Vanguard Tri-Lakes

09/02/2026

VTL Family,

We hope you enjoyed a great message from our brother G this past week! I was at our Central campus to deliver the message, but was able to listen to the recording of his message. Thank you G!

Speaking of that message, here it is! Please give it a listen if you missed it and share it with someone who needs to hear it! https://open.spotify.com/episode/30YkhLMGMtW3UEn7fUbFvm?si=SR9XeUjrQZCQNBT24nYZ0Q&utm_source=copy-link

September is Stewardship Month at Vanguard! Each year, we focus on God’s directions on giving and how to be faithful stewards of His financial provision to us. Our spotlighted principle this week is GOD OWNS EVERYTHING. Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, 2 for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.”

Vanguard Tri-Lakes remains at a deficit for the fiscal year and we would love to close that gap in this next month! The great news is that we have ALREADY seen God stir in the hearts of His people here at VTL to give this month!!

Let’s keep it going and finish strong. September also means we present our body with two bold opportunities in the area of stewardship:

1. If you are a tither or a giver at Vanguard, consider doubling your tithe or gift above and beyond your regular giving to help us end the fiscal year strong and begin our next in robust health!

2. If you have never given to God before, start today! Become an online giver, head either to our Planning Center app and select Give (select Vanguard Tri-Lakes) from the landing page or visit our website at (https://www.vanguardchurch.org/give).

Fall is a busy time at Vanguard Church, with many ministries fully engaged! Check out everything that we have going on:

Midweek: we will be starting our seminar “Thirsty Prayer” which will focus on encountering our Heavenly Father through prayer in greater, deeper ways than ever before. Tonight’s speaker is one of our elders, David Corbitt. Accompanying books are available at the door. We look forward to welcoming you there!

Speaking of the Thirsty Prayer initiative this Fall… Prayer Labs are starting! Check out this link for all details and dates: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3844678

Young Adults also meet on Wednesday nights, NOW at Vanguard Central! For more information and to sign up for the childcare co-op (as needed), contact Pastor Joshua at [email protected].

Students and leaders gather for worship together every Wednesday night at 5:45 and then have teaching, discussion, prayer, and fellowship until 7:45 pm. No signup is necessary; just come as you are and join us at our central location for grades 6th-12th! Click on this link to learn more: https://www.vanguardchurch.org/students or contact Pastor Candice at [email protected]

The Women’s Ministry is also ramping with amazing opportunities to get engaged! This from Pastor Jenni:

Beginning September 10th from 9-11 am every other Thursday in the conference room, I will be leading through the book, The Sacred Romance. I've wanted to take a group of women through this book for years because it changed my life by leading me to a greater understanding of the love God has for me.

Also beginning September 10th: From 6-8 pm every Thursday evening in the multipurpose room, I will be leading through my book, And the Piccolo Plays On. We will discuss the road to becoming a true disciple of Jesus Christ through personal stories and much scripture. Let’s wrestle together through the challenging truths and hard lessons we all face as we grow to maturity in the faith!

And beginning October 1st from 6-8 pm at Perkins, Amber G will be teaching a in-depth Bible study through the Book of Ruth. Come gain greater wisdom and insight into God’s Word and how to apply it to our lives!

Last but never least, be sure to mark your calendars and get registered for our Women’s Retreat 2026. “The Rugged Road to Peace” will be held October 16-18 at Bear Trap Ranch. It is often a rugged road to find the peace Jesus offers, but the Lord charts our path and shows us The Way. It is also a rugged road to Bear Trap Ranch, one of the most beautiful and peaceful places on Earth. Both journeys are worth the effort! Come dig into God’s word, rest, connect, and have fun with your sisters in Christ as we commune with the Lord up in the mountains. Registration is now open at https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3849179

Please find a way to connect this fall, and if you have questions, please contact me (Pastor Jenni) at [email protected].

Blessings,

Pastor Mark

08/27/2026

VTL Family,

This weekend is the launch of Stewardship month at Vanguard. This is where we challenge our givers to double their monthly tithe for one month and we invite those who don’t yet give to Vanguard to begin tithing. We want to invite you to join us in these challenges. If we each do our part, God will take care of the rest.

Would you prayerfully consider partnering with Vanguard Tri-Lakes by doubling your monthly tithes and gifts in September? As I have shared in recent updates, VTL is currently behind financially and we want to make that up by fiscal year end. This will enable us to start fiscal year 2027 strong on October 1! We look forward to celebrating the victories with you October 21st at our annual Vanguard Vision Casting Night.

I saw many of you at Central this week, but if you missed it, this past week was incredibly powerful! To top it off, we got to baptize one of our own in Jamie Smith! AMAZING!

VANGUARD MIDWEEK SERVICE STARTS BACK TONIGHT FOR ALL AGES. WE WANT YOU TO JOIN US!

This fall we are starting our Thirsty Prayer initiative, and we invite you to be part. We will have a midweek Thirsty Prayer Seminar while also praying together in Prayer Labs, which are practice‑driven, applied environments designed to help us stretch and deepen our prayer lives and connection with God. Prayer is learned… even the disciples needed teaching “Lord, teach us to pray.” Luke 11:1 So look through the Prayer Labs opportunities below, find what date/time/location works for you, and reach out to the leader.

Let’s grow together in talking to our Heavenly Father. Our goal is for every Vanguardian to somehow, some way, be involved in the Thirsty Prayer initiative and in prayer labs. For more information about prayer labs, see:
https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3844678

Need childcare for midweek at Vanguard? We're excited to welcome you to our Wednesday night parent co-op! All we need is for you to register each of your children at https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3797841

There, you'll find all the info you need, and we'll have a sign-up sheet for you on Wednesday! Don't have a child needing care, but want to volunteer? We'd love to have you, too! Email Pastor Candice at [email protected] for sign up and details.

This weekend we are BACK AT THE BARN and continuing in our 7 CORE EXPRESSIONS message series as we welcome back our brother G to deliver the message! Here is the link for the message notes: https://www.bible.com/events/49643246

Blessings,
Pastor Mark

08/19/2026

VTL Family,

We look forward to joining our Central campus this weekend for Connection Weekend and Baptisms! Join us! Invite someone!

We have ONE 10am service on Sunday. Here is the address for the Central campus: 3950 N Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80917. For more information: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3828470

Check out the VTL Sermon podcast from this past Sunday: https://open.spotify.com/episode/24Xt71SMvtNu84qoUZ69FS?si=73xotL-sR5m4insysbx62Q

Also, here is a recent VTL sermon from Vanguard Elder David Corbitt that was just uploaded for your listening pleasure: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5DL4xR5HNTdlsmokAFtE1Y?si=6LcJA6roQNu3aIveMcG_ew

School is starting this week; can you believe it?! There is a lot happening at Vanguard as we look towards the Fall!

TONIGHT is our Vanguard Students AMAZING RACE! Pastor Candice will lead us at the end of the night with vision casting for Student ministry 2027! Join us for the fun, ice cream, and fellowship! Here is the link to sign up and more details: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3748892

Vanguard’s next membership gathering is September 13th. If you have a real relationship with Jesus Christ, we would love for you to become a part of the Vanguard church family. Here is the link for details and sign up: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/799076

Men’s Ministry Fall BBQ kickoff: Monday August 24th at Vanguard Central. Here is the link for details: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3826455

Our Vanguard Midweek starts back next Wednesday night August 26th. Make plans now to join us for midweek! We are beginning with a night of worship and prayer!

Our Young Adults ministry is led by Pastor Joshua Williams. We are seeing a lot of new young adults at our Vanguard weekend worship services. The Young Adults ministry will be meeting at Vanguard Central on Wednesday nights starting August 26th. You can contact Pastor Joshua at [email protected] for more details. Here is the link to young adults as well: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/2557642

This weekend we are continuing in our 7 CORE EXPRESSIONS message series. Last weekend was discipleship. Here is the link for last week’s message: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqMks9rMFUk

See you Sunday at VANGUARD CENTRAL!

Blessings,
Pastor Mark

08/13/2026

VTL Family,

The Elders and the Pastoral Leadership Team for Vanguard Church are away this week in beautiful Breckenridge for our annual retreat. We spend this time reviewing the past, addressing the present, and ultimately dreaming about the future of Vanguard Church.

It has been a powerful week thus far, and I am excited for the final 2 days to come. I love the concept of ‘retreat,’ in that we physically get away from our typical lives to purposefully spend time devoted to the calling that God has on the life of His Church. This brings about a refreshing of the mind, a clarity of purpose, and most importantly a quiet time with God. It is in retreat that we gain much needed clarity on our calling. I am grateful for this time.

This past Sunday, Pastor Tosha Williams delivered a wonderful and powerful sermon! If you missed it, please check it out here and share it with those in relationship with you: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4yllvvWlgKc9xD0ugmTUC2?si=Y6R7LC90TIqzlRlmMj9wyA

Starting this weekend, we will start a new message series called: “Built for This.” Vanguard Church has seven core expressions, and we will be unpacking each of those individually over the next seven weeks.

This week’s message is about being a disciple of Jesus and what it means to be discipled and involved in discipleship at Vanguard Church. Join us! Better yet, join us and invite someone!

Here are the message notes for this weekend: https://www.bible.com/events/49643225

Finally, Vanguard Church is approaching the end of our fiscal year. Currently, we are $5,544 behind on our net income budget for VTL. I want to encourage you to consider making a fiscal year-end gift to Vanguard Tri-Lakes if this is indeed your church home. This past Sunday, our amazing Lead Shepherd Annalarie did a beautiful job of sharing the great joy it is as believers to give to the Lord! It is indeed that: a JOY. And God therefore LOVES a joyful giver.

September is stewardship month, and we will be asking you to consider a year-end gift or doubling your monthly tithe. My encouragement is to pray about this, and fervently seek God’s heart. Then respond accordingly! If you are living according to His will, whether that means to give or not, then you know you are living the life He ordained for you! That’s all He wants from all of us.

See you this weekend!

Blessings,

Pastor Mark

08/12/2026

We were honored to have Pastor Tosha Williams deliver the message this past week. This is a beautiful and powerful message! I strongly encourage you to listen and SHARE!

-Pastor Mark

Vanguard Tri-Lakes Church · Episode

07/21/2026

In case we missed you this week, check out this week’s sermon entitled “Table Talk.”

Vanguard Tri-Lakes Church · Episode

07/16/2026

Dear Vanguard Church Family and Friends,

What a privilege it was to have Vanguard’s Associate Worship Pastor, Melissa Pritchard in the house to share the message this past week. Melissa joined our Teaching Team this past year and has flourished greatly! We are so grateful for her commitment to leaning into the calling that God has on her live and living out her talents in worship and teaching.

If you missed this week’s message, please check out the podcast and share it with someone who you know may need to hear it: https://open.spotify.com/episode/678614VEG3QXeUjAV5CU9O?si=ODPUqYSWR4mLrtEjP1ZBYw

Don’t be afraid of your calling; embrace it! You might be surprised what God does through you! Vanguard Church is all about discipleship, and ultimately loving people into real relationship with Jesus Christ.

Discipleship means leaning into the calling that God has put on your life. Did you know he made you to be YOU?! And that YOU came with a plan in mind!

Jeremiah 29:11-12
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

This weekend we are continuing in our message series AT THE TABLE as we talk about “TABLE TALK.” Here are the message notes: https://www.bible.com/events/49614732

See you this weekend!

Blessings,

Pastor Mark

07/15/2026

We were honored to have Vanguard’s Associate Worship Pastor Melissa Pritchard bringing the message this week at Vanguard Tri-Lakes!

Check it out here if you missed it this week!

Vanguard Tri-Lakes Church · Episode

07/01/2026

VTL Family,

As we plan to celebrate this great country’s 250th birthday, we want to remind you that we will not be holding a service at The Barn this week. We will be joining the Vanguard Central congregation with ONE SERVICE this Sunday at 10. As a reminder, Vanguard Central is located:

3950 N Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80917

This Sunday, we will be continuing our summer series “At the Table” with a sermon called “Civility and Decorum at the Table.” Here are the notes: http://bible.com/events/49630852

If you missed this past week’s message, please check out our weekly podcast of the sermon! We invite you to listen, follow, and SHARE with your family & friends!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5dBg6TK1iJ6gNVW5gp5I5c?si=sa6US1kNS3WdFQ3gym4wrA

I hope you have a wonderful 4th of July with your family and friends! Celebrate the wonderful country that God has granted to us. May we be always reminded of the freedom we have here, while also remembering our Commission to reach the lost in this nation. I pray for revival in this country on this 250th anniversary of our nation.

Please help us end our 3rd quarter financially strong at Vanguard Tri-Lakes! Currently, we are behind budget and need to finish this final quarter strong. Here’s the link to give: https://govanguard.churchcenter.com/giving?open-in-church-center-modal=true

Blessings,

Pastor Mark

06/30/2026

Check out this week’s message in our Summer Series: The Table

Vanguard Tri-Lakes Church · Episode