Lakeside Church

What does it look like to trust God when life doesn't go according to plan? From immigrating to Canada and navigating loneliness, loss, and infertility to unexpected family challenges, Reymarie Yabut shares an honest story of learning that faith isn't about having all the answers or controlling every outcome, and how it isn’t about how strong we are, but how faithful God is. Discussion Questions:...

What if the thing your soul needs most is the one thing you rarely give yourself permission to do? In this message from Robyn Elliott we explore the spiritual practice of Sabbath and how intentionally making space for rest can free us from the endless demands of productivity, challenge our culture’s obsession with more, and realign our hearts with God’s rhythm of contentment, gratitude, and joy. D...

What if we're trying really hard but we still feel stuck? This week, Robyn Elliott challenges us to look beyond simply trying harder to experiencing real transformation. It isn't about what we do, but about what God does in us as we create space for transformation at the deepest levels. It’s about who we're becoming as individuals and as a people gathered around Christ’s Table for the sake of the...

Sometimes we’re so focused on whether a spiritual practice is “working” that we miss what’s happening inside us. In this message from Kathleen Elliott, we explore journaling as a way of slowing down, paying attention, and engaging with Scripture, prayer, and the Spirit - and consider whether we might be growing in ways we simply haven’t learned to notice yet. 1.Have you ever practiced something sp...

Have you ever desperately wanted to change? To be more loving, patient, generous - more like Jesus - but keep finding yourself falling back into the same old patterns? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we explore why trying harder isn’t always the path to becoming like Jesus, and how practices of wonder, attention, and reverence can create space for God to meet us, reshape us, and change us from...

What does it look like for us as followers of Jesus to truly love our Indigenous neighbours? In this message from Adam Norton, we explore why history matters, how listening and learning can reshape the way we understand others and ourselves, and what it might look like to move toward a deeper relationship with First Nations, Metis, and Inuit neighbours. Discussion Questions: 1. Jesus calls us to l...

What do you do when you’re asking God for a miracle, and the miracle doesn’t look anything like what you expected? In this message, Melody Dekorte shares the deeply personal story of raising her daughter through Rett syndrome, seizures, uncertainty, and grief, while discovering that God’s presence can show up in unexpected ways through provision, community, resilience, and hope. Her story invites...

What happens when the God we think we understand doesn’t seem to match the world we’re actually living in? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we look at Job and discover a story not simply about suffering, but about certainty, honest questions, flawed theology, and the danger of reducing God to a system we can explain. Discussion Questions: 1. What do you think suffering tends to reveal about wha...

What happens when we stop romanticizing the people in the Bible and start paying attention to power, harm, repentance, and redemption? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we take a second look at David and Bathsheba, asking what the story reveals when we stop blaming Bathsheba, confront David’s abuse of power, and consider why David can still be called “a man after God’s own heart.” How we read th...

John Kowtecky shares a deeply honest story of alcoholism, recovery, spiritual awakening, and the long journey from fear and control toward freedom and trust in Jesus. His story reminds us that God never gives up, is able to meet us in the darkest places, and that faith can make room for both conviction and honest questions as we continue to become who God is calling us to be. Discussion Questions:...

What if the thing exhausting you isn’t everything you’re doing, but the fact that you’ve forgotten why you’re doing it? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we revisit the story of Mary and Martha and discover that Jesus isn’t simply choosing one sister over the other; he’s inviting both women - and us - into freedom, presence, and a healthier way of serving. We sit with Jesus so we can go with Jes...

Rather than allowing us to dismiss Judas as simply a scoundrel, Robyn Elliott invites us to look more closely at Judas and how he may hold up a mirror to our own hearts. Can we be close to Jesus and yet still resist him? How easily can our motives become mixed, our hearts divided, and our desires pull us away? Ultimately, Judas's story is not just about the danger of betrayal; it's about the dange...

“Hurt people hurt people.” We’ve all known them: good-hearted, generous, loving people who, somehow, still wound others. It can feel incongruous, even bewildering. Pastor Robyn Elliott takes us into the story of Esther, a disadvantaged heroine whose story has a darker side -- a side we rarely hear. What happens when someone who has known deep hurt is handed power? And what might Esther’s story rev...

What does faith look like when life falls apart? When loss, uncertainty, and disappointment become your daily reality, the story of Ruth reminds us that faith isn't always loud or dramatic - sometimes it's simply choosing to take one more courageous step. In this message from Johanna Kelly, we discover that beneath the romance lies something even more compelling: a story of extraordinary faith, co...

Prince of Egypt. Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat. Veggie Tales. You may know rags to riches Joseph who was sold into slavery by his ruthless brothers, unfairly imprisoned for 13 years then rises to be second in command to Pharaoh. This is the guy with the great leadership skills and forgiving heart. But there’s more to Joseph. In this message by Joash Thomas, we come to see Joseph as a man s...

Have you ever realized how quickly you judge someone's worst moment without ever asking what brought them there? Some of the most uncomfortable stories in Scripture reveal a God who isn't afraid of messy people, complicated situations, or moral grey areas - and they invite us to see others the way God does. In this message from Robyn Elliott, we explore the story of Tamar and Judah, discovering th...

Have you ever felt like your doubts, failures, or unfinished story disqualifies you from God? The truth is that the "father of our faith" wasn't a flawless spiritual giant - he was a deeply ordinary man who stumbled, questioned, waited, and failed, yet God remained faithful every step of the way. In this message from Mike Carmody, we discover how Abraham's life points us away from performance and...

What if one of the Bible's most misunderstood people isn't who you've always been told she was? For centuries, Eve has been portrayed as the woman who ruined everything, but what if we've been reading more into the story than Scripture actually says? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we begin our Saints & Scoundrels series by taking a fresh look at Eve, uncovering how cultural assumptions have s...

Have you ever wondered whether everything you've been taught about heaven is actually what the Bible says? What if the greatest hope of Christianity isn't escaping this world, but seeing God make all things new? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we unpack Revelation's breathtaking conclusion, challenge some of our biggest assumptions about heaven and the rapture, and discover why our future hope...

What if heaven isn’t about where you’re going and who gets in and who gets left out? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we explore Revelation 21-22 and uncover a stunning vision of a God who isn't destroying humanity, but rescuing it - defeating evil, throwing open the gates, and making all things new. This isn't a story about escaping earth; it's a story about heaven invading it. Discussion Ques...

Why are so many Christians fascinated by end-times destruction but uncomfortable with enemy-loving Jesus? Revelation may be asking a very different question than we've assumed. In this message from Robyn Elliott, we unpack one of Revelation's most violent-looking passages and discover surprising clues that point us back to the crucified Christ. What if the ultimate victory of God isn't achieved th...

What if the greatest threat to your faith isn't something obvious, but something you've learned to admire? Revelation isn't a roadmap to the end of the world; it's an unveiling of the powers, systems, and allegiances that quietly shape our lives. In this message from Robyn Elliott, we explore the beasts, the infamous 666, and John's startling warning that evil often disguises itself as success, se...

What if the Christmas story isn’t as peaceful as we’ve made it, but actually a cosmic battle between good and evil? In this message from Robyn Elliott, we explore Revelation 12 and uncover a second perspective of Christmas. While a baby is born on earth, a cosmic battle unfolds in the heavens. This message challenges how we see God, suffering, and the deeper reality behind our world, and reminds u...

In this message from Robyn Elliott, we unpack the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and ask whether they actually represent the judgment of God, or the destructive consequences of human empire, violence, greed, and conquest. Revelation’s disturbing imagery doesn’t reveal a bloodthirsty God, but exposes the systems that destroy humanity while pointing us back to Jesus, the slaughtered lamb who rules...

Communion is more than a ritual - it’s an invitation into participation with Jesus and with one another. In this message from Johanna Kelly, we explore Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 10 and discover how the table reshapes our loves, reorients our priorities, and reminds us that we are one body sustained by one source. Discussion Questions: 1. Think of a meal or table moment you remember deeply. Wha...