Upcoming Events
SOUP or BOWL Take Out
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Church Van Fundraiser
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Is this winter making you cold?
Do you like good (non clam) chowder?
Are you going to watch the Superbowl this year?
Have you ever ridden in the LAC van?
If your answer to any of the questions is yes, have we got something for you!
Its time for Lockport Alliance to get a new church van. The current one is 12+ years old, and while it has served us well since 2000, its days on the road are numbered. The Elders are in the middle of searching for and purchasing a new one, and we have a substantial amount of capital already raised. But we need your help.
The van is essential for the youth ministry, as well as other ministries included the Men’s, Royal Reapers, Bible Quizzing. We’ve used to the van for all kinds of conferences, events, and retreats. It’s even been used to help in emergency moving situations. We also periodically lend it out to our sister churches for various retreats. We would love to see the van even utilized even more.
So our plan is to raise up some funds to help towards the purchase of a new church van. On Friday and Saturday the LAC youth and Men are teaming up to cut, slice, chop, heat, and serve a delicious soup. So plan on coming by sometime between 11:30am and 1pm on that Saturday. We will be setting up right under the church’s carport, and can run the soup to you so you don’t even have to leave your vehicle. All the chowder will be served in quart containers. Any support is welcomed.
The suggested donation is $5 for a quart, but we will leave the amount up to you. Any leftovers will be packaged and available cold the next day in the Fellowship Hall.
Guns & Grub
The Verratti Farm will be hosting the annual Guns & Grub in late February. The event is open to men and boys of all ages with the shooting
range under strict adult supervision. Target shooting, skeet shooting, great steak dinner and amazing desserts! So don’t miss it. All this for free.
(Date and more information upcoming)
From the Alliance...
Missionary Spotlight: Jessica Schaeffer
Immanuel: At Christmas and Every Day
December 15, 2011
The following is an adapted excerpt from Jessica’s recent update.
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”(which means “God with us”) [Matthew 1:23].
In the challenges of these past months, I’ve often reminded myself, “Jesus is with me right now.” What a gift to know that He will
never leave me or forsake me. I am not alone because of Immanuel, God with us. And what a joy it is to see others come to know the Gift,
to enjoy the presence of Jesus in their lives.
God with Salif
Salif came to our hospital a year ago looking for help. The teenager had been in a moped accident two years previously and broken the bone in his thigh (femur). He hadn’t received proper care, so a piece of bone was sticking through his skin and chronically infected. Salif spent a lot of time watching Christian films during his hospital stay. Ever since his discharge from the hospital last spring, he has come to church with me. Just recently, God answered our prayers: Salif decided to follow Christ! A few days ago he visited me, discouraged because his father continues to verbally persecute him for having become a Christian and has threatened to kick him out. After missing school since his accident, Salif was finally back in school, until a few weeks ago when his father pulled him out . . . apparently a consequence of his profession of faith in Jesus. As I talked with Salif, I kept reminding him that even in the difficult things he is facing, he is never alone—God is with him, and at any moment, we can cry out to Him for help. Pray for Salif, that he will grow in his faith, and that He will know God’s presence with him, even in the midst of rejection and persecution from his family. It is a joy to see others find Jesus and experience God’s presence with them always. Thanks for your important part in helping people to know and experience Immanuel. May you know His love and presence today—and every day.
What You Can Do
Pray for Alliance workers the world over. “Although life has been rich and full over these past months,” Jessica wrote this fall, “I’ve also been fairly overwhelmed with my workload. Sometimes the pressure is great, and I feel ready to despair. But my hope is set on Jesus, who I know will continue to help me through your prayers.” Partner with Alliance workers like Jessica to share the light of Christ—Immanuel—with those living in spiritual darkness. Be Light—give to the Great Commission Christmas offering!
Spotlight on Missions...
Break a Leg
January 16, 2012
By Esther Schaeffer, serving in Burkina Faso
Missions Conference & You
“Break a leg.” It’s not exactly what I said, but I did begin to pray that the Lord would give me another contact with Djeneba. Our widows’ ministry involves 182 women and their families. Recently, we learned that one of our older widows, who had been sick for some time, had passed away. She was the only Christian in a very large family and had gone to live with her younger brother when she could no longer care for herself.
When we got the news about her passing, a delegation from our widows’ group traveled the hour or so to the town where this woman had been living to greet the family. Djeneba was the niece who had lovingly cared for this aunt. She shared through tears her memories of her aunt and her firm devotion to Jesus Christ.
What would normally have been a brief visit turned into several hours, as Djeneba first asked if we wanted to see the grave and then insisted that we stay and eat some of the traditional foods of the region that she wanted me to try. This gave us a lot of time to spend with her, meet many family members, and share our own impressions of her aunt, who had chosen Christ much against her family’s wishes.
Prayers Answered!
As we prayed before we left the home and on the drive home, I commended Djeneba to the Lord, asking that she would continue to have contact with Christians. Imagine my surprise to learn last week that Djeneba had a fall and broke her foot so badly that she had to come to our city to have it repaired.
We weren’t quite sure of the location of her relative’s house where she was staying, but the Lord led the way so that the very first house where we stopped to make inquiries was exactly where Djeneba was recuperating. She was so glad to see us, explain all the details of her accident, and introduce us to more of her family members—we were surrounded by children and young people.
As we were leaving, I knew that Christ would continue to bring Christians into contact with this family. Even if Djeneba could not make that step of faith, others in her family would.
What You Can Do
- Praise God for the strong faith of Djeneba’s widowed aunt; pray for Djeneba’s salvation as well as for that of the other members in her extended family.
- Pray for Alliance workers the world over to have divine appointments through which they have opportunities to share the good news!
- Give to the Great Commission Fund—partner in Living the Call together with Alliance workers like Esther Schaeffer in Burkina Faso.
- Read “No Longer Alone,” Esther’s alife article (January 2009) about the widows’ ministry in Burkina.
