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Bayside began July 1, 2002 in the Fireside room of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Church building and expanded in September to two services. Moving into the main auditorium, February 9, 2003 was our grand opening, the beginning of the regular Sunday services of Bayside - a church community. One year later we launched our first church plant, Next Generation Christian Fellowship and in 2005 we purchased the building we were meeting in and have added a Korean worship service and a Vietnamese worship service to our campus.
A survey taken a few years ago asked people why they don't attend church. Their top three answers were:
1. The people are unfriendly;
2. The services are boring;
3. The messages are irrelevant.
People who visit our church continually comment on how friendly our  church is - friendly but not overpowering. I refer to our services as contemporary and informal - by contemporary I mean that our worship services are fresh and enjoyable. I'm not into weird and way out, in fact, we place a high value on worshipping God with reverence. But we still like to laugh. By informal I mean that we don't hold to an outward standard of spirituality - there's no dress code. Feel free to dress casual. Feel free to dress up. God is more concerned with the worship in your heart than the wardrobe in your closet! Informal also means relaxed - we want you to leave our church feeling accepted and energized. I want our church to be a refuge from the struggles and problems we face daily. "Be still and know that I am God," penned the writer of Psalm 46:10.
Our goal is to be a church with fun and enjoyable children's and youth ministries, small home based Friendship Groups meeting throughout the Bay area and a vision for planting new churches every 5 to 7 years. We are also involved in helping churches around the world through the support of missionaries.
I believe that the most important part of church life is building Friendships: a deepening, personal friendship with a living Savior, Jesus Christ, and genuine, trusting relationships with other Christians. Let me encourage you to ask me about our Friendship Groups where there is an opportunity to build friendships and study the Bible. Feel free to ask about Alpha, a ten week introduction to the Christian Faith that includes dinner and a video.
Our ministry is built on four key pillars: Teaching the Authority of God's Word with relevance and authenticity; Lifting high the name of Jesus through Worship; Believing firmly in the power of Prayer; and Sharing the love and forgiveness of Christ with boldness. We invite you to become part of our church family at Bayside. Feel free to talk to me if you'd like to know more about our church.
Your friend,
Mike Thorburn
A man without self-control
is like a city broken into and left without walls. |
