Stay quiet? Be alone? Really? Well, yeah. It's a vital part of spiritual formation. But in today's busy, plugged-in world, it's all but forgotten. In this message Pastor Jack Sytsema shares the vital importance of this often ignored but deeply powerful spiritual discipline.

In this second message in a series on spiritual formation, Pastor Jack Sytsema outlines a tangible approach to reading the Bible designed to increase understanding and deepen the richness of the Word of God.

Spiritual formation is simply the intentional pursuit of connecting with God. In this message Pastor Jack Sytsema gives a practical outline on building spiritual formation in our lives, and looks at the "Rule of Life," which is defined by Peter Scazzero as "an intentional, conscious plan to keep God at the center of everything we do. The starting point and foundation of any Rule is a desire to be with God and to love him.”

Being a disciple means...what again? Pastor Jack Sytsema takes a fascinating look at what it meant to be a disciple in Jesus' day, and what that means--really means-- for us today.

Abiding in Christ. What does that even mean? In part three of this series, Pastor Jack Sytsema talks about the vine and the branches. By looking at how vineyards were tended in biblical times, he shows how beautifully and caringly God lifts us up so we can be true bearers of fruit.

Have you ever wondered why membership has or should any significance in church life? In Part 2 of this series on connecting, Pastor Jack Sytsema delivers a message that both answers that question and rolls out Covenant Membership at Lake Effect Church.

In this heartfelt message, Pastor Jack Sytsema draws the distinction between doing witnessing and being witnesses. He talks about God's healing power in our lives that takes our pain and trauma and turns our stories into a living testimony.

Conquering enemies to possess our inheritance is just as important for us today as it was for the Israelites to possess the Promised Land. The first of these enemies were the Hittites, which represented fear and terror. In this message, Pastor Jack Sytsema looks at defeating fear in our own lives.

So we've learned a lot about what covenant is and isn't, what God's part is, and why He makes covenant with us. But where does the rubber meet the road at home? In the final part of this rich, compassionate series, Pastor Jack Sytsema looks at the relationships we have in our everyday lives and what covenant means to those.

Paul said he boasted in his weakness. Makes no sense, right? How can our weaknesses, those things that so often undo us, actually turn out to serve us and make us strong? So glad you asked! This message by Pastor Jack Sytsema unpacks how that could possibly work, and what the Bible really means by "when we are weak, God is strong."