Christmas Eve Worship Services at 5:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

Enter into and relive the Christmas story, and celebrate the birth of Jesus during Christmas Eve worship on Saturday, December 24th, at services at 5:30p.m. or 7:00 p.m. Both services will be short and engaging for all ages through drama, poetry, video, and music to share in the celebration of a baby to be born in a manger. Worshipers will be sent out singing Joy to the World by candle light.

Christmas Day Worship Service 10:00 a.m.

Come to a casual worship on Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25th. Join in telling of the story of Christmas through  scripture lessons and carols. You’re invited to wear your Christmas pajamas - if you’d like - and children can bring their baby dolls to cuddle.

Merry Christmas!

Operation Christmas Child Shoe Box Packing Party

Operation Christmas Child Shoe Box packing

Sunday, November 20th - 11:15 a.m. to 12 noon

All year we have been collecting small items to fill Shoe Boxes to be sent to children around the world through Samaritan's Purse. November is the month for filling and delivering these boxes. Between now and November 20 you are invited to:

· Bring items for the boxes. These items can be anything that has been on the list during the year or just something that you think a child would enjoy

· Donate towards $7/box/shipping & handling costs

Remember that this could be the only Christmas gift a child might receive so lets make it a great gift given in Christian love and help make a child’s eyes shine.

Can’t make it to the party? Pack your own box(es) bring it to the LCPC church office Nov. 15-18, or by 12 noon on the 20th, and we will deliver them for you!

For more information on Operation Christmas Child or how to pack a shoe box visit: www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/occ/

Drop In Playtime for Babies, Tots & Preschoolers

Drop In and Play Time at Lake City Presbyterian Church has changed from Wednesdays to MONDAYS.

Beginning Monday, October 3rd. 9:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. in the Nursery and Preschool Room for babies & tots ages 0-4 yrs.

Children need to bring an adult with them for the playtime. 

Help pass the word on to those you know who are parents, grandparents & caregivers of babies, tots, and preschoolers.

Contact Leena Prindle, Director of Faith Formation for more information. 

LCPC Open 9/11 for Reflection & Remembrance

9/11 Reflection and Remembrance:  This Sunday is the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. We will have regular worship from 10am to 11a.m and then the sanctuary will remain open from 11am - 1pm for personal prayer and reflection. All from the Seattle area community are welcome to attend.


If you are on Facebook, check out the page the PC-USA has created for reflection and prayer: https://www.facebook.com/PresbyteriansRememberSept11

Register Today for Shake It Up Cafe Vacation Bible School

Shake It Up Cafe - Vacation Bible School 2011

Bring kitchen fun to your kids this summer 

at Lake City Presbyterian Church

August 8th through 12th
9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Age 3 thru entering Grade 6 

Shake It up Café: Where Kids Carry Out God’s Recipe. Explore and experience recipes for living out God’s Word. To be a part of all the excitement at Shake It up Café register your child today! Cost is $25 per child, there are scholarships available upon request. For more information and to register visit: www.cokesburyvbs.com/shake-it-up-cafe/lakecitypres

"If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation . . . "

2 Corinthians 5:17

"Making Moral Choices" - A Word from our Pastor May 2011

Words from our pastor, Sandy Hackett, that may be helpful in light of Osama Bin Laden's death:


A Word From Our Pastor - LCPC May 2011 Newsletter


"Making Moral Choices" 


Several weeks ago, I preached a sermon on ―Making Moral Choices. I promised a number of you that I would reprint parts of it in the newsletter since the book I was working from is out of print.  The book is called  "Choices:  Making Right Decisions in a Complex World,” by Lewis B. Smedes.  


Smedes says that most moral decisions are made on a continuum rather than being simply right/wrong, good/bad.  He offers language that makes it possible to talk about this continuum in a way that does not compromise Biblical standards and yet acknowledges that we are broken people in a broken world.   I first heard this material in a lecture he offered in my ethics class at Fuller, and I have never forgotten it.


When we have a decision to make, Smedes says that our first and best hope is for choice that is celebrational.  I love his question.  He asks, ―Is there singing in heaven because of this decision?  Are the rights of all parties honored in such a way that everyone has won?   Is it excellent?” 


This is always our best hope and highest goal, but we can’t always reach it.  So he suggests the following criteria, in descending order:


Is it justifiable?  Is this act warranted, legally permissible, circumstantially necessary?   This is the minimum standard we have to meet for something to be considered morally ―right.



Is this obligatory—something I must do.  ―We are, for instance, obligated to keep our hands off other people’s throats and out of their pockets.


Is this tolerable?  ―We do not tolerate people walking naked down Main Street at high noon.  This does not mean that noonday nudity is morally wrong; it only means that most of us do not want to see it on our streets.


In the hardest places of life the question becomes at the very least, Is this permissible?  In ethics class, we debated case studies around questions like ―Is it permissible to steal life-sustaining medication if you are too poor to purchase it? The answer isn’t a blinding yes/no, good/bad, right/wrong.  Compelling rights and responsibilities are in competition here.


Smedes suggests that sometimes we simply seek to pass the test, is it excusable? “We excuse people when we decide that while they have done something wrong, they are not really to blame for what they did.  Smedes uses the example of a friend who committed suicide, deeply  wounding his wife and children, his patients and all who depended on him.  However, he was in the midst of such a great depression, that his desire to escape made his decision understandable.  Not right, but excusable.


And finally, Smedes says, as desperately broken people operating in a shatteringly broken world, the final question we ask of any moral decision is, is it forgiveable?  Can I forgive?  Can I be forgiven?  And more importantly, can God forgive?  And the answer is ultimately, yes.  There is nothing we can do that God cannot forgive if we are willing to accept his forgiveness.  We are back at the cross of Christ.  Because of his body broken and his blood shed, we are forgiven.  


That isn’t where we want to start in making moral decisions.  We do not sin that grace may abound, b/c forgiveness doesn't exempt us from the consequences of our choices.  Nor does it protect others from the extraordinary pain that we can inflict when we sin.  But it is possible to receive the forgiveness of God for even the most selfish and destructive of decisions.


Is it celebrational?  Justifiable?  Obligatory?  Tolerable, permissible, excusable?  Is it forgivable?  These are the questions we ask when making moral choices.  It is my prayer that we would find a celebrational solution to the crises each of us face in our personal lives, and that in the infinite grace, mercy, and strength of God that we might  find such a celebrational solution to the crises of our world.   


- Pastor Sandy


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Easter at Lake City Pres

Its not too late to decide ... no RSVP required!!

Come join us for Easter Worship at Lake City Presbyterian Church

This Sunday April 24th at 10:00 a.m.

• Nursery class provided for infants & toddlers (Special egg hunt in Nursery)
• Children's classes w/ egg hunt during worship - children are welcome to bring their baskets! (ages preschool through 5th grade)
• Easter Brunch - Linger a few minutes longer for a light Easter brunch following the service

Share this and invite your family and friends to join you.