Free to Worship

On Monday we get the opportunity to remember those soldiers who have gone before us and fought for and protect our freedom. This is an important part of who we are as citizens of these United States. I for one am very grateful for the men and women who have faithfully served our nation and have either died in action or have passed away. As we remember these let us also not forget that Sunday is the greatest day of the week as it is the day that we come together and remember the Savior of the world and bring our very best worship so that we might bring honor and glory to Him. What a blessing it is to live in a country where we can freely express both our love for our soldiers and our love for the Creator. This Sunday we begin a brand-new sermon series called IDENTITY: Who Do You Think You Are? We will travel through the book of Ephesians and discover what this letter to the church of Ephesus has to say about our identity in Christ. We will be hanging out in Ephesians 1:3-14 this Sunday. Thank you so much to everyone that came out and supported our youth at the Youth Spaghetti Dinner and Cake Auction. We had a great evening of spaghetti and meatballs and auctioning off some pretty amazing cakes that were all handmade by our students. We raised $1565.00 at the event for our summer mission trip. If you were unable to attend but still want to contribute you can make a donation and label your envelope "Youth Mission Trip." Finally, Angela Dionne our Staff Parrish Relations Chairperson announced last Sunday that I would be staying another year here at LVC. I am super excited to spend a third year here and really excited to see what God has in mind for us in the coming year. Currently I split my time 50/50 with New Hope UMC. Beginning July 1st that will change and I will be spending 3/4 of my time here at LVC and 1/4 of my time at New Hope UMC. What does that mean? It means I will have more time to spend here at LVC and I will only be responsible for Wednesday Nights at New Hope UMC. Here's a few things you might want to know about what's happening in and around LVC: 1. VBS is just 1 week away. Please make sure you bring in your donated items this Sunday and if you haven't volunteered for VBS now is the time. Please contact Dawn Firestine, Anni Blenke or Lauren Crawford ASAP!!! 2. We are in need of NURSERY VOLUNTEERS during Sunday Mornings and Wednesday Evenings. To keep in guidelines with our Child Protection Plan we need two people in the Nursery during our services. So I am asking for some folks from 10:45am service to be willing to serve once every two month in the nursery during the 9:30am service and some folks from the 9:30am service to serve one every two months in the nursery during the 10:45am service. That means you would only serve six times a year. If you are willing to serve please contact Anni Blenki at 813-253-9693. 3. The 4th of July Parade and Picnic is quickly approaching. Please make sure to sign up on your Connect Card this Sunday if you are able and willing to serve this year. We need all the help we can get! 4. Our first Men's Night Out is happening next Thursday night. We will be going bowling together at Oakfield Lanes meeting there at 7pm for 2 games of bowling. Men make sure you sign up on your Connect Card this Sunday. 5. Family Promise is just around the corner (June 11-18). If you are willing to donate supplies or be an overnight guest please make sure you contact Beth Pinson ASAP. It's going to be a great day! Let's go out there and make our lives count as we become salt and light for a dying and dark world! Love you! Have a great weekend, Pastor RIcc