Elders Ministry

Sermon Themes

Shortly after arriving at Laurel Heights, Pastor Lindeman asked the Elders to be actively involved in shaping the focus of our message – especially the foundation upon which the sermon topics rest.

The sermon theme for 2018 was “Being a companion with God and each other.” This was God's original plan for us and the purpose for which we are created. We have come to realize that the restoration of our companionship with God is the substance of salvation. As a result, we are constantly looking for opportunities to share this message in every way possible.

The sermon theme for 2019 is "Spirit empowered to connect with God, family, and community". We want to always be led by the Holy Spirit. This includes His leadership in the relationships we have. Having Him empower us as we interact with those in our community impacts how we represent God. His empowerment in our lives draws us all closer together as family. And it is through the Holy Spirit that our relationship with God grows. Staying connected with God, family (each other), and community is vital to growing meaningful spiritual relationships that last for eternity.

Relationship Ladders

What if our ministries touched peoples lives in the most relevant and meaningful ways?

What if your ministry played an important part in bringing someone into a saving relationship with God?

And as a result, that person became a good friend, someone you look forward to seeing each week?

And you become so close that you consider them to be a brother or sister?

The Elders would like us all to have this exciting experience.

BUT HOW? How can we significantly impact those around us in such a way that it changes lives for eternity?

A Relationship Ladder represents the steps in a journey; a journey that takes us from where we are and leads us step-by-step into a deep, meaningful relationship with God.

Right now, the Elders are working to build Relationship Ladders. We are identifying commonly held interests, and commonly felt pain-points. These interest and pain-points are the significant thoughts and feelings that occupy our minds each and every day.

Once an “Interest/Pain-Point” (IPP) group has been identified we work with various ministry leaders to create a step-by-step path of opportunities that lead members of the IPP group into a closer relationship with God and with the church family. We want there to be many Relationship Ladders for lots of different IPP groups.

Perhaps the best way to understand the Relationship Ladders is through an example: Vacation Bible School is a great initial opportunity, but what happens after it’s over? What if we shared with the kids how much fun Pathfinders and Adventurers is, and offered them the opportunity to join? And after that perhaps a Mother’s Day Out for the parents? And then some parenting classes? And then a Pathfinder Sabbath with Fellowship lunches. At the lunch, parents are invited to join a small-group study. Then, at some point, we offer Bible studies.  This is how a Relationship Ladder works. For everything we do, we should be ready to offer a next step.

The ultimate goal of each Relationship Ladder is to lead those around us into a relationship with God and the church family, and to eventual discipleship and ministry involvement.

We would like you to be a part of this – to join the Relationship Ladder team. If you feel that you would like to be part of a team that impacts others in profound and eternal ways, please download The Relationship Ladder Framework and The Relationship Ladder Methodology. Read through these documents and then talk to the Elders about how you can be a part of the journey that brings people into companionship with God.

As we move forward, we will share with you case studies of various Relationship Ladders and their results.

A House of Prayer

Many of the Elders have experienced the amazing power of prayer and recognize its value within the church family. As a result of this understanding, we offer after-service prayer to anyone who would like to have an Elder pray with them. An Elder will spend a few quiet moments with you as you share what’s on your heart, then we will bow our heads together as we talk with God.

Future Plans

Our future plans include encourageing others to become prayer warriors with us and join with us in meeting with those who desire after-service prayer.

We would also like to start developing ways to focus the ministry efforts of our church family into the areas that God has lead them through His gifts of ability and temperament.

Prepare for Success

It is vitally important that as we bring new people into our fellowship, that we are prepared to embrace their friendship with heart-felt love. This requires that we, the Laurel Heights church family, have that strong, daily walk with God that leads us in each step we take. We need individuals who are willing to give Bible studies, form small-group ministries, but especially, to include our new church family members in friendship and fellowship. We would like to see a new ministry form - a Fellowship Ministry with the goal of welcoming newcomers and helping them become a part of the Laurel Heights church family.