After 5 ½ years we have decided to end the Evening (“Remix”) Service.

This was not an easy decision, but I do believe it is a wise decision for the best of our church. This service has been a home for a small, yet vibrant and beautiful community of believers who have helped shape and grow me as a pastor. They have an honesty about their sinfulness, a sincerity in their devotion to Christ and His Word, and an openness about their love for others. I have cried with them, sometimes in my sermons and sometimes over coffee (and not just because I think coffee tastes bad). I have laughed with them, and been laughed at (regularly) by them. We have rejoiced over the births of new babies, wept at the pain of childlessness and rejoiced again at the beauty of adoption. We have sung our hearts out to gospel rich songs, even writing a few along the way to capture what the scriptures were teaching us. I have even preached about 175 sermons in this time! These 5 ½ years have been an incredible blessing in my life and in many others.

So why end it?

We are ending the evening service so we can incorporate this vibrant congregation into the morning services, specifically the 11:00 AM Contemporary service. We believe this will bring:

1. Greater unity in the body. While a fair number of people from the evening service do serve in the morning, many are completely disconnected relationally from the rest of the South Shores body – we’d like to see it feel more connected, not less.
2. Greater pastoral care. There are currently two pastors that focus on the evening service congregation. This makes it more difficult for them to focus on the morning services, as well, as prevents the other pastors from the opportunity to be in step with those in the evening service. The added time constraint also takes away “outside of service” time for the pastors to do more personal discipleship and care.
3. An infusion of maturity. There are some incredible people from the evening service that are both Christ-focused and others-focused that will help us in our goal to reach the new and unchurched that are more likely to wander in on a Sunday morning.
4. A healthier balance for our pastors. In the past 5 ½ years, my family and the family of Pastor Dana has changed a lot (6 kids born between the two of us!). Evenings have gotten increasingly difficult and we are looking forward to simplifying our Sunday routine.

Again, this was not an easy decision – the majority of my best experiences and growth as a follower of Christ in the past 5 years have been related to this service – however, I am excited for what the Lord has for us as we move forward more as a more united and cared for South Shores Church.

If this service has meant something special to you, I hope you will consider joining us at our final Remix service, Sunday, March 26, 2017 at 4:30 PM in the Fireside Room – food following.

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Derick Zeulner

Frequently Asked Questions:

• Are you leaving South Shores? No! I love South Shores Church and am excited about the continued growth in our church body. As we grow and change we want to keep listening to and moving with God’s direction.
• Is this because of money, the building or the move? No! Pastor Ty has always been very gracious and clear that he supported the evening service no matter how much people gave and has always let us set the direction of this service. The move just helped facilitate the discussion, not cause the ending.
• Will I get to hear you teach anymore? Absolutely! Part of the reason we felt this was good timing was because of Pastor Ty’s development of a “teaching team” where each of us are helping to share the teaching load. I will be teaching at the 11:00 service in a similar amount to what I would have been teaching in the evening with this new shared schedule.
• What about The Shaws worship team? Steven will still continue to lead our youth bands on Wednesday and Thursday nights. He and his team have been leading on Sunday mornings for a little over a year at a church in Fountain Valley. They will continue to do so. Please still continue to support them as they keep producing new music – www.theshawsmusic.com
• Will we ever do an evening option again? It is absolutely possible! We are not ruling anything out, but want to be faithful stewards of our resources currently and hold any plans with an open hand to what God may have planned for us in the future.