New Life News
COVID Update – April 30, 2021
Dear New Life Family,
This is the 13th update we have given since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Our effort is to keep everyone connected and informed about what’s going on at New Life Church during these unusual times.
Worship Services
We are all so anxious to get back to in-person gatherings and we have taken some steps to do so. We are expanding worship opportunities to Sunday evenings. Now, twice a month we will host an outdoor in-person gathering for worship, prayer and some devotionals, called Abide. These will be held rain or shine. We are still limited to gatherings of 50 people, so register early online. The next Abide will be held Sunday evening, May 16 at 7:00pm and registration for this event will open on Friday May 7 in the Encourager. In the meantime, we continue to do pre-recorded services for our regular “Sunday morning” worship services, accessible from our website or our other social media platforms.
Serve 2021
Throughout the month of May we are extending the opportunity to serve your community by helping with garbage clean up on the streets of your neighbourhood. Details for participating are on our website under the EVENTS tab. It starts with an email to Pastor Mike to let him know what area you will be covering. Not only will you be given equipment for garbage collection (pick-sticks, vests, bags, etc) but also you will be covering your neighbourhood with prayer. Suggested prayers will be on the New Life Prayer Wall in the New Life App. As we continue our outward focus for serving we’re celebrating the success of our food drive during the month of April. Thank you for blessing the Abbotsford Food Bank, Joshua House, and Life Recovery with your donations.
Postponed NL LIVE
The Board of Elders has postponed our next New Life LIVE to September 25, 2021, normally scheduled for early June. This will allow us to gain a better picture on expenses and future financial needs as we pull out of (hopefully) this pandemic. We are confident that God has wonderful opportunities and exciting ministry prepared for us as we step forward and persevere for the sake of the gospel and God’s kingdom.
Facility Upgrade Project
Upgrades to the New Life auditorium are really looking good, with new stage lighting, a new projection system, and a fresh coat of paint throughout. The next big pieces of the project are new acoustic panels and new lighting for the auditorium. Our existing lighting system has reached the end of it’s life span. Following that, we’re hoping to address auditorium flooring needs and some bathroom improvements. There is a Facility Upgrade Fund to which you can make donations to help alleviate some of the costs of this project. Just follow your usual method of giving and make sure the designation is made for this special fund.
Congregational Care
We have a wonderful and generous group of women who are a part of our meals ministry, and this Spring we’ve been able to help out and bless four different families from our church community going through challenges such as grief/loss, and recovery from surgery/injury. Praise the Lord! If you are interested in helping out with providing meals, contact the coordinator, Rachel Vandenberg ([email protected]).
Thank you for your on-going support of New Life ministries and for the encouragement you give to one another throughout this trying time. Let’s continue to be patient and faithful, confident that even in difficulty God is at work. “. . .run with perseverance the race marked out for us. . . (Hebrews 12:1).”
May Serve Focus: Garbage Pick Up
Let’s serve our city together by walking streets, bagging garbage and praying for our neighbours this month of May. You can get started by emailing Mike. He will get all you need, garbage bags, safety vests, garbage picker-uppers and gloves (courtesy of the City of Abbotsford). Pick your own route near your home or one that you know needs prayer or has a lot of garbage. You can do this by yourself, or with family, friends or your Life Group. Our New Life Prayer wall on the New Life app will have prayers to pray during your prayer walks. When you are done let us know by email or on social media what neighbourhood you covered, with whom, and with a picture of a filled garbage bag.
Facility Upgrade Project
Dear New Life Family,
We are inviting you to participate in an exciting, long awaited project within New Life Church.
We are in the process of upgrading our auditorium and today we are asking you to prayerfully consider giving to this project. Your help will enable the church to move into the future to fulfill the ministry God has called us to.
New Life’s facility was built in the mid 1990’s. Over the years the auditorium has mostly remained the same and recently we have begun some of the long-awaited upgrades.
Last summer we began with upgrading our stage lighting. We removed the old stage lighting system and replaced it with new lighting that has been a wonderful improvement for the church. Most recently we upgraded our video projection system to a larger and clearer screen. We are very thankful for these upgrades and we are blessed that they were paid for from the church’s savings.
Currently, we are focusing on painting the walls, improving acoustics and changing all the house lights. The dark colored walls with the dim house lights will be changed!
We are also eager to update the original bathrooms and change the flooring in the auditorium and we will pursue those projects at a later date after this current phase of upgrades is complete.
The Board of Elders wanted to move forward with this project as soon as possible because it is convenient to do the work when the church isn’t meeting in the auditorium.
We are asking you to prayerfully invest into New Life’s future by giving today to help offset the costs of upgrading our auditorium.
If you donate to the Facility Upgrade Fund, all your funds will be used towards these long-awaited upgrades.
Blessings,
Mike VanderKwaak
Executive Pastor
OUTSIDE Abide
Abide is going outside! Abide is typically a live streamed worship and prayer night on the last Sunday of every month. This month we won’t be live streaming, but will be hosting a outdoor in person gathering. We can only host 50 participants so register quick. Grab your chair and experience a wonderful night of worship and prayer in the back parking lot. Please enter through the west green gate. This event will proceed rain or shine at 7:00PM. Follow this link to register: https://new-life.ccbchurch.com/goto/forms/129/responses/new. Hope to see you there!