Lakeview News

June 26, 2014

Dear Friends,

As you know, Pastor Jess has served at Lakeview for 15 years now while also working a second job. He has done this because he wanted to serve with us, but we were not in a financial position to pay him the salary he needed to live on. In addition to his responsibilities with Lakeview, he works 30 hours per week for Pranger Enterprises, and acts in a volunteer capacity as a chaplain and in critical incident response and suicide and grief service capacities. In order for him to devote more time to serving Lakeview and the volunteer positions to which he feels called to contribute his unique skills and perceptions, he has requested we begin the discussion of how to transition him to a full-time pay structure with Lakeview.

On Sunday, while Jess was out of town, Greg Mathews and I presented the situation to the congregation for feedback. Ultimately, our bylaws require the decision to be made by the leadership team (Greg and Terri Mathews, Jess and Marlene Jessup, and Deb and myself). But, of course, at Lakeview we never do anything in a vacuum! Your input is crucial to the decision-making process. We want to be entirely transparent, answering any questions you have and addressing any concerns. We are hoping to make a decision before the annual meeting in August, so we need to hear from you soon.

Here are the facts you need to know:

• We believe there is enough money in the general fund to replace Jess’s salary from Pranger for approximately 1½ years.
• At the end of the 1½ years, if everything remains equal, we believe we will be able to continue to pay Jess at the same rate. However, it will require all of what is currently our “extra” funds. There will be no additional money for general repairs, etc., around the building and property.
• If we decide to make this step, we will set a date in the future to make the transition. It will not happen instantly, and you will be well informed regarding when it will take place.

During Sunday morning’s discussion, Mike Abel generously offered to help us draw up projections so we can all see more clearly the future ramifications of this decision. That and all other financial information for Lakeview (including the way Jess is currently paid and would be paid in the future) are always available to you. We are also happy to provide you with more details regarding Jess’s work with Lakeview and his volunteer positions.

Please prayerfully consider this decision. We believe it is important, even necessary, for us to provide for our pastor, if at all possible. We also want to be good stewards of the resources the Lord has provided for us, and we recognize the gravity of the step, if Jess resigns from his secure salary and then something changes with Lakeview’s income. The leadership team appreciates your prayers for us as we weigh options. We need your input. Please contact Greg Mathews or me with any questions or thoughts you have.

Greg Mathews
Greg McClure
[email protected]

Sincerely,
Greg McClure
Secretary/Treasurer

November 12, 2010, Hamilton, IN — Lakeview Community Church, located at 3130 E. Bellefontaine Rd. in Hamilton, recently joined the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA). Lakeview, previously an inter-denominational church, has chosen the affiliation for a variety of reasons.

The EFCA provides accountability for church leadership, as well as a number of resources including several universities and an online learning center, to name a few. The EFCA is made up of about 1,500 churches and church plants across 50 countries. The autonomous churches are networked together and share the EFCA’s statement of faith.

“We are pleased that Lakeview has joined our network of interdependent churches extending across the world,” says Pastor Chuck Warren, Regional Superintendent for the Heartland Region of the EFCA. “The EFCA is distinguished by our commitment to proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ and to the inspiration of the Bible as the word of God. This fulfills the ‘Evangelical’ part of our name. We are also dedicated to the ‘Free’ part, which means that we are governed by our congregations, and our churches have autonomy. We look forward to serving together as partners in ministry.”

The EFCA has a church planting ministry, foreign missionary efforts, and supports a non-profit organization helping keep families connected during a medical crisis.

The Lakeview congregation believes in seeing to people’s needs first. The church’s primary goal is to follow Jesus, and to encourage those they know and meet to do the same.

Pastor Chuck Warren will be a visiting speaker at the church on Sunday, November 21 for the 10:30 a.m. service. Lakeview meets every Sunday at 10:30 a.m., and has a youth group for young people and their parents on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. Lakeview also has an adult Sunday school class and an active women’s ministry.

Lakeview is also rejoicing and giving glory to the Lord for His faithfulness in helping pay off the indebtedness of their facility. Pastor Jessup says that “because of the hard work of the faithful folks at Lakeview and the blessing of the Lord we will be able to devote more of our resources to ministering to the community and building His Kingdom.”

For more information about Lakeview Community Church, contact Pastor Jess Jessup at (260) 488-2080. For more information on the EFCA, visit www.efca.org.

A CALL OF CHRISTIAN CONSCIENCE

Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family.

We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are:

• the sanctity of human life
• the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife
• the rights of conscience and religious liberty.

Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defense, and to commit ourselves to honoring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Read the Manhattan Declaration

Dear Lakeview Family:

In our effort to provide for accountability and future stability, we have been looking for a suitable group to connect with in fellowship and service to the Lord. Our search has brought us to the Evangelical Free Church of America. Over the past months, the leadership has visited websites, read material, and discussed the pros and cons of affiliation. Several weeks ago, we met with Rev. Chuck Warren, the Superintendent of the Heartland Region. In July Rev. Warren was with us to share the Word, talk about the EFCA, and answer any questions.

As a result of the extensive search and our discussion at the annual meeting on August 19, the leadership will be moving forward in the process of pursuing an affiliation with EFCA. As always, you will be kept informed as each step in the process progresses. Please continue to look at the links below and the material at the church, become more familiar with the EFCA, and ask any questions you have. You can address your questions to Pastor Jess, any of the leadership, or Rev. Warren via phone or email. At Lakeview, you are a part of these decisions. It is important that you are informed as we move forward in the decision process.

EFCA Web site · EFCA Great Lakes District