46-16 Little Neck Parkway, Little Neck, N.Y. 11362
"The Church That Love Built". 

From the Pastor’s Desk                                                                                     Summer 2008

Dear Friends…

We are beginning the summer season soon. This is a time when our schedules change; when many of us will be in and out of town or have guests visiting; and when the weather will be conducive to spending time outdoors with our families and friends. Our Bible School will not be meeting again until the fall. Our choir will not be rehearsing or singing for services from July through Labor Day. Even the Tidings, our monthly newsletter, will not be published again until September.

The challenge for us as a church is to remain faithful in our worship and service of God throughout these months. I hope we will see everyone here for worship on Sundays whenever you are in town. We will be encouraging some of our choir members and others to share their gifts of music with us on Sundays when the choir will not be singing together. We will continue to read and proclaim the Scriptures and seek the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in our daily walk with Christ. We will continue to pray for one another and visit one another to share the love, peace, and joy of Christ with all.

The details of our summer schedule and other events may be found elsewhere in this newsletter. I hope you will keep these articles handy for reference in the coming months. Most of all, I hope that you will be considering some of the changes we will need to make to continue worshipping and serving God to the best of our ability into this fall and beyond.

One thought I want to leave you with now, so it will stay with you during these summer months, is the idea of hospitality. Michael Coyner and Douglas Anderson have co-authored a book titled The Race to Reach Out: Connecting Newcomers to Christ in a New Century. In it, they have compiled a checklist of areas to consider as we reach out (or, as they put it, “get ready for company”. Among these areas are such things as visibility in the community; providing helpful promotional materials; making facilities accessible and easy to use; making entrances truly welcoming to newcomers; practicing hospitality by greeting visitors and newcomers warmly and being helpful in answering their questions and anticipating their needs (such as giving directions to the restrooms, escorting them to a seat, etc.); providing a warm and friendly atmosphere before, during, and after the worship service; and following up promptly with any first-time visitors (and not just by the pastor, either, as studies have shown that visitors are as much as 80% more likely to return when members of the congregation contact them instead of or in addition to the pastor, whom they expect to do so!)

As we anticipate positive changes taking place here at the Community Church of Little Neck going forward, we need to keep these things in mind if we want to be ready to “put our best foot forward” for Christ. Let us use this time for reflection and see what new directions Christ may be calling us to move in as we look toward reaching out in the 21st century and beyond.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Paul Drake


SERMON TITLES FOR JUNE 2008

The following are the Scripture texts and titles for Pastor Drake's sermons during the month of June 2008: