Church relaunch FAQs

With the easing of restrictions this week we’re re-opening the ministry centre for public gatherings and everyone is welcome!

Resuming our gatherings will be familiar but different. With the government requirements of social distancing and a ban on congregational singing it will feel a bit strange. But it will be so good to be together face to face again. For the next three Sundays we’ll have:

9am church at the ministry centre with Kids Church
9am livestream
5pm church at the ministry centre

FAQs

Will the livestream continue?
Yes! For now, the 9am livestream will continue as usual but there will not be any chat rooms after.

How many services will be run on Sunday and at what times?
For the next few weeks we’ll have two gatherings, 9am and 5pm.

How many people are allowed to attend?
Within the new regulations, our main hall has capacity for 140 people. In addition to this, we have overflow capacity for over 100 more and the children will be in their Kids Church rooms.

What about kids?
Kids will go straight to their Kids Church groups after they’ve been checked in:

  • Minimites and Dynamites (K-year 3) will be combining in Room 3
  • Extremities (years 4-6) will be in the upper hall

What about Teen Church?
There will be no Teen Church for the holidays (5, 12 & 19 July).

What about people who are more vulnerable to COVID-19?
We’ll still provide our 9am livestream for everyone who needs to stay at home for now.

Are we following government guidelines?
Absolutely! We’ll be practising social distancing, recording names, providing hand sanitiser, refraining from singing and will not be giving out our Sunday bulletin or providing pens. We encourage you to bring along your own Bible, notebook and pen.

Will we have morning tea afterwards?
We will not be providing morning tea however the cafe will be open and will sell tea, coffee and bottled water. Feel free to bring your travel mug or water bottle!

Will an offering be collected?
No, we encourage you to give online via direct debit or the Giving page of our website.

Will there be a Mandarin translation at the Ministry Centre?
We’re currently working with our Chinese brothers and sisters about what would best serve them at this time.

Do we have an official COVID-19 safety plan?
Yes we do and it has been lodged with the government to register our ministry centre as a COVID-19 safe place.

Got more questions?
If you have any questions regarding our relaunch of Sunday services please feel free to contact our office via the Contact Us page of our website.

Pastoral update from Pete

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Pastoral update from Thomas

Return to Gathering: STEP ONE

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Click here to view the latest video update from Dave

The government has now started to ease restrictions on gatherings. They have implemented Step One of a three step plan.

This means we can start showing hospitality to one another by having up to five guests in our homes. Some Growth Groups will take advantage of this and will start getting together in person (bearing in mind social distancing and good hygiene).

At the Ministry Centre, we are allowed to have gatherings of up to ten people. However, since we can only have one gathering at a time, the Ministry Centre is still closed to the public. If you want to use the ministry centre for your Growth Group or another ministry you will need to making a booking through the church office.

On Sunday mornings the live-stream will continue at 9am. It has been very encouraging to have so many family and friends of our church watching live. Our youth ministries will continue to gather via Zoom until there are further easing of restrictions.

The Sydney Anglicans have put out a great document called Return to Gathering Framework. This gives a helpful perspective of what we might expect in coming months.

Whether we gather digitally or physically:

Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:24-25

Life course online starting 12th May

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Is there more to life than this?

In our six week Life course we look into life with Jesus, and his claim to offer all who believe in him ‘life to the full.’ This term we’ll be running the course online through Zoom, but everyone will still have a good chance to either listen to the discussion, or ask as many questions as they like. Course materials supplied.

There has never been a better opportunity to invite your friends to join us – even if they live a long way away, consider inviting them and doing the course together. Also, consider joining us together with others in your household!

Course Details

When: 7.30-9pm Tuesday nights starting 12th May
Cost: Free
RSVP: Thomas McConaghey by phone or email (his details are in the church directory) or fill in the contact form here

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New sermon series on the Book of Romans

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Living out the gospel in today’s world means we need to understand and internalise the truth about God and his plan for the world. Paul’s letter to the Romans remains one of the most important expressions of Christian truth ever written. In our upcoming sermon series on the Book of Romans we’ll dive into this message that confronts us with who we are, who God is, and what our place in this world ought to be.

“It is impossible to read or to meditate on this letter too much or too well.”

Martin Luther in his ‘Preface to Romans’

“When anyone understands this Epistle, he has a passage opened to him to the understanding of the whole Scripture.”

John Calvin regarding Book of Romans

Have a watch of the video of Dave taking us through an introduction to the Book of Romans, and the Bible Project has a great intro to Romans 1-4 here

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ANZAC update from Dave

ANZAC day service

ANZAC day is coming up. This Sunday, as we reflect on the sacrifice of men and women who have served in Australian armed forces, we have a special guest speaker Andrew Nixon who will be joining our live stream in his navy uniform and speaking to us on John 15:13:

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends”.

This verse applies to those who have fought and died to protect our freedom but even more so, points us towards the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus in our place.

Andrew is married to Jenny and they have four children, all currently doing school or university studies from home. He is a keen gardener and looks forward to being able to watch the Sydney Swans play again. Formerly an officer in the Royal Australian Navy, he now serves as a Chaplain in the RAN Reserves, as well as being the head of pastoral care and volunteer services at Hammondcare.

Please join us at 9am this Sunday via live-stream or find our YouTube channel by clicking here or searching for The Lakes Church NSW and remember to hit the subscribe button to find us easily next time.

Al Stewart, our new FIEC National Director

Last week Al Stewart started as the new National Director of the FIEC (Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches). We’ll have the privilege of meeting him and hearing him preach this Sunday. For now, here’s a short video of him introducing himself.

Easter update from Dave

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