Would you describe yourself as a person who is growing?   Or do you sometimes feel like you’re just maintaining, stuck in a rut, or worse yet, going backwards?   Just as God designed the human body (our skin, hair, nails, and cells throughout) to continually grow until the moment of death, the same is true of our minds and spirits.   But growing in our walks with Jesus (our minds and spirits) isn’t easy; it can be painful; and it doesn’t happen accidentally.   You have to want to grow!

If you are serious about growing in your walk with Jesus– get ready for GROW Classes beginning Sunday, September 12.  GROW (Getting Rich on the Word) is a weekly opportunity to study God’s Word and grow with others here at Family Life Church.    Starting back Sept. 12, GROW classes begin promptly at 8:45 a.m.  Look forward to good coffee & plenty of doughnuts that day as well!

“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.   Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.” (Ephesians 4:14-15 NIV)

All I could exclaim yesterday during the parade was “We have a great church!”  The parade was so successful and there were so many evidences of God’s grace, including the clear weather!  When you think about it, the whole effort was such a fantastic example of the Body of Christ working together.  There were SO MANY people involved in SO MANY different ways.  It was not just a certain handful, or a few key people.  It was the entire church working together!

I believe the Name and Person of Jesus Christ was lifted high above the city of Waukegan and in the county seat of Lake.  As we moved forward in the parade form beginning to end, let’s continue to move forward together in the work that God has called us to!

With a grateful heart to God and to you,
Pastor George

Our entry was almost a block long and included youngsters carrying a banner, baby strollers, worship dancers, the worship team on a float, and a convertible!

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Today’s Independence Day Parade is probably Waukegan’s biggest event for the year.  Though budgetary cuts caused the city to cancel other annual traditions, they left the parade on the schedule.

The theme of the parade is “Making History.”  Family Life Church has been making history in the lives of Waukegan residents for 81 years.  We are a multi-cultural, multi-generational body of people whose lives are being transformed by the saving power of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now we know that God is the Only One who can fix broken things – broken hearts, broken lives and broken cities.  We also know that God placed our church in this city for a purpose.  Today’s parade offers us the opportunity to walk the streets while lifting up Jesus Christ and praying for the city.  As we pray for Waukegan, let’s lift up that only name “under heaven, given to men, by which {all people} must be saved.” (Acts 4:12 NIV)

–Beth Jones

My dear friend,

The problem with your father is that he is a man. Now, don’t hold that against him; God (not your Dad) decided that issue a long time ago. But since fathers are men, maybe it’s time you understood a little more about “how men think.”

First of all, men are not always the best at communicating their feelings or showing their emotions. It doesn’t mean they don’t have any, but that they guard them better than women tend to. It doesn’t mean a dad doesn’t care; he just might be unsure of how to express his emotions in a particular situation. Things get more complicated as kids become teenagers. Dynamics change and dads may find it difficult to communicate love and acceptance. Both parties just need to continue to work on good communication.

Secondly, because dads think like men, they really understand how a “young man” thinks. They know the difficult battle it is to keep one’s thoughts and life pure. Godly dads also know the enemy’s attempt to “steal, kill and destroy” (John 10:10 NIV) even their own precious sons and daughters. This makes dads very concerned for their children. This often teaches dads to pray more earnestly for their children!

Thirdly, dads can be very protective; sometimes this may “feel” very restrictive to their children. Wise dads know “God is the Big Boss on Fathering” and that every dad will answer to Him. Dads are protective because they just want their children to grow into strong, responsible adults who make good decisions throughout their lives. Godly dads know that the most important decision their children will ever make is “to make Jesus Christ Lord of their own lives.” That is why the Godly dad does everything he can in this life, in order that one day he can personally say to Jesus, “Here they are, Lord, the children that You gave me.”

Remember, only Your Heavenly Daddy is the perfect father. So the next time you get frustrated with your earthly dad, remember – he’s just a man! Then thank God for putting this very imperfect but specially-planned-for-you Dad in your life! I guarantee that if you can do that, you will start viewing your dad a little differently. I did!

With fondness,
Miss Beth

Our Float Six Years Ago

On Sunday, June 27, Family Life Church will be participating in Waukegan’s Independence Day Parade!  Similar to the parades we have done in years past, we will have a live band playing on a float in addition to people walking, riding bikes, and dancing around the float.  We will be handing out candy and information cards to the crowd.

There will be a short church service that morning at 10am, and the parade begins at 1pm.

We’re getting prepared with CASES OF CANDY to give out, DOUBLE THE AMPLIFIER POWER to rock with, THOUSANDS OF CARDS a Gospel message on them, and TONS OF HANDS  pitching in to help share Christ’s love with this city!

On May 29, 2010, the Family Life Church council unanimously approved the funding and construction for a new (existing) space for the Most Wanted Youth Group.  Located in the lower level of the Washington Street facility, this area (which is almost as large as the previous square footage of the church sanctuary on Chestnut Street) will be completely gutted of existing materials and a new space built.

Highlights of the new space include:

-16′ Coffee bar with sink, appliances
-Full size Pool Table
-Performance stage with sound system and stage lighting
-Seating and bistro-type tables for gatherings and meetings
-New electrical panel/system to provide ample power for space
-Capability for space to be used as sanctuary overflow area or meeting room via video/audio feed

The construction officially began with the removal of the wall that was located in the center of the room.  This essentially created one large room out of two existing rooms.  The next steps will be removing the existing tile flooring and replacing with brand new tile, and building the stage.