Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Livingway Update – Your tax deductible giving records are now available for download.
Livingway Family and friends –
To say 2020 was a different year is an understatement. We encountered more than we ever expected in our life and as a church. When churches went online last summer, there was an incredible decline around the world in member engagement and attendance. Initial online viewers jumped, then people started to drop out. Studies tell us that 1 out of 5 churches will likely close due to Covid in part due to financial loss and engagement drop. We have learned that online ministry is wonderful, but not a long-lasting substitute for personal connection.
Overall, Livingway has experienced a decline and drop in membership and church engagement, and we have also seen a $35,160 drop in annual giving as a church as a result of the pandemic in 2020.
Thankfully, Livingway is still here preaching the Word of God and seeing lives touched and changed. We have a strong and growing online presence on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. We are seeing people come to Christ and get baptized, we are seeing new members added to the Livingway family, we are still doing consistent community outreach, and we faithfully continue our missionary relationships and support – all because of your faithful giving and our prayer partners.
As we have already seen this year, we will continue to see new surprises and challenges. The days we are in are unprecedented times. I ask you as you look over your giving records, pray about how you can increase your giving and consistency, so that we can continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those around us and continue to bring the kingdom of Heaven to the world.
I am enthusiastic about 2021 and believe God has wonderful and exciting things in store for us – TOGETHER.
In Christ service,
Pastor Ted Blair
To access your giving records, follow the link below. If you do not have a password or remember your password, follow onscreen instructions. If you feel the information incorrect, contact us at ted@livinwaychurch.cc
Your tax deductible giving records are now available for download.
Livingway Update – Jan 25
Click the following link for video – Facebook
October 29, 2020
Hi, Church family and friends,
Starting November 1, we will begin having two services again – 9 am and 10:30 am. Because we are still maintaining limited seating, this will allow us to accommodate those who are coming and to enable better social distancing. We will continue to check temperatures at the door and ask for masks to be worn when coming as we want to stay diligent.
Also, November 8 we will open Kidventure back up for nursery to 5 year old. We are looking for volunteers to meet the children’s ministry needs. We love you and miss many of you during this season and look forward to having us all back together when this pandemic is behind us. Until then be purposeful in your engagements, stay faithful in your commitments, and pray – pray – pray. The word of God and prayer is a powerful source of comfort and encouragement in times like we are living now.
We love you and Jesus is the Livingway!!
Pastor Ted Blair
September 27, 2020
Hi, Church family and friends,
I want you to know how much you are loved and important to us at Livingway and to me (Pastor Ted). The world’s current covid culture a current temporary normal and pray daily that it will come to an end soon. But the reality is that we still have several months ahead of us continuing into next year and spring.
We opened in-person services this past month for those that are ready to worship with us again. I am so thankful that we have a live stream available for those of you who would still rather watch online. I am missing your wonderful faces, loving hugs, and encouraging conversations. I look forward to us all being together again.
For those of you contemplating joining us live, we are making sure that the space is clean, sanitized, and ready for you. Keep in mind that we are asking for face coverings to be worn and that you only come if you know you are not sick. We are hoping to possibly add limited childcare and our second service by end of October. This will however require new volunteers in our children’s ministry and in the host team (First Impression Team – FIT). If this is an area you are interested in serving, private message us on Facebook or email us at ted@livingwaychurch.cc .
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your faithfulness in your giving. It enables us to continue the ministry and outreach of Livingway Church. We are continuing to see people won to Christ and disciples made. We just celebrated a special Covid Baptism on Sept. 27. It was our first one at the Vive. God is so good and faithful!
Try your very best to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. We offer weekly bible studies and devotionals and church updates. A time like this in our life is a great time to trust and draw closer to the Lord.
We love you and miss you!
Jesus is the Livingway
Pastor Ted Blair
August 23, 2020
Hi, Church family and friends,
We have been watching case trends, discussing, and praying – and have made a decision to open services up to members at 30% compacity for one service (50 people), starting August 30. We will be adding our second service as we work out our service order and our cleaning process. We will continue to have our band and some available leaders present during service.
The process for the service sign up will be done via the Facebook Members page. Be looking for the post from Livingway admin. on the page. The number of spots available will be 35 people (not including band and some leaders). When we reach 35 names, the next names in order will be first for the following week. At this time we will not have Kids ministry – if your children come they are to remain with you. We will add Kidventure when it is safe to do so.
For those who plan on signing up we ask for the following precautions.
1 – Please do not come if you have been sick in anyway with-in the last 48 hours of your Sunday. Temperatures will be taken at the door.
2 – Masks are to be worn while you are in the building – and work with us to maintain social distancing.
3 – You can sit with anyone who comes with you – family or friends. Social distance seating for everyone else.
4 – If you do not plan on coming – please Private Message us via Facebook.
5 – Health care providers, educators, and those who are the health risk category; we encourage you to continue worshiping with us online.
For those who are unable to join us – we encourage small groups of less than 10 to meet in homes to watch the stream service together. You can have breakfast together, discuss the service and pray together – it’s a mini-church! I look forward to the day when we can all be together in service, until then stay engaged, connect with each other weekly, pray for our church, and stay faithful! We are always available to meet and if you know anyone who needs assistance, please let us know.
Jesus is the Livingway!!
Pastor Ted
August 8, 2020
Hi, Church family and friends,
I know that not meeting together for in person services has been hard and often very discouraging. We have prayerfully decided not to have in person Sunday services at this time for health concerns and logistical challenges and have instead been focusing on our live online stream service and live Bible studies. We will continue to evaluate our local situation every 2 weeks. Not meeting in person has opted for some to attend in person services elsewhere, I hope just for a season. I pray that all of you are safe and take the necessary measures to protect yourself and your family.
We miss you all so much and want to give so badly each of you a hug. We are available to meet with you in person or via Zoom at your request. Seeing some of you occasionally at the Vive Coffee and for meetings during the week has been incredibly refreshing.
Covid-19 Changes for August:
- Starting Tuesday (Aug 11) we will allow our young adults to meet at the Vive on Tuesday night for the Zone – following all CDC suggested guidelines and restrictions. Zoom will still be available
- Life Teams will have the option to meet for in person Bible studies and gatherings – this is at the leader’s discretion – following all CDC suggested guidelines and restrictions. Zoom will still be available
- The Men’s Bible Study will meet in person on the 1st and 3rd Saturday’s – following all CDC suggested guidelines and restrictions. Zoom will still be available.
- The Vive Coffee has extended their hours from 10am-5pm. Giving you more time to come by and enjoy our coffee shop ministry with a friend or family members. We keep it extra clean and sanitized.
We will continue to have some leaders and the band only, for our live service on Sunday mornings.
We will continue the Monday night Zoom Bible study.
We will continue Tues / Thur – 2pm Bible studies with Pastor Ted on Facebook.
We will continue Wednesday night Youth One Zoom bible study.
We will continue Life Teams Zoom Bible study options during the week.
We will continue Saturday Zoom Bible studies for the men (1st & 3rd Sat) and women (2nd & 4th Sat).
The best way we are going to get through this is to have patience and to trust in God. Stay engaged in a Bible study or small group to keep you connected and join us for our live service every Sunday morning at 10:30am – when we do this, we are literally together.
Jesus is the Livingway!!
Pastor Ted
June 30, 2020
Hello Livingway family and friends,
Summertime is a great time to grow. We have ministry and bible studies available every day. Even in this Covid culture we can continue to thrive, grow, and serve others. BUT – it must be intentional. It has been very intentional on our part, in providing ways to engage and grow. Has it been on yours? It might be easy to sit back an coast through all of this, but we encourage you to dig in and connect. You can find information about the following opportunities on our Facebook page and website.
* Sunday live Stream worship and service – 10am
* Daily – interactive posts (FB / Instagram)
* Tue & Thur – Live Bible Study w/ Pastor Ted 2pm (FB)
* Mon – Zoom Bible study with Pastor Ted
* Tue night – Zone Zoom gatherings
* Wed night – Youth Zoom gatherings
* Thur night – Zoom Life Team Bible study
* Fri night – Kidventure Zoom gathering
* 1st & 3rd Sat morning – Zoom men’s Bible study
* 2nd & 4th Sat morning – Zoom women’s Bible study
* Available now – Rightnow Media kids – available now and anytime.
It is summertime and it is a great time to grow!
We love you!!
Pastor Ted
Livingway Church
www.livingwaychurch.cc
www.facebook.com/Livingwaygarland/?ref=bookmarks
June 3, 2020
Hello Livingway family and friends,
Two weeks ago, we announced a Reboot Sunday’s plan. The video can be found here on our Livingway the Vive YouTube channel. I ask you take the time to watch it and let us know if you have any questions. At this time, due to safety concerns and logistics we are going to do band and leaders only for live services on Sunday Mornings and continue the online services for everyone else. We are going to reexamine this for July and see if the case trends have curved in our favor. God has been so good to work powerfully through the livestream and we will continue to worship together live online.
A week ago, the nation erupted in protest over the violent and unnecessary death of George Floyd. You can watch the Facebook video I posted here. We hosted a community forum this past week on being the bridge and racial reconciliation. You can watch the video here.
The tragic death of George Floyd is a symptom of a greater problem that has plagued our nation for hundreds of years. The unjust inequality of people of color. Just a few generations ago people were still owning people. Just 50 years ago POC were not allowed to use the same water faucet, eat at restaurants, ride a bus, go to the moves, or stay at a hotel with white people – and systematically restricted from voting. I am talking about our grandparents. Racism was the American culture. We need to stop lying to ourselves – It is still happening! God throughout the scriptures has called us to stand on the side of justice for the oppressed.
Racism and prejudice are a deep-rooted sin that can destroy a home, a church, a community, a nation. It has got to be identified and remedied. Like a cancer – if it goes untreated it will grow and take over the body. A few things to think about:
- Racism and walking in continued prejudices – is a sin.
Acts 10:34 – Truly I understand that God shows no partiality.
James 2:9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by God’s law as transgressors.
- There is one race, the human race – God created us all beautifully in his image.
Gen. 1:26 we are all created in God’s image. We are all descended from the same parents.
Galatians 3:28 – “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
Similar verses – Colossians 3:11, Acts 10:34, Leviticus 19:34, Matt 7:12, 22:39, Acts 10:28
- Our pursuit of unity is part of our pursuit of the kingdom of heaven
Matthew 6:33 – Seek first the kingdom.
John 3:16 – God so loved the people of the world – that He gave His son! Everyone!
We see God’s amazing design in Revelation 5 and 7 – heaven is diverse with diff nations, tribes, languages, colors, cultures worshiping the King of Kings together!
Similar verses – 1 Tim. 2:4; Rev. 7:9–10, 1 John 2:2, Romans 10:12, 1 Tim 2:4, 1 Cor 12:13, Deuteronomy 10:17-19, Acts 10:34-35, 1 Corinthians 12:13, James 2:9, Revelation 7:9-10, Ephesians 2:14-18, Philippians 2:2-3 , Ephesians 2:14-17
- We are commanded to be people of justice for the defenseless.
Proverbs 17:15 – He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike and detestable to the Lord.
Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
Psalm 94:15-16 For justice will return to the righteous, and all the upright in heart will follow it. Who rises up for me against the wicked? Who will stand up for me against evildoers?
The reality is we will never be able to fully get rid of racism and prejudice in this world. Until Christ comes to make all things new there will always be a systemic presence of sin in our hearts. But until then – let us defeat it in our heart, home, family, church, and community – the places we can touch and affect. We can be a part of changing a heart and that will change their world and ours.
God is not color blind! He created diversity! Let’s learn about and celebrate our beautiful God created diversity! I love our church family and know that through this we an learn to love each other and everyone more clearly. Let’s stand together – we are One is Jesus!
Be proactive – be intentional – be positive – be the model – be hopeful – be people of compassion!
April 29, 2020
Hello Livingway family and friends,
It is with excitement and hope that I give you this update. As many of you know there are some lifted restrictions and things starting to open in our state and area. It is exciting to know that our current situation will not last indefinitely. With our Governors addition of churches to essential businesses and allowing for churches to meet with specific guidelines, many of you are asking and wondering if and when we will start publicly meeting again.
We have local officials, state officials, and federal officials, and medical experts on different pages concerning the opening of businesses and churches. The reality is, it is not proven safe for us to meet together yet. The number of cases and deaths are still rising and we have not reached our states peak or seen a curve.
Our leadership team has prayerfully discussed and decided that at this time we will not reopen and publicly meet as a church community yet. This includes Life Teams, Youth One, and Bible studies. Your safety and health are more important than meeting together in person. We are currently working on a plan for when we eventually come together. We pray it is soon. We are monitoring the CDC suggestions and watching the number of cases and will reopen when it appears safe to do so.
A pastor in the Houston area wrote a great response to this last week. He referenced 1 Corinthians 10:23. I think it is a great verse for right now. “All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful,” but not all things build up.” (1 Corinthians 10:23)
We believe in the 1st amendment and defend our right to assemble and worship freely, however at this time, it is not helpful to meet in person as it still causes a health risk to some. We feel that it serves our church and community best to wait.
Until we can meet in person, we will continue to provide ways to connect through our online experiences. We have ministry available every day. Bible studies, small groups, young adults, youth and kids ministry, and daily engagement continues. The great commission to make disciples of Jesus is never on hold. You can find details on our website (www.livingwaychurch.cc) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/Livingwaygarland/)
We love you all so much, Jesus is the Livingway!
Pastor Ted Blair
April 3, 2020
Acts 2:44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts. 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
“Every day they continued to meet.”
How can we in a Covid culture fulfill this mandate? Some churches are defying the CDC and government mandates to stop meeting in groups. We want to meet, we are called to meet, and we will meet together again eventually – but we cannot do that safely right now. We will continue to meet every day – virtually. But it is important to remember the church is not a building, it is the people. Meeting virtually allows us to move from a weekend faith to a daily faith! Every day! Virtual it’s possible.
How we will continue to meet every day as a church:
* Sunday’s – Livingway live stream service on YouTube.
* Daily posts and interaction on Facebook and Instagram.
* Mon nights at 7pm Zoom Bible study.
* Tue & Thur – Pastor Ted does a live Q&A at 2pm on Facebook.
* Tue nights – Zoom Zone gatherings at 7:15pm.
* Wed night – Live Youth One Zoom services and small groups at 7pm.
* Tue, Wed, Thur – Live Life Teams Zooms!! 7 and 7:30pm.
* Every day at 3pm – Womens Illuminate ministry – meet at 3 Zoom.
* 1st & 3rd Saturday at 8:30am – Zoom Men’s Bible study.
* Rightnow Media family and kids programing and bible studies available now!
This is a time when some people will skip church since we don’t meet! God has called the body of Christ to be a community of faith that is a spiritual refuge for people in need. We will continue to fulfill the great commission to make disciples. Attend online – Don’t stop worshiping – Don’t stop seeking God! We know a lot of people looking for hope. We may have to shut the doors – but we can’t shut down the gospel. We will never stop preaching the gospel and bringing hope!
If you need to talk to someone or need food and essentials, please let us know.
God is forever good, faith, and in Control!
Jesus is – the Livingway!
MARCH 24, 2020
It was awesome celebrating Sunday worship with you all! Our first live streaming experience was a success. The chat room was busy with conversation. Thank you, Luke and Shauna Hawkins, for the work you put in to make it happen in such a short time. Jesus was glorified, Jesus was preached, and hope was given! If you did not get chance to watch live, it is still available to watch online via our website. Sermon notes are also available on the website.
As we spoke on Sunday, we challenge you to be intentional in staying connected with church and each other. “Shelter in place” is not permission to disconnect. It is an invitation to connect in different and purposeful ways. We will be offering virtual small group Bible studies, worship experiences, and service opportunities. Be looking for details! Being intentional also includes faithfulness in our giving. We want to continue reaching the community and world during this time. As a church and as Christians the great commission to make disciples never ends.
Expect this week for the numbers of positive cases to escalate significantly. We can “flatten the curve” if we will follow the mandate to stay home except for essential trips. We will get through this! We love you and can’t wait to see you all again face to face!
If you need to talk to someone or need food and essentials, please let us know.
God is forever good, faith, and in Control!
Jesus is – the Livingway!
MARCH 21, 2020Sunday service at the Vive will be restricted to essential personnel and leaders only. But you can watch live our first streaming service on our YouTube page – here is the link. Be sure to subscribe so you can be alerted to all our new video posts from Sunday and other ministries in our church. Excited to worship with you Sunday. We finish 1 Peter with a very timely message.
MARCH 19, 2020
Psalm 118:24 This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
News is coming in daily of our changing world. It will not last forever, but we may be here for a while. It will most likely get worse before it gets better. We MUST be intentional in our faith and church family relationships as we maneuver through this. We are available if you need encouragement or help in any way. If you need to talk, vent, process, or just hear another voice we are here. Just PM me or one of our leaders.
If you know someone in your neighborhood who needs assistance in groceries, lawn care, or errands, let us know. This is a great opportunity for us (you) to serve our community.
** PLEASE take social distancing seriously. At this time is the major way we can slow the growth of COVID19 in our community. There are more cases than what are reported. We lack the tests to know who actually has it. If you are infected or think you are, or know of someone who is let us know so we can pray.
This Sunday’s service will be live streamed at 10:30am. (details on how, to come). Get everyone up, get some coffee, and worship and grow with us. We wrap up 1 Peter with a very timely message.
James 4:8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
God is near and not in quarantine.
MARCH 18, 2020
Hey Livingway, though our services and events are not currently meeting, we will have a full service option available – all online!
* Currently available, we provide from RightNowMedia.org family and children’s resources. Text your email to 469-877-1101 for a password.
* Coming this weekend live streaming Sunday services,
* Coming soon – Online youth studies during the week and special Zone young adults virtual gatherings.
As we abide by the current government and CDC response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19), we sincerely appreciate your patience and prayer. We are committed to keeping our community safe and informed. We are excitedly awaiting getting to meet face to face again!
IF YOU ARE NOT A TYPICAL FACEBOOK USER PLEASE JOIN OUR PRIVATE GROUP,
AS THIS WILL BE A VERY POWERFUL TOOL OF COMMUNICATION DURING THIS TIME.
Below is the link, a request is required to be added.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/livingwaychurch/
MARCH 16, 2020
With much prayer and discussion with our leaders, we will follow our government and CDC suggestions of not having gatherings of over 10 people. That means that for at least two weeks and most likely longer, the Vive coffee will be closed, no large group zone, no youth group, and no open services on Sunday.
Some of our leaders will meet on Sunday mornings as a small group to pray, lead in worship, and to bring a timely message from God’s word That service will be streamed live and made available starting the weekend of March 22.
During this time we will be focusing on small groups and making the Vive available for small meetings if needed. I and some of our team will be available to meet with you one on one as much as needed to keep us connected and close.
** Please continue in your giving during this vital and crucial time. We will still have our monthly expenses.
I love our church (YOU) so much.
Let’s strive hard to stay connected during this time in creative ways. We will get through this and when we do, I want us to be stronger, closer, and more financially solvent as a church than ever before. Questions? Email ted@livingwaychurch.cc
God is always and forever good, faithful, and in control!!!!