Hampton Bible Chapel / Crosspointe Church

Today we worshiped at Hampton Bible Chapel / Crosspointe Church, P.O. Box 1405, Gibsonia, PA 15044, 412.517.8618, www.hamptonbiblechapel.com, Mike Brownfield, Senior Pastor.

Scripture – Philippians 2:12-18 (ESV)

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

Bob’s thoughts:

If you know God, how can you not enjoy Him and everything about Him?

We used printed Google search directions to the church as well as my GPS which led us to a wooded area, so we reverted back to the printed directions and found they were trying to take us to the same woodlands. Jan searched on her phone and found the church was in the middle of Hampton Park.

We were lamenting the lack of any signage when we saw one building with a number of cars around it, so we parked and went in. We walked through the building and found rest rooms and nearby a banner indicating the worship area…the first indication that we might be in the right place.

We were disgruntled and dismayed at the lack of directional signage and I was at the point of thinking this was the most inwardly-focused church we had ever visited, that they were so unfriendly they didn’t want to be found. But I heard a woman greet Jan as I was going into the rest room. When I came out and was waiting for Jan the woman called me by name, introduced herself and led me to where Jan was seated.

The devil had us so turned around that we almost sought somewhere else to worship. The church was not allowed to use signs and has to pack up and completely clear the space following worship each week.

We spent so much time finding the church that there was next to no time for greetings.

We both enjoyed the obvious first grandchild in the row in front of us. When I mentioned that I had hoped to talk to them after the service, Grandma commented that Grandpa had control (as it should be…) and I thought just the opposite, it seemed like Grandpa was constantly being corrected or the baby adjusted. Grandpas never have enough baby time.

I wish worship leaders would not feel obligated to play music when someone is speaking or praying; it makes it very hard for some like me, to hear what is said.

The sermon was part of a series and dealt with working out our salvation. I thought it was a catchy title and heard Bible-based preaching: your salvation is in you, you have to work to bring it out…we all need to stop complaining and just do it.

The pastor spoke of needing to conduct a funeral service for a family he didn’t know and understood that they didn’t know Christ. We were blessed with the privilege to pray for him while he did the service, as we are well aware that only Christ’s words can help; there is nothing a mortal can say.

There was a luncheon after the service and a man from across the room came and invited us to share their table; we again felt it was God’s orchestration we shared some common ministry. There were also some who thanked me for my service.

I look forward to the progress at this church.

Jan’s thoughts:

Today’s visit was an adventure. We started out just a bit early with our printed directions to the meeting place indicated on the website. The GPS took us on a slightly different route, which was okay, but when the GPS announced that we had arrived at our destination, all we saw were trees.

Suffice to say it took an extra 15 minutes and Google maps on my phone to point out that the church was located in the middle of a community park. Although it seemed odd we had nothing to lose, so we headed in that direction and discovered the church met in the community park building.

As we walked across the parking lot, I confessed to Bob my irritation at the fact that there were no signs anywhere, even right outside the building, much less back on the roads where they could have done us some good.

Following the service, in conversation with the very friendly people of this church, we learned that signage is not permitted because worship takes place on community property. However we also learned this church is on the verge of purchasing space elsewhere and hopes to move within 6 months. They have also changed their name, which cleared up my confusion when I received a bulletin bearing the name Crosspointe Church but still indicating the web address for Hampton Bible Chapel. In the end it all made sense.

The bulletin contained a list of items to be considered in preparation for ministry in their new location; several of these items spoke to reaching out into the community as well as greeting and including visitors. This sort of purposeful planning makes it clear this church is willing to hear and do what is necessary to invite those outside their doors to join them in the Name of Christ.

As I said, this turned out to be quite a friendly church: we were greeted intentionally by a number of folks, invited to stay for a luncheon following worship and then to sit with a couple with whom we had much in common, it turned out.

Being a community center, it takes a huge amount of work to set up the space for worship, but it was comfortable and we were able to find our way around with no problem. The worship area was large enough to accommodate a good number of worshipers of all ages and physical limitations.

The message was part of a series called “Learning to be Content” and today’s entry was entitled “Working Out Our Salvation.” The pastor taught directly from the text, explaining the meanings of words and phrases and emphasizing that God’s instructions to His people include doing whatever God asks of us without complaining, mumbling, or questioning. He testified that if we are willing to work at being the people God calls us to be, God will do it for us in addition to giving us the gift of wanting to do what He asks.

In other words, if we will turn to God in trust, God will give us the desire, the tools, and the victory all of which benefits us, the culture, and other Christians around us.

Our prayer for this church:

Lord, we pray You will bless this church; help them to work out their salvation so they are a beacon to all. Amen.