Why SMALL Groups are a BIG Deal, Part 4

I couldn't be more excited about tomorrow's service and GROUPLINK at the Annex at Noon.  In tomorrow's message we're going to wrap up our month-long life-direction series by sharing how important it is for us to be linked together with others.  Then, after the service starting at 12 noon, we're going to provide lunch at the Annex and give people an opportunity to meet with small group leaders.  It's a golden opportunity to find the group that's right for you.  I promise you, these small groups will fill up fast, so act now and don't miss this important semester of small groups at Crossroads.

As I mentioned in my last post, in our spring semester we will be having sermon, or message-based small groups.  Instead of each small group studying a different curriculum, we will have the opportunity for the first time, for our small groups to be on the same page at the same time.  Here's why I believe the time is right for us to do that, and why message-based SMALL groups are God's BIG idea for Crossroads right now:

Crossroads is filled with people from remarkably diverse spiritual backgrounds.  We are Catholics,  Baptists, Pentecostals, Episcopalians, Methodists, Presbyterians, Agnostics and everything in between. We are wizened life-long believers, mature in our faith, and brand-new followers of Christ, entirely new to the faith, and everything in between.  In our personal lives we are rich, we are middle-class, we are poor, and we are everything in between.  We are professionals and laborers, and soldiers and secretaries, and home-makers and hell-raisers, and everything in between,  We are republicans and democrats and libertarians and independents, and conservatives and liberals and everything in between.  While that diversity makes us the beautiful patchwork quilt of humanity that we are, God's desire for us is that we allow Him to grow us together to become ONE IN CHRIST; just as Jesus prayed, "God make them one even as we are one".

We all have different backgrounds, different gifts, different talents and all are important.  Let us celebrate our diversity as we dedicate ourselves to foster an environment through message-based small groups where we can grow to become one in Christ, as God "makes the whole body fit together perfectly.  As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love".    

Monthly Benevolence Offering

Don't forget that this Sunday is the last Sunday of the month.  That means we'll be receiving a special benevolence offering which assists Crossroads in serving the needs of others in our community.  As we head into a HUGE weekend at Crossroads (GROUPLINK/Lunch Sunday at 12 Noon at the Annex) I would ask everyone to not only prayerfully consider how you will participate in the benevolence offering, but also after having prayerfully considered it, act upon it. (Remember, our DIRECTION not our INTENTION determines our DESTINATION.  "I really intended to live generously".  So, did you live generously?  "No, but I intended to.  And it's the thought that counts...right?") 

Giving is something that Christ-followers do.  God gave.  Jesus gave. He told us to give.  We give.  As anyone who understands our position of giving, on tithes, on offerings knows, we don't give out of a sense of religious duty, we are not generous because "we have more and they have less so we ought to", we don't tithe 10% of everything that comes in because that's what Jesus told us to do.  We give, we are generous, we love and serve others because we are children of God, and that's what God does.  (If Crossroads position on tithes, offerings and living generously is unfamiliar to you, go to our PODCAST and listen to ALL-IN Week One - Are There Rules to This Game?).

And remember WHY we do a benevolence offering: We were fighting against depleting operating resources to do benevolence.  You can definitely do that, just not indefinitely.  The reason we began to receive a benevolence offering is so that we can DO benevolence (feed hungry people, help widows and orphans, assist homeless and support ministries that do) and still keep the lights on at Crossroads. So be prepared as you come Sunday.  And be smart.  If you regularly give $25 a week in the offering, please don't give $0 in the offering and $25 in the benevolence offering.  That defeats the purpose.  If you are practicing Planned, Priority, Percentage giving (I PLAN in advance, I make it a PRIORITY, I have picked a PERCENTAGE to give regularly), awesome.  Please continue to drive that out and stay faithful.  Don't allow the Benevolence Offering to be a Blue Light Special in your budget.  Fair enough?

Take time to pray and ask God what He wants you to do.  Then do it. Peace.

Why SMALL Groups are a BIG Idea, Part 3

My anticipation, excitement, and enthusiasm level is at an all-time high, on this, the day of the eve of our small group leaders meeting before Grouplink this Sunday.  On Thursday night at the Annex, Ben and Kelly Rice will lead a meeting of singles and couples that have taken the bold step of saying, "Yes, I want to lead a small group". Some are long-time leaders at Crossroads.  Some are first-time small group leaders. Some are relatively new to Crossroads.  Some are young.  Some are...not.  But ALL have something in common that will serve Christ's desire for growth and unity in His church.

What Ben and Kelly will be sharing with small group leaders, and what everyone will be sharing with Crossroads congregation on Sunday, both in the service, and at our Grouplink Lunch at the Annex at 12 Noon after church, is a turning-point in the development of small groups and the beginning of a "whole 'nutha level" of unity in the church at Crossroads.

In the past, Crossroads small groups have used a variety of curriculum, from a variety of sources, with each small group studying something different.  While the individual curriculums are great, they were developed from messages prepared for other congregations.  Though their usefulness beyond that purpose is undeniable, their relevance to our congregation at this time and place is...arguable, no matter how good the teaching is.  Good teaching is good teaching and it is always valuable, but teaching specifically crafted for US right NOW is invaluable.

1. What if there was a way for us to be on the same page at the same time?
2. What if there was a curriculum designed just for us?

There is.  And it's another reason that SMALL groups are a BIG idea at Crossroads.  Stay tuned...

    

Conference Call Faux Pas

I thought this was appropriate given my new schedule.  Message prep conference call at North Point with Andy Stanley and Clay Scroggins advertising a series they did.  I know this has been out for a while, but it's short and it's too funny and it made me laugh my butt off this morning.  I appreciate this on several levels.  I've definitely been on both sides of this call...

WEEKEND UPDATE (012410)

Greetings all!  Fantastic day (if a bit wet and windy) at Crossroads on Sunday.  Though we had a number of people out today, the service was one for the books!  Here's a few quick hits:

• In an act that seems to be the hallmark of our ministry at Crossroads, many people rededicated their lives to Christ Sunday morning.  It's something that always amazes me, and something I couldn't possibly ever grow weary of seeing.  I don't know how God does it (frankly, I'm amazed He allows me to even be a witness to it), but I hope He never, ever stops doing it!
• From the first song to the closing prayer today's service was just plain fun.  And, apparently, God did what He needed to do.
• For the first 15 minutes of the message it felt more like a clean version of Comedy Central than a church service, which suits me fine because I love to laugh.  Together, we probably laughed more in Sunday's service than we've laughed in church in a while.  I said when I stepped up on the platform, "I don't know what it is, but I just feel silly this morning".  A few minutes later we were laughing like a bunch of goobers, and I felt warm inside, like the Holy Spirit was working through the laughter to ease pain, to heal broken hearts and to soften hard attitudes to receive one of the most important words we've ever shared at Crossroads: "Blue Light Special" (listen to the podcast).
• No guy that was in that service will ever look at a girl he's not married to without thinking about solar eclipses (listen to the podcast).
• No one that was in that service will ever log on to facebook without thinking about bug lights (listen to the podcast).
• The service was short, sweet and to the point and it was exactly what we needed today!

As you go through your week, remember to ask yourself, "What is it about my life that demonstrates that I'm paying attention to God". When you answer that question, be sure to keep doing those things. Remember: What gets your attention, determines your direction in life.  Keep looking straight ahead this week.  Invite people in your world to Crossroads, and make sure you plan to have lunch at the Annex next Sunday as we prepare to kick off the most important season of small groups we've ever had at Crossroads.  Come to Grouplink, enjoy a great lunch with friends, and spend a few minutes talking to small group leaders as you decide which small group is right for you!

  

Haiti, Pat Robertson, and Healing Hands

Hey guys, I found an article in my email in-box.  It was written by a guy named Patrick D. Odum.  I don't know him, but I liked his post. He's inviting support for Healing Hands International in the Haiti relief effort, but the post is more than that.  I'm not going to reprint it here, but I encourage you to follow the link and read it.  You may agree or disagree with the things he says, but I'm glad he said them anyway.  I find a great deal of truth in it, and I think it's worth reading.  Here's the link:

The God Who Sees and Cares

Have a great night!

Why SMALL Groups are a BIG Deal, Part 2

Yesterday I began a series of posts about small groups and why we believe in them at Crossroads.  Our stated purpose at is to love God, love others and serve the world.  To facilitate that we have focused on connections; connecting people to God, to each other and to the world around us.  While the connections we all make on Sunday morning are powerful, small groups are where we bring it all home.

See, if we just show up on Sunday morning, have a donut, sing a couple songs, hear a message and head for lunch we may well have connected...but we haven't really connected well.  Sunday morning is about going W-I-D-E, not about going deep.  We need to leverage our time on this planet to reach as many people as possible with the Gospel.  So our Sunday service is designed to do exactly that, with messages that are topical, concise, and practical.  But that's only the beginning.

We say that church is not what we do on Sunday morning, but it's what we do and who we are when we leave on Sunday morning. Small groups during the week reinforce the importance of Sunday's message, give us all an opportunity to dig deeper into God's purpose and plan for our lives, and allow us to connect with one another on a personal level that is not possible on Sunday morning in a fast-growing, evangelically-focused church like Crossroads.  Semester-based, message oriented small groups are a short-term commitment with long term benefits.  Here's just three more reasons why SMALL groups are a BIG idea:

1. Small groups deepen our connection with God.
2. Small groups deepen our connection with insiders (other believers).
3. Small groups deepen our connection with outsiders (those we're called to reach).

Why SMALL Groups are a BIG Deal, Part 1

Three years ago, when Leslie and I were envisioning life at Crossroads, she made it very clear to me that without small groups we would never be a church where people experienced true and lasting life-change.  Not being raised in a church that valued small groups, I didn't really get it.  Why would I want to go to someone's house and sit around and talk about life and God and the Bible, and maybe pray and spend time hanging out with people?  We can do that at church on Sunday!  

Clearly, what she didn't understand was the slippery slope that small groups represented.  Why, given time, the people in a small group might becomes so comfortable with one another, they share things deep in their hearts.  They might talk about wounds.  They might actually have relationships that transcended the Sunday morning worship service.  They might become closer to one another than they are with the rest of the people in the church...including the pastor! In fact, given time, the small group might become the place where people sought deep connection and ultimately the pastoral care the "church" is supposed to provide.  Sounded like decentralization. Sounded dangerous.

Well, of course I'm exaggerating my response.  I knew we should HAVE small groups, I just didn't know why.  Through  intense study and excellent coaching I learned the value of small groups.  And I understood that if we were to be successful servant-leaders, Crossroads could not be a church that offered small groups as a program.  Crossroads had to be a church comprised of small groups. Big, big  difference.  

So my next step in the thought process was, "Okay, we'll have small groups.  But do I have to be in one?  Do I have to lead one?"  Andy Stanley, who pastors Northpoint - a church that serves over 20,000 people - answered that question for me in his book 'Creating Community'.  He said, "I believe I will have more Kingdom impact with the 10 people that meet in my home on Monday night, than I will on the thousands whom I preach before on Sundays".  That's a pretty strong statement from a pretty smart guy.  He also said (and I'm paraphrasing here), "If you're the pastor and you're not participating in a small group, you're just plain sorry".  'Nuff said, Andy.  I get it.

So I got it.  And we began walking it out a year ago.  We started this church as a small group of a half-dozen or so that wound up as a small group of 33 or so meeting at our house, that turned into a bigger small group of 65 that became a church when we launched in August of 2008.  Since then we've had two small group semesters. Next month we will launch the most significant semester of small groups since we opened the doors of the church.  Here's a few irreducible minimums to think about over the next few weeks, as I share more about Why SMALL Groups are a BIG Deal: 

• We are committed to helping people experience lasting life-change.
• We believe the small group is the best place for lasting life-change to occur.
• Our success at Crossroads will be defined by how effectively our ministries move people from our large environment (Sunday mornings), into small groups.    

WEEKEND UPDATE (011710)

Hey guys, hope those of you who have the day off are enjoying it and getting some rest, and that the rest of you (like me) who are hard at it today are having a good, productive start to your week.  We had a great weekend at Crossroads, here's a few quick hits:

• HUGE crowd for a holiday weekend!  Best so far this year!
• MANY people made forward-looking decisions to rededicate their lives to Christ on Sunday!
• Worship was great.  Loved the new stuff!  The band really brought it.
• The video piece on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was powerful, tasteful and totally appropriate.  Loved the crowd response.  It says a lot about your hearts.
• Best I've felt on a Sunday so far this year.  Coming off a HUGE staff/leaders meeting last Tuesday, I literally felt the momentum for 2010 kick in.  Seriously.
• Tons of fun and a great lesson sharing the story of Balaam and his donkey.  Encouraging to know there isn't anything God won't use to get His message across (including you and me)!
• Great response from folks on our current life direction series.
• Hearing from so many how they are learning that DIRECTION, not intention, determines our DESTINATION.  Seeing first-hand, people making quality decisions to head in God's direction for their lives!
• Great group last night at ROADIES 101!  It is a privilege to teach the class, and an honor to welcome those who made the membership commitment, as well as those who want to learn more about Crossroads.  ROADIES 101 is an essential ingredient in the life of a Crossroads attender.  If you haven't made it yet, plan to attend next time around.
• Financial Peace University is FULL!!  I am so grateful that we get to offer FPU at Crossroads, and so encouraged by the great response.  Those who signed up are on their way to a brand new life!

Guys, we said when we started Crossroads that Sunday morning was our biggest outreach event of the week.  You and I are God's witnesses.  We're supposed to take the truth of God's word and share it with others.  I want to encourage you to INVITE BIG this week and every week.  The overwhelming majority of people who come to faith in Christ, do so because someone like you invited them to church.  And I promise you this: when they get to Crossroads, they will hear the Gospel message and have an opportunity to respond.

Have a GREAT week!

 

CORE VALUES: We Value Service

ROADIES 101 is this afternoon from 4PM to 6PM at the Annex.  (I know...I said 4:30 in a couple of earlier posts.  That's because I'm just not really all that smart.  Sorry for the inconvenience.)  Many signed up to participate in ROADIES 101.  I think it's an important step, whether it's membership you're seeking, or just a deeper understanding of our assignment at Crossroads.  There is nothing like the experience of ROADIES 101 to bind us together in God's mission for this community.  Continuing with our look at Crossroads Core Values:

We Value Service

Every Member is a Minister

We believe God has equipped every Christ-follower with gifts and passions so they can become difference makers for Jesus Christ.  We encourage everyone to use and develop their gifts and talents in service to our church, our community, and our world.  (Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians 12:4-7, Ephesians 4:11-13, 1 Peter 4:10)  

CORE VALUES: We Value Relevance

Continuing our look at Crossroads Core Values:   Tony Hsieh, founder of Zappos an on-line retailer doing over $1 billion in annual revenue said, "(Public relations) used to be about who you say you are.  I think it's much more important to focus on who you are rather than on who you say you are, and that really just comes down to whether every employee is committing to and living the core values of the organization".

Wow.  He said a mouthful.  Here's a guy selling shoes, and he gets core values.  As the church of Jesus Christ, surely we should get it, too.  Crossroads core values are not just something to say, they're something to live.  If you want to really begin to live them, there's no better place for you to start than to be at ROADIES 101, this Sunday January 17th at 4:30PM at the Annex.  Whether you desire to commit to membership, or you simply want to learn more about Crossroads, ROADIES 101 is the place to be this Sunday afternoon.

We Value Relevance

Our Methods will Change, Our Message will Not

We believe that the collection of ancient manuscripts that is the Bible, is the most important and exciting book ever conceived, written and published.  We purpose to ALWAYS share its good news in relevant environments.  We will create exciting, age-appropriate worship and learning environments for the entire family; whether nursery, pre-school, elementary, middle school, high school or adults.  (1 Chronicles 12:32, 1 Corinthians 9:22, 2 Corinthians 11:2)

If boring church isn't a sin, it ought to be.

CORE VALUES: We Value Authentic Community

Continuing our look at Crossroads Core Values, I want to also continue to extend the invitation to attend ROADIES 101 this Sunday January 17th at 4:30PM at the Annex.  If you have questions about Crossroads, you just want to learn more about the church, or you wish to become a member, ROADIES 101 is the class for you.  Sign up in the lobby on Sunday.  Childcare and refreshments will be provided.  See you there!

We Value Authentic Community

Life Change Happens Best in Small Groups

We believe real authenticity is best described as openness with others about our strengths and weaknesses. We promote authentic community by helping people find their way from the large group experience (weekend worship) into relationally authentic small groups.  Focused on connecting people to God, to each other and to the world around us, Crossroads small groups foster unity in the entire church.  Watch for the new semester of small groups coming soon!

 

CORE VALUES: We Value Application of Scripture

As I mentioned yesterday, for the next several days I'll be highlighting Crossroads Core Values.  In our class ROADIES 101, we examine these core values in more detail, along with sharing what we believe, a brief history of Crossroads, and the vision God has put in our hearts for this community.  I encourage anyone who has not yet attended this class to be at the Annex this Sunday January 17th at 4:30 PM for ROADIES 101.  Whether you want to become a member of Crossroads, or just want to know a little more about the church, ALL are welcome.  Sign up to attend in the lobby on Sunday.  Childcare and refreshments provided.  See you there!

We Value Application of Scripture

Teaching is for Life Change

We believe the Bible is God's Word to our world.  Therefore, we must live and practice the life changing principles we discover.  At Crossroads we teach people to LIVE according to Biblical values and principles.  (Psalm 1, Psalm 119:11, Luke 6:46, James 1:22-25)

CORE VALUES: We Value People

As we head full-steam in the new year, I think it is good for us to remember why it is we do what we do at Crossroads.  For the next few days I'm going to highlight our core values.  This is something we share during our membership class ROADIES 101.  I encourage anyone who has not yet attended this class to be at the Annex this Sunday January 17th at 4:00PM for ROADIES 101.  You don't have to become a member. It's up to you.  Maybe you just want to learn a little more about the church, it's history and our vision going forward.  If so, ROADIES 101 is for you.  Sign up to attend in the lobby on Sunday so we can make sure we have plenty of refreshments for everyone.  See you there!

We Value People.  

PEOPLE MATTER TO GOD.

We believe people matter to God and therefore they matter to us. God demonstrated the high value He places on people when He gave His very best, His Son Jesus Christ, to give us the gift of salvation. Crossroad's assignment is to get the message of this good news to the world so we can help people establish a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and equip them to become difference-makers in the world.  (Luke 15:7; Luke 15:10, John 3:16 and Romans 5:8) 

  

Thank You Crossroads Staff & Leaders

Last night we had our first bimonthly staff/leaders meeting of 2010 at the Annex.  The now 22-person group is comprised of a small number of low-paid full-time staff members, a small number of even lower-paid, part-part-part-time staff members, and a larger number of totally unpaid, over-worked, under-resourced, high capacity staff and leaders.  

We are BLESSED at Crossroads to have a group of people like this who have decided that your life and your needs are more important to them than their own.  They are committed Christ-followers. They're not doing it for the money, or for the glory, 'cause there isn't any for them.  Their glory is in serving Christ by loving and serving His church and reaching our world with His message.  They set a great example.

I'm pretty proud to know them, and at the risk of sounding 'clique-y' to some, I'm blowing their horn loudly, 'cause they won't ever do it. Give 'em some love next time you see them.  And help with with the awesome work God has given ALL of us by serving as a volunteer at Crossroads.  You'll have the best leaders on the planet serving right alongside you.

    

My Current Favorite Video

Here you go. Michael Gungor Band. This should get you talking...

WEEKEND UPDATE (011010)

Happy frozen Monday everyone! If you're like me, you woke up to a freezing house 'cause your power was out, too.  Hopefully that's not the case for you.  As for me...I'm thinking about starting a church in Tahiti. Anyone interested?  Despite the frigid weather, we had a great day at Crossroads yesterday.  I can honestly say I am STOKED for the new year.  In fact, I've never been more energized and excited about what God is doing in our community than I am right now!  Here's a few quick hits from Sunday:

• Obviously VERY cold Sunday, but a GREAT turnout!
• Many first time attenders!
• Many rededicated their lives to Christ!
• So good to see so many back from vacation!
• LOVED the new Steve Fee worship tune! "Whooooaaah!"
• Great feedback on yesterday's message from lots of folks. The subject of life direction is on target for ALL of us.
• Great take-away for young men (from Proverbs 7:7): Just because you're naive, doesn't mean you can't have common sense.
• Great takeaway for all of us (Andy Stanley calls it the Principle of the Path): Direction - not intention - determines our destination.
• Loved the turtle video.  Ever feel stuck like that?  Thank you God, for being there to rescue us!
• Pastor Matt was wandering the halls dressed like a Musketeer. Don't ask.  It's a Filling Station thing.  They have a castle with towers and everything, and what's happening in elementary ministry is beyond cool!  Make sure your 1st-5th graders are back there on Sunday.
• Highway 68 is going strong and so are Pastor H. and the whole Hwy 68 team.  Middle School ministry at Crossroads is working!  If you have a child 6-8th grade, make sure that they are in Highway 68 every Sunday morning!
• The Children's Annex with separate facilities for infants through kindergarten is running at full strength.  We have the capacity to handle three times the children currently back there.  Don't make your toddler suffer through my pedestrian preaching.  Put them somewhere they can have some fun!
• Finally this morning, as the feeling begins returning to my fingers: Christians, our direction at Crossroads is, and always has been, to reach those who are not reached already with the Gospel.  If you are already reached...you need to be reaching!  Learn more about this important vision, and our strategy for carrying it out, this Sunday January 17th at ROADIES 101, from 4:00 to 6:00PM at the Annex!

Have a GREAT week!

We're Safe! The Government's in Charge!

Gene angry.  But getting better.  I'm not green and buff anymore.  It's just that it's all really...really...frustrating.  Deep breaths.

Here's the poop: By temporarily opening the doors of the Annex to the homeless during this cold snap, and mobilizing people to bring food, blankets and pillows, we were responding to what we viewed as a legitimate emergency on the part of people with no shelter.  

This morning, the City of Enterprise, through the Mayor's office informed us that if we didn't cease shelter operations at the Annex we would be in violation the city's code with regard to lodging.  The Annex is zoned for 'Assembly'...not 'Lodging'.  They agreed to come and inspect our location anytime we desired.  It's not necessary.  We don't meet the proper code.  They know it, and so do we.  We're dismantling our setup and transporting the donated materials to LIA Ministries homeless shelter in Dothan.

The first thing I want to say is THANK YOU to everyone who responded to my ill-prepared, ill-informed, but well-intentioned plan to help people.  You guys are AWESOME and I promise to plan better in the future.

The second thing want to say it even though I had steam coming out my ears an hour ago, it isn't really the City's fault at all.  Oh, of a certainty, if they really WANTED us to do this, no one would have said anything.  But the long-view of this brings home this reality: It's actually the church's fault, and it goes back a looooong way.  Long before you or I had any say in the matter, the church as a whole abdicated it's responsibility to do the things that Jesus said we were supposed to do, and handed the responsibility over to the Government.  So now we have to live with it.

It is what it is.  We can whine and moan about it, turn green and become grotesquely muscular, or we can fix it and do it right, so know one can tell us not to do it.  Back up, re-tool and re-launch.  Tell you this, though boy: Before I'm dead, Crossroads will have the most effective mechanism for meeting the needs of the under-resourced that the the City of Enterprise has ever seen.  It'll be a model for how to do this stuff right.   

Word.

  

Baby It's Cold Outside...

Hey guys, for the next few nights we'll be sheltering homeless from the brutal sub-freezing weather at the Annex.  If you can help with food, or blankets, or pillows, or if you are able to help by being willing to spend the night at the Annex, we can use the help.  Bring blankets or pillows directly to the Annex any time from now until the weather breaks.  If you can help with food or you are able to stay overnight and help supervise, please call the church office at 334.347.3947 and ask for Dave Clark.

Thank you. 

WEEKEND UPDATE (010310)

Great to be back at Crossroads and so great to see all the friendly faces I missed in the week we took off between Christmas and the New Year.  Here's a few quick takes on the weekend:

1. It's time to GROW!
2. Loved the holidays and especially time with my family, but glad to get back in the groove and looking forward to a hugely productive year.
3. People, people, people.  I LOVE that I get to see so many awesome people each week!  I'd rather be in the lobby at Crossroads than anyplace else I can think of!
4. Many first-time attenders on Sunday!  Let's work hard to reach out to them and keep 'em coming back!
5. Our week away over the holidays felt like months. 
6. I don't know about anyone else...but I was rusty Sunday morning!  Felt like I hadn't shared a message in long time.
7. Loved seeing my top five favorite roll-ins from 2009. Reminded me of the messages.  What we studied and learned, what we applied and how we grew!
8. Great to unpack a bit of the parable of the sower on Sunday. The Bible makes it pretty clear that God wants us to grow, to be productive, to bear fruit for the kingdom.
9. Oh my goodness, is it cold enough for anyone else?
10. Our direction - not our intention - determines our destination. Looking forward to digging into that in the coming weeks.

I ended my evening Sunday with a long phone conversation with a dear friend (and Roadie from way back).  He's shoveling snow and missing the Crossroads family.  Then two emails.  One was someone telling me why their family is leaving the church.  It sucks when that happens, but it's part of life as a pastor.  I wish no one ever left, but that is a completely unrealistic desire on my part.  The other email was from someone who attended Next Steps, who attended Roadies 101, who is a highly involved and motivated volunteer, telling me why their family is digging in and taking things to the next level at Crossroads in 2010.

Guys, there's a place for everyone.  When you find that place, go for it. Put your whole heart into it.  In my brief nearly 50 trips around the sun I discovered this (it's nothing new, but worth repeating):  If you want to be in anything in life (I mean really be in it), you gotta get in it and pour yourself into it.  Whatever it is.  Your reward, your connection, your personal fulfillment and ultimate satisfaction in anything is directly related to how much of yourself you put into something.  Not how much you take out - how much you put in.

2010 - It's time to GROW.   

010110

It's 2010 and it's time to GROW!  Be at the College Cinema Sunday morning January 3rd as we kick off our new year with a brand new series: 2010 - It's Only the Beginning!  See you there!