group will begin Wednesday, Feb 22nd starting at 9:30 am
The cost of the study guidebook is $26.00
Please connect with Betty Obakata, Paulette Schiestel, or the church office, if you are interested in joining the study or have questions.
CELEBRATION SERVICE
Whenever there is a month with 5 Sundays we designate that fifth Sunday as a Celebration Service. This is a service where we take some time to pause and celebrate what God is doing in and through the ministries here at Village Green.
These could be anything from baptisms, testimonies, ministry updates, memberships, parental dedications, interviews, and so much more. Over the years, we have used these services to remind us of God’s faithfulness and to acknowledge the ways that God is touching people’s lives in significant ways.
Our next Celebration Service will be on April 30th, so if you are considering taking the next step of faith, contact the church at office@villagegreenchurch.com, or fill out a contact card. A link is available in the next section below.
CONNECTION CARDS
Our new digital connection cards are now operational. They serve a number of important functions from updating your information and areas of service to letting us know how we can serve you.
Here is the link to stay in touch
DAY CAMPS FOR 2023
Village Green Community Church is partnering with two camp organizations in July 2023, Forest Cliff Day Camps and Adullam Camp, to provide Day Camp opportunities this summer.
Forest Cliff Camps will run for two weeks from July 10-14 and July 17-21
Adullum Camp will run from July 31 – August 4
For more information and to register, click the specific camp buttons below.
THIS COULD BE YOU.
Imagine for a moment you are part of a team that is making a difference. Every week, the team you are a part of helps to bring meaningful content in a way that is easily received by others and helps them grow into better human beings. With each contribution your team makes, the community grows in intentionality and unity.
You may think this is a bit overdramatic, but the importance of our Technical Team cannot be underestimated (This team includes our live sound mixing, audio/video, and live streaming ministries). Though this team may not be prominently upfront or on the platform, their work is vitally important for our in-person and live-streaming congregation.
If you are looking for a place to serve and want to be a part of a critical team here at Village Green, then why not consider becoming part of our technical services team? You can let us know your intention through a contact card or by emailing the church at office@villagegreenchurch.com.
IT’S BUDGET TIME
It’s that time of year when the Leadership and Finance Team are working together to present a budget to the congregation at the end of March.
The 2022-2023 budget year has been quite challenging. We continue to run a deficit. This has also been the year when we needed to replace our roof so that expenditure was costly though necessary. There are further capital improvements needed, such as the parking lot, so the budget process for 2023-2024 has further challenges for the upcoming year.
At present, we are asking for prayer as we sit down and run through the numbers in order to present a budget that is reflective of our circumstances but trusting God for the increase.
REBOOT MEN’S EVENT
The ReBoot Men’s Event is coming to the London Gospel Temple on Saturday, March 25, 2023, from 8:15 am to 5:00 pm.
Tickets are $25.00 and early registration is now open. You can register at www.rebootmensevent.ca. Early registration allows you the first choice of available breakout sessions that have limited attendance.
LET’S GET THIS RIGHT!
On January 21st, the Elders, Board of Directors, and Staff met for our first retreat of the new year. This was an important opportunity to pray, seek God’s wisdom, and look to the future in a visionary way. Existing as a church in a post-pandemic world has presented unique challenges but also unique opportunities.
Though the discussions are ongoing, we all walked away with a positive and hopeful posture concerning the future. The opportunities that exist easily negate the challenges but only if we are willing to boldly follow the Spirit’s leading.
What has become evident, is we need to be a church that is intentional. Which means living with intentionality concerning the vision and the mission of the church.
One area where we can all contribute is to make sure that we are both a “safe” and “welcoming” community. Here are some of the ways we can create this type of community.
- Welcome a guest. Make sure to say “Hi” or “Welcome to Village Green.” No one should leave the church feeling like nobody talked to them.
- Leave your judgmental self at home. One surefire way for a person to feel like they are in an unsafe place is to feel judged.
- Allow people to express doubts. Be gracious and give them the benefit of the doubt. Remember, if they do not feel heard they will likely shut down. When they do, those doubts are now allowed to fester without exposure to the light, which allows them to grow like a cancer.
- Try and smile once in a while. At least look like you want to be at church!
- Be respectful of volunteers and staff. The volunteers are doing a great service on their own time and dime for the sake of the kingdom. The staff is trying to worship as part of the community on Sunday.
- Tell yourself this as you are driving to church. Today I am likely going to run into people at church who are hurting, or filled with anxiety, struggling with their faith, in a toxic relationship, struggling financially, and so on. Knowing that there are all these hurting people, how am I going to be the person Jesus would want me to be to them?
Just a few suggestions to get you thinking. Remember our Mission Statement, to love God, love others, and change the world. Let’s take it to heart and really make a difference in order to change the world, even if it’s one person at a time. Let’s get this right, because when we do, we experience heaven on earth.
Thanks for reading and see you here next month;
Blessings to you all,
Jon Korkidakis
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