The lord in their shelter in Lake Carroll

LAKE CARROLL — Ever since Robin Wilhelms Saar and her husband Jeff moved to Lake Carroll, they’ve loved to sing its praises, and the sights and sounds of their own little piece of heaven have given them plenty to praise: sunlight dancing on the water, laughter drifting across the lake from boats filled with friends and family, birds chirping, animals scampering through the grass.

But even with all that, there was still one missing piece of heaven they felt the lake could use: a place where people could come together in faith and fellowship. Though the couple’s Sunday mornings were spent at Bethel United Methodist Church’s services in Shannon, they wanted a place a little closer to God.

Bolstered by the their family’s faith and devotion, and coupled with a commitment to their community by the lake, the Saars helped begin an early Sunday morning service at the East Marina’s picnic shelter, Church at the Lake, which has brought dozens of worshippers from both inside and outside Lake Carroll for an hour of fellowship, comfort, inspiration, and words of wisdom from Bethel UMC pastor Jeremiah Lee.

The non-denominational service begins at 8:30 a.m. on Sundays and runs from the day before Memorial Day to the day before Labor Day (May 25 to Aug. 31 this year) and is open to the public. The faithful flock to the marina by car, golf cart, on foot and even by boat.

Taking in an outdoor service resonates differently with people, Robin said, as if there’s a grater clarity and peace of mind when hearing the words of the Bible surrounded by God’s handiwork.

“It was to bring others together to share in our faith with open doors to any denomination on every weekend in the summer,” Robin said. “We were welcomed by the Lake Carroll Board of Directors to gather Sunday mornings for an hour at the East Marina pavilion. Our vision was a casual, small intimate outdoor gathering amongst the lake, the deer, the birds singing and the warm breeze of nature.”

The Saars established Church at the Lake in 2014 with Robin’s parents, Omar and Janice Wilhelms. Lee is the fourth pastor to conduct its services, and has been with Bethel UMC since last summer, coming from a church in Addison. No stranger to outdoors services at other churches he’s served, Lee enjoys the Sunday summer morns at Lake Carroll.

“Church isn’t about a building, but is about people,” Lee said. “What I like about the service at the lake is the idea that we don’t have to just worship God in a sanctuary. God is everywhere, and that opens doors for all of the possibilities for people to be whatever they want to be, and still can worship in God. This can serve as an outreaching to people who might not be comfortable coming to churches, but at the lake, or outside, it can be easier for them.”

Organizers do manage to bring a bit of the church into the outdoor outreach though. There’s some caffeine to kick start the day — about 100 cups of coffee are served during at typical service — along with light refreshments. Contemporary Christian music is performed, but sans the song lyrics projected on a screen as some churches do. Instead, worshippers turn to a binder of lyrics to raise their voices in song. Andas for the collection plate? People can drop their offerings into a bright yellow bait bucket instead.

One special event during the year is the annual patriotic-themed service. This year’s is on June 29, the Sunday before Independence Day, and breakfast will be served.

Each service begins with a short song of inspiration, “Shall We Gather at the River,” modified by the late Deborah Endress of Shannon, who attended for several years with her husband Jim:

“Shall we gather at Lake Carroll,

Beautiful, beautiful Lake Carroll,

Yes, we’ll gather at Lake Carroll,

To praise God at the Church by the Lake!"

Jim, who still owns property in Lake Carroll, enjoyed seeing and hearing Deborah play with the church’s Praise Band. The couple also enjoyed the early service time, and getting to know everyone who comes each Sunday, a gathering of people of all ages and backgrounds.

“She really liked this,” Jim said. “Yeah, we had to get up in a pretty good time to get there and get set up, but at 9:30, we would pack up and head home and we were done with church for the day. We really loved the early time slot. I think there have been people that have come to this service that I wouldn’t have necessarily expected from a generational standpoint, simply because it was earlier than the service in the sanctuary.

“The Church by the Lake definitely deepened our faith and commitment to doing the Lord’s work, all in a beautiful, casual outdoor setting.”

Two members of the Praise Band, Jeff Norton and Jason Mlakar, both of Lake Carroll, went on to form the band Better Late Than Never, which records and performs secular music with fellow band members Scott Woodley and Melissa McCammack, also of Lake Carroll.

Jim and others have come to know new Lake Carroll residents, whether part-time or full-time, who are looking for a new or second church home while they’re getting used to life at the lake.

“There are weekenders at Lake Carroll who come out for the weekend, and sort of miss going to church even though they’re here for the weekend,” Jim said. “You can get up, come casually, and in 45 minutes to an hour we’re done, and you can go back to whatever it is at the lake you do. Our ministry has added some couples to the church here after seeing us there, and now they come to our church during the non-summer months as well. That’s been really cool.”

Robin said she enjoys the blended nature of the church — familiar faces and new friends, Lake residents with family, visitors, and others who stop by. There are people to meet and stories to share.

“When the kids come home from college, or from other things, they’ll show up and it’s fun to see these groups come together,” Robin said. “It’s an easy, casual, non-denominational service. There’s people who need prayer and have joys, and there’s a lot of that.”

Jeff also likes the fellowship and casual nature of spreading the faith, he said, and he enjoys telling others about the lake service, from people interested in attending to those who are just passing by and wonder what that large gathering is at the shelter on an early Sunday morning.

Sometimes nature puts a damper on things, but even thern there’s a silver lining in the clouds.

“During the first or second year, we were rained out and had about five dozen donuts,” Jeff said. “We didn’t have the formal ‘Send out the message’ to people about them, so I actually sat in my car out at the [marina] entrance, and anyone that came in or out of the parking lot, I told them that the church service was canceled and I handed the donuts out. There were a lot of fishermen that were coming. It’s all just laid back and very casual.”

Having a hand in helping faith find a home at Lake Carroll has been a joy for Robin, whose idea 11 years ago has grown in to a staple of the community.

“I truly believed that God called our family to do this,” Robin said. “We’re here to make a difference in people’s lives, and we can share our faith and give people who want to attend a chance to talk about their needs or their joys. That’s important to me.”

Church at the Lake begins at 8:30 a.m. on Sundays from May 25 to Aug. 31 at the East Marina. Find Bethel-Shannon UMC on Facebook, go to gbgm-umc.org or call 815-864-2581 for more information.