Giving a Gift

It was one of the best moments I have ever had as a dad when I gave a 1984 Camaro to my son last month.  He couldn't believe it and I was just so happy to give it to him.  It was a moment that continues to teach me the value of giving a gift that means something.  As you can see from the picture, this car is not a toy (but boy is it fun to drive!).  It would have been entirely inappropriate to give him this car at the age of 10 years old or even 15 when he was learning how to drive.  No, the time was right, the car was right and most of all for dad, the price was right!
Now, ride with me down the road with this thought...It got me to thinking about how we try to force the things we want from our heavenly Father when we are clearly not ready for whatever reason.  I sometimes get in the mode of wanting God to move on MY time, with MY agenda, and at MY price!  I know it is an old cliche but it works here--"good things come to those who wait."  Well, the truth is, the Lord brings us His good in His time at the price of His blood poured out on the cross.  Makes me think of how good the Lord is and how impatient and rushed we are.  If only my heart would wait on the Lord and trust in His gracious hand to provide for me exactly what I need.  After all, His love is extravagant toward His children! (1 John 3:1).  Just like Jesus said, "If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asksfor a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:11-13)

Not sure about you but I'm kinda hoping maybe there's a camaro with my name on it!!!  ;)

Walking in grace, George

God is not into visiting us ; He wants to invade our lives!

Hey guys, it's Malene here again. I thought I'd just bless you guys with a lil post I wrote earlier

‘’ These glasses are for the visitors, no one touches them!’’ sounds familiar?

Y’all know what it’s like when you have visitors. I mean you clean up the whole house; you get rid of the sand paper and put real toilet paper in the bathroom

Because the visitors are coming, you buy biscuits and if the kids dare to touch it they’re dead because it’s for the visitors. You tell the kids to put on their best behaviors and all that for the visitors. Once the visitors are gone it’s back to world war 3 again in the house!!

Well maybe my introduction was a bit too much or i was exaggerating but you ,guys ,all know when you receive or you parents are expecting important visitors: you suddenly turn into an Angel of the Lord!! Hallelujah can I get a witness... just one??

The thing about visitors is that you know exactly when they are coming, you are expecting them and they always call before visiting. They also never stay for too long before you know it they are gone.

Let’s take a look at this verse in John 1: 14 (msg) : The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish.

The bible says that the word moved into the neighborhood,

You see when someone is coming to invade your life they don’t call and let you know ,they just come and take full control.

Some of us Christians are like: “God, you take control of my life on Sunday I take care of my life from Monday to Saturday; God, you take control of my spiritual life I take control of my secular life! You take care of my kids during Sunday school I do the parenting the rest of the week!

My friend, God wants to have full control of your life. He is not a visiting God; He is a life filling, invading, hope giving, and life transforming God!

Some of us have been Christians for quite a long time and still feel like our lives haven’t changed much since we were born again and saved.

You see this is because we do not want to totally surrender our lives to Him, not For God to control us but for Him to transform us.

John continues in this verse describing Jesus as being Generous inside and out true from start to finish! Just by reading this I am already captivating by this One-of-a-Kind God’s son. I want someone like Him to not just visit but to invade my life so that I can be made just like Him: generous, true from start to finish…

I am writing this just to tell you how I once was thinking that God only was visiting my life and never really wanted to stay for long, oh how I was wrong!

As a result of that whilst being a Christian I settled only for a once a week God encounter every Sunday I’ll go to church and the rest of the week I’ll be doing my own thing, ruling my own life, I was my own Boss well at least I thought I was,

But I was wrong, for sin was in fact the boss of me!

Something in me, you see, was still empty I wanted to encounter God for myself and have a deep relationship with Him but I didn’t know how to formulate my desire into a prayer. How I really wanted to experience the Jesus that I have heard so many other Christians testify about every Sunday. I also wanted to have a testimony.

But praise be to God, as I couldn’t reach out to him and cry out, He instead stretched His hand towards me and reached out to me. Instead of giving me a testimony He made my life a living testimony.

Now as I lay my life down daily as a living sacrifice to Him not only has He invaded my entire life, He has transformed me into a new being.

My friend today God is knocking at the door of your hearts for some of you wanting you to let him in so He can invade you,

For others you might have let Him in but only gave him a portion of your life. For example, someone gives you a house. The person says I give you complete ownership of the house but you realize that he only has given you the keys to the living room and locked every other room in the house!! This is exactly how God feels in your life. He feels left out. He wants to be part of your daily life; He wants to be your partner in this life and why not in eternity!

God doesn’t want to visit your life my friend, He wants to invade your life 24/7 and come bring change and transformation and that only happens in a special place.

It is a place where you are willing to lay down your life as a living sacrifice, where you lay everything at the altar

Where you recognize that on your own you can do nothing but with God you can do all things!

Some of us are in a certain place where there is hurt, pain, discomfort, challenge, and unforgiveness let me tell you that nothing is ever too big for our God. Impossible is not in His vocabulary.

Let God get into that dark place and bring healing, restoration, life and liberty.

That place is where you are now, in your church in you house in your university in your circle of friends in your ministry and we often don’t like that place cause it’s uncomfortable. We wish our lives were different but you have to understand that the pathway to your destiny is often paved with discomfort, inconvenience, obstacles, challenges and hurdles and in order to fulfill what God has for us there are obstacles, challenges that we need to face but we do not need to get stressed out about them because Jesus said He has overcome the world!

Don’t walk out on that place; don’t leave the place where God has planted you.

Allow God to be God in your life. Don’t detest that place and turn around and acknowledge Him in that place. In your darkest, driest hour He is there.

We serve a God of incredible love, incredible mercy the One who says that He has a place in His kingdom for you and me.. Stop thinking ‘man I am not good enough for God,” you know what none of us are’.  It’s about Him and how amazing He is, how he wants to invade your life.

And I believe that for some of us, the first place we have to take it’s the place where we put Jesus first in our life. Not where you have a religious encounter once a week on a Sunday but where you put Him in the right place in your life and everything else will fall into place in your life.

Sound Familiar?

"Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple...So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple." Luke 14:25-27

Well...this is different! I thought you could believe anything or do anything and be a disciple of Jesus! Wait a second Jesus, this isn't what I expected. Are you saying that I can't live my life for my kids or my family? Does this mean that You want me to follow You first above and beyond all other relationships? But Lord, "hate" is such a strong word! I'm not sure about this teaching Jesus--it sounds like You are calling me to lay down my life in order to follow You..."bear his cross"--that sounds like death to me! They say that You are the Messiah and the Christ but all I really need You for is some more bread and fish. Hey, Hey, Hey--easy does it Jesus--Your sermons are getting a little too tough and harsh--who do You think you are--God! I've got lots of people in my life and lots of OTHER priorities besides You...What do you expect me to do, spend all my time with YOU? Listen Jesus, You are a great teacher and we really like You but my family is just not "feeling it" You know what I mean? Oh, we'll be back when the fish and bread come around. Thanks but no thanks Jesus.

Sound familiar?

Walking in grace, Pastor George

Getting Over Your Ex & Heartbreak

 

Hey girls, it's Malene here :D 

Malene- Public Relations Officer

This is just a post based on our last video called " getting over your ex and heart break"

and without further ado I’m going straight to the point( sounded like a teacher, lol)

Firstly, I want to tell you ladies that you were created by God and for God and only Him can fill any need in you. 

you were created for a purpose that is to  'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence'(mat 22:37-40 msg bible)

Sometimes as humans we get into some situations and things don’t  always go our way so we try to get out of them. We fight with our own strength and find it difficult to come out.

So I’m going to go through two main reasons why we girls sometimes find it really hard to get over our ex and heart break even when we know for sure that the other sex has wronged us; yet we still find ourselves going back to the same place.

1. Unforgiveness : this a very dangerous thing that can hold us captive and slowly kills us if we do not deal with it. Our sister Nickella used a god example to portrait unforgiveness she said it is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die instead.  It is a spiritual poison that enemy often uses to softly kill us and without even us knowing it!!

Whatever grudge that you are holding on to,  please release it my friend and Forgive. I know it is not easy to.
 I'll give you another example the Bible tells that we should be like children in a way such as when you upset a kid they cry, weep, moan but they do not hold grudge against the person who offended them. The next minute they come running back to them even after all the crying and drama they did. This how we should also be, like a child; try to forgive and to love our neighbours even our enemies. 

Be careful not to try to do this on your own, as good as our intentions are , our human nature will always fail us for it can not forgive. We need to ask God to help us forgive and break any stronghold that we may have. that's why it is good sister to have a relationship with the Lord; for you see when you are in Christ you become a new person and you bare the fruits of the Spirit which are love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, self-control... forgiveness opens doors for you to get closer to the father. 

2. Breaking attachments: how many of you know how painful it is to break up with someone? I mean you literally cry your heart out. Can someone please testify with me here lol

We might be willing to move on, what if we have forgiven the person but we find ourselves attached to them and can not let go of them because we are scared, thinking we have so much to lose?

Let me tell you something; everything happens for a reason, if God takes a person away from you it is because it has a better one in store for you.

Our sister Benedicte said something that really spoke to my heart and which I never thought of whilst being a Christian and that is : to plead the blood of Jesus Christ and break the attachment. 

I can not emphasise enough on how important it is for you to have a relationship with the Lord which is far more worth than having every man bowing at your feet.( literally)

After you have broken the attachment, the string that was holding you back on your journey is broken. Now my friend you can carry on, in your walk. another step closer to the Lord, He is waiting for you start moving forward before it reveals his grace, love, glory, and power in and through you.

Now, I'm going to give you some practical tips to help during this season of your life.

The first thing is if you find yourself attached to the person maybe you should consider to stop being  on the phone with him till like 4am in the morning. Sounds silly, but it’s a trap many of us fall into.

Things like Facebook stalking will not help you to get over him, it will just push you to do the opposite.

Texting him things like “I still miss you" when what you really want is a way to not feel the same toward the person. All these things are things that we overlook, but in fact it’s the small steps you take that bring you that step closer to totally getting over him!

One thing I wanted to remind us of is to use wisdom,  to ask the Lord to help in our decision

again the Bible says lean not on your own understanding, but trust the Lord .

He created you so He knows what is best for you, I believe the Lord has so much in store for us ladies. We are the apple of His eyes, and He desires to protect us.

He wants our attention turn towards Him and Him alone.

So if you feel like the Lord is taking people away from you or like no one understands you it is because He desires to be your everything.

We serve a God who will only work through once you surrender and give everything unto Him. He has plans to prosper us and trust your Daddy in heaven to bring to you the present and that is a man worthy enough to deserve the princess you are.

As I am bringing this to an end, I would like to use this opportunity to tell you sister that if you haven't already made the Lord Jesus Christ you everything then what are you waiting for? I know one thing that He is sitting at the edge of His seat waiting for you to invite Him, to spend life with and for you to know Him personally. And that is sister the best decision you can ever make in your entire life!!

God bless you. If you ever need to talk or some advice: email us at christianchickz@hotmail.co.uk or call our advice line: 07949988078 

Discipleship Strategy 2012

Dear Members of Crossroads Christian Church,

Crossroads is being transformed by God into a more effective tool for His Kingdom. This process is going to require significant changes to the way we do things and how we define membership. We have determined that we need to better clarify our mission and align our discipleship strategy with it.

We need a simpler and more direct strategy for making fully developed disciples. Every member and every convert should know HOW Crossroads does discipleship. For example if you had a friend or family member accept Jesus Christ, what would you tell them to do FIRST after being baptized?

To that end, it has been decided that after Sunday, February 26th, Crossroads will no longer have traditional Sunday school. This decision was not made lightly. Back in 2006, the leadership team formed a group tasked with doing an in-depth study of small groups. It was the unanimous recommendation of that group that we transition to small groups. It is time to make that transition complete.

Beginning with the first Sunday in March we will be concentrating all our efforts on making our worship experience awesomely inspiring to believers and compelling the lost. It will begin with what we are calling "Open Connection" at 9:30am. This will be a time of open fellowship. There will be pastries and coffee. Our children's area will be open to provide fun childcare while their parents mingle and talk.

During the month of March, we will be retooling our small group structure and recruiting facilitators and/or host locations. Our intention is to launch our new groups on Easter Sunday. They will meet on a weekly basis. It will be important for every member to be a part of a small group. The curriculum will be carefully selected to challenge each of us to be transformed more like Christ.

Joining a small group will be the NEXT step in our discipleship strategy. When someone comes to Christ, they will be encouraged to commit to a small group. The group curriculum will help them grow in their spiritual walk. The relationships they develop will encourage them to remain strong.

One of the main objectives of each group will be to challenge members to serve. This is the NEXT step in our strategy. We want everyone to be involved in ministry. Our ministry teams are the critical element at this point in the process. It is through serving that we begin to find our purpose in the body of Christ.

The FINAL step in our discipleship strategy will be to develop a greater personal sense of God's Great Commission. Each of us is called to making disciples in our own way. Our intention is to facilitate members being involved in a variety of mission opportunities locally, nationally, and cross-culturally. This will hopefully sensitize their hearts for the lost and lead them to guide others to Jesus Christ.

There are many details yet to be worked out. However, we wanted to keep everyone informed as these changes develop. As always, your input is greatly appreciated, as is your prayers.

The leadership Team
Ron Holladay, Fred Townsend, Troy Yeoman, Dave Nance, Michael Duff

It's No Fun to be Sick!

For the past few weeks sickness has visited my house in a variety of disgusting and painful ways. While in a near comatose state crashed out on the couch, the Lord taught me several painful lessons--perhaps you’ve thought about these things too. The first thing I learned relatively quickly is that I’m not nearly as strong as I think I am. Just add a little virus into my body and I crumble like a little baby! What weaklings we are--really! The perspective when I am on my knees in pain is priceless because it crushes my pride. I again come to the realization that I need the Lord for the littlest things in life and how He truly does hold me in the palm of His hand. Next to this, while I was sick, I came see how everyone ran away from me for fear of getting what I had. My sickness drove everyone away from me (which was a good idea) but left me all alone in my pain. I thought about the lepers on the edge of town suffering in isolation until Jesus heard their cry. Not only physical sickness but spiritual sickness as well will isolate you to experience the consequences of the pain and suffering of sinful choices. And when you’re isolated and alone, the pain just hurts all the more. The last recollection of my “sickness sermon” that the Lord taught me was that I can’t function the way I need too while I’m sick. I kept saying, “Lord, I’ve got things to do and people to see and I just don’t have time for this!” Friends, the Lord is so patient with us. He knows exactly what we need and when we need it! It was time for His servant George to learn another lesson about trusting God through the valleys of life. There is a reason we call it “Amazing Grace”.

My friends, I pray that you don’t get sick this winter but if you do I hope that there’s a sickness sermon for you from the Great Physician!

Walking in grace, Pastor George

Thanksgiving Surprises

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. My wife and I were invited to the home of my son's new in-laws. They were were very gracious hosts and we felt quite welcome. We enjoyed getting to know them and had a great time.

The highlight was my son and his new bride announcing that she is pregnant. Having just been married in October, they obviously did not waste any time. They are going on their official honeymoon at the end of December. Please keep both Mitch and Melissa in your prayers and ask God for an uneventful pregnancy along with a healthy baby.

As most of you know, the Sunday before Thanksgiving is designed as My Brother's Keeper Sunday. On that day, we take up our special offering for our benevolence ministry. This year we received over $4400 to help those in need. Given the state of our economy and our own financial difficulties as a congregation, this is truly a testament to the graciousness of God working through His people.

This is just the beginning of what I know God is going to do through My Brother's Keeper. With a new team of people, the ministry will grow and touch even more lives than it already has.