Crossroads Church - Cranberry

Today we worshiped at Crossroads Church, 8533 Peters Road, Cranberry Township, PA 16066, 412.494.9999, www.crossroadsumc.org, Pastor Mike Arnold.

Scripture – NIV

Ephesians 1:15-21 –

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

Colossians 1:27 –

To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

1 Peter 1:13 –

Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.

Bob’s thoughts:

We figured we could see some of our family by visiting here on Mother’s Day. I usually spend the service captivated by my youngest granddaughter but today she was in her class so I only saw her before and after the service.

The message, as usual, was well-planned and with supporting Scriptures. They use a sermon outline page to help remind of key points. The pastor related how he might look in the fridge for something and not see it, like looking for the cheese, which I was sure would be followed by “Who moved my cheese?”

The topic was the second in a series of predicting the future. At one time, I was not only sure of what was next but wanted to know what God had after that. One day He brought me to the realization that He is good at letting me know about right now, and not much to say to me about later. I start the day with what I feel He is calling me to do and when I get it wrong, I’m corrected and redirected. For me it’s a perfect plan as long as I stay out of the leading part.

God has used me, and I like to say re-used me when I go astray. When I’m sensitive to His call, I am presented with amazing people to witness to and pray for. God empowers us to do His work…how cool is that?

I sense God is growing this ministry in His Church for where they will be next.

Jan’s thoughts:

It is always a joy to worship with our family, and Mother’s Day seemed like an excellent day to do so. We’ve been here often enough that we exchange greetings like old friends with a few of the folks.

I was pleased we were there to pray for the commissioning of a group leaving for a mission trip to Mozambique.

The current sermon series is called Mysteries Revealed and today was part two, What the Future Looks Like. In this encouraging message, the pastor issued a reminder that in Christ, our future is secure and bright and that because of that, we can persist in hope, look forward to our inheritance, and access God’s great power.

He emphasized that we must look through spiritual eyes, stating that hope is not a wish or a guess, but is based on God’s rock-solid promises. He concluded with strong encouragement to never give up.

Our prayer for this church:

Father, we pray this congregation continues to be alert to Your leading and open to following You. Amen.