Christianity is not an American thing
Happy Friday, Church!
As Ron covered in last week’s Weekly Update, this weekend is Missions Emphasis Weekend. Although even if you haven’t been keeping up with the Weekly Updates, you may very well have guessed that something was going on from all the colorful flags decorating the sanctuary. Missions Emphasis Weekend is one of LTCC’s oldest and dearest traditions. It is one weekend a year that our church dedicates to remembering, honoring, and celebrating the missionaries that we support.
I have always liked that we mark this special weekend by hanging dozens of national flags. To me, it serves as a reminder of what is written in Revelation 7:9. When God gives John a glimpse of the heavenly future, he sees “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” The flags that have been up in the sanctuary over the last few weeks remind me that Christianity is not an American thing. It’s not even a Western thing. It is a divine thing made accessible to all humanity. Out of every nation whose flag currently hangs in the sanctuary and also out of every nation whose flags we didn’t have room for, God has called his people to himself. And when God calls a Latvian, or a Cambodian, or an Angolan, he does not ask them to leave their nationality behind. On the contrary, one of the great miracles of our faith is that even as God forges this diverse crowd into one “holy nation” (1 Peter 2:9), each nationality, tribe, and people group remain distinct. As we praise our Savior for all eternity, we all sing the same song, but each of us in our own language.
One of the flags that we have up probably looks more familiar to you than the others: up front on the left side of the sanctuary hangs our very own American flag. This is a reminder that the United States is also a mission field. Even as we honor those who are seeking to reach the lost in far flung corners of the globe, we also have a responsibility to reach the lost who are all around us in our own nation and community. To that end, one of our events this weekend will be celebrating the 75th anniversary of Village Missions. Village Missions seeks to plant churches and provide faithful Pastors to existing churches throughout rural areas in the US and Canada. Many of these small-town churches would not be able to survive without the support Village Missions provides. LTCC itself began as a Village Missions church back when the Lake Tapps area was far more rural than it is today. While we have now outgrown the need for financial support from Village Missions, we remain a part of the Village Missions family and continue to support the work that they are doing to spread the gospel in this important mission field.
We have a full slate of events planned for the weekend, and I would highly encourage you to make it out to as many as you can. Missions Emphasis Weekend is always a great time of fellowship as we celebrate our missionaries:
Friday, October 27th, 6:30 pm – Catered Dinner by Café Pacific | Featured Speaker Micah Myers | Community Partner booths | Nursery & Children's Church available courtesy of Laura Myers
Saturday, October 28th, 8 am - Men's Breakfast | Featured Speaker Micah Myers
Saturday, October 28th, 11 am - Ladies' Brunch | Featured Speaker Laura Myers
Saturday, October 28th, 6:30 pm – Village Missions 75th Anniversary Celebration | Celebration video | Ken Schmidt VM District Representative | Dessert Served | Nursery available
Sunday, October 29th, 10 am - Morning Worship | Featured Speaker Micah Myers | Nursery & Children's Church available.
Register for Saturday's events here!
On behalf of the Elders and the Deacons,
Church Treasurer
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What's Happening @ LTCC? Try the method that works best for you!
See? View our Announcements webpage.
Touch? Grab a monthly paper bulletin from an usher.
Hear? Listen to the announcements at the beginning of Sunday service.
Who is this week's Missionary Spotlight? Micah & Laura Myers
Unable to join us in person? Watch our Livestream! (registration no longer necessary)