Dear Westheights: I feel so blessed to be your pastor. What happens through our church in terms of spiritual development of children, students and adults is because of the principle of partnership. It is the partnership of many families contributing sacrificially to the work of helping people to find and follow Jesus. I truly appreciate being in partnership with all of you in the work of the gospel.
The past year has been very exciting for Westheights Community Church. We are more than halfway through the completion of Phase 1 of our 20/20 vision that we have called “Greater Things.” We have based our theme on Jesus words when he said, John 14:12, “those who believe in me will do even greater things.” We are enjoying the benefits of the extra remodelled space for the fulfillment of the vision and mission God has given to our church. Many, many visitors have commented that Westheights facilities are so modern and inviting. Of course, a building is just a tool. It is a tool for the more important purpose of impacting people. The real impact at Westheights is the one that happens when lives are changed. So many of you continue to tell me that the Sunday services, with its upbeat worship and down to earth sermons, continue to help you grow and follow Jesus in a deeper way. Equally as important is the transformation that happens in the lives of children and students through the amazing team of dedicated staff and volunteers and the House Church ministries and many service projects within our church family and in our local neighbourhood.
As wonderful as our church ministry is, we continue to pray and ask God for new ways to impact people. From those prayers, we envisioned a new kind of worship experience. We dreamt of “an all-ages worship experience.” Instead of families being divided into silos (as most churches typically do), in this new kind of experience families would be together. All ages of people would learn together and worship together. If we learn together and worship together we can carry on the conversation of our spiritual learning after Sunday is finished. Our church has embraced this vision and Jubilee is off to an amazing start. We had planned for an experience that would involve 70-80 people, instead 180 people from our church came to the first Jubilee experience. If you have not been able to attend yet, it is not too late. Come to Jubilee for a really fun time. But more importantly, it is something new and it may start something new in your family.
All of our events and experiences are possible because of your generosity to our church. I greatly appreciate your consistent financial support to the ministry of Westheights on a week by week basis. As well, we have been blessed as you have committed more than $600,000 to the Greater Things campaign and the monies faithfully come in month after month. Therefore, I do not take lightly this request for a financial gift for our 2015 Anniversary offering.
If you are able, our Anniversary offering will be a time to give a special offering to help us further fulfill our vision. I am confident that you will prayerfully consider your participation and follow God’s leading in this matter. It is not the amount of your contribution that is significant, but what is in your heart. Even the smallest gift when given out of faith pleases God. Remember the story of the widow’s mite. She had just a couple coins but the sacrificial nature of her gift pleased God.
We will celebrate our Anniversary on Sunday, December 6th. Let’s join together and celebrate God’s faithfulness over the past 37 years and look to the future of what God is still going to do in and through the people of Westheights Church.
Again, thank you for your gracious gifts of service, kindness and generosity. It is a wonderful privilege serving with all of you.
Todd Lester,
Senior Pastor
November 8, 2015
Glad to see that your church is growing. I have tried to ask several pastors and Doud Sider as to why many of the B.I.C. churches have eliminated the use of hymns in worship and have adopted a up beat more entertaining type of music production. It is interesting to see Westheights including all age groups in the worship service. I think it is exclusive to the more senior people in the church who value the singing of the hymns that have good doctrine and life experience in the lyrics. The younger and new church people will never experience these hymns if we eliminate them. Why eliminate hymns? Are they offensive? I have yet to see a choirs or new worship songs to equal the hymn Just As I Am and many others. You probably will tell me to go and find another church. I am 70 years old and grew up in the B.I.C. church but I think we giving up to much by ignoring the solid doctrinal meaning of the great hymns of the church. All I am asking is WHY.