CrossWay Church

Today we worshiped at CrossWay Church, 109 Davis Road, Valencia, PA 16059, 724.898.4600, www.crosswaychurch.org, Chris Gibbs, Lead Pastor.

Scripture – ESV

1 Chronicles 16:34-36 –

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

Say also:

"Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather and deliver us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting!"

Then all the people said, "Amen!" and praised the Lord.

2 Corinthians 6:16-18 –

What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, "I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty."

Philippians 4:7-8 –

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Bob’s thoughts:

On a redirect, we got to hear God’s message this morning. We most likely would have been late to the service we were headed to but pulled in here with enough time to look for the restrooms which we had walked right past on our way in.

We were greeted by the pastor outside and others, including the pastor’s wife, when we came in the door.

There is a larger wooden cross toward the left and another above the chancel that gave the impression of being a cross-shaped window.

A large projection screen is centered high above the stage with two smaller screens mounted on either side, providing good visibility. I was all but brought to my knees by a loud screech during the early praise songs. There were a lot of odd vocals that made it hard to hear the words. The hymn at the end of the service was clear and powerful and I could hear the harmony of the praise team.

The sermon was “Amen – Rediscovering the Presence of God.” The message developed well with suitable Scriptural references and beneficial guidance for us all.

We frequently come to prayer as a last resort, but not so much so if we are already on speaking terms with God. If we regularly converse with God and an urgent need arises, we are already in comfortable communication with the Lord.

A powerful thought was offered that when you say “amen” you are offering yourself up as a sacrifice, and then the further question, what is God calling me to “amen” to?

I was privileged to watch great family dynamics as nearby a big brother didn’t want to seem too chummy with cute little sister. I got to watch the pastor climb over seats to pray with parishioners. There was a young man who spoke near the end of the service with a passionate message, who could be heard easily over the instruments, an unusual blessing, with a good message.

We enjoyed talking with the pastor after the service and I was impressed that his recollection of our previous visits was better than mine.

Jan’s thoughts:

This church was not even on our radar today. We were headed somewhere else and realized we would be late, and when we saw this church on the hill and noticed the timing was perfect, and just that quickly our plans were changed. It’s funny how God works sometimes.

The pastor was outdoors greeting people and he welcomed us warmly before we even entered the building where, once inside, we were handed bulletins. I should have remembered the restrooms were immediately inside the doors, but we had to ask about them because we had seen no signs…though I’m not exactly sure of the best way to tell people they’ve just walked past the rooms they’re looking for.

The ladies room is charmingly decorated, and though greetings are not usually extended there, today they were and they were gracious. Others smiled their welcome.

The message, “Say Amen – Rediscovering the Presence of God,” was the first in a series and he made some points worth remembering.

1 – Don’t let your fall erase your future. There are many ways to fall: we can fall from grace, we can fall from faith, we can have a falling out with people, but God was the same good God before a fall as He is after.

2 – Always see God as your deliverance. Seek God’s Presence, not his product, and thankfulness is the key to changing our attitude. When we’re upset because we think God has not answered a prayer as we wished, we need to look more closely and be thankful for what God has given. God is good when things are good and when they’re not, and no one wants to come to your pity party. We are inadequate to get ourselves out of a situation, we must depend on God; we can do the right thing, but without His Presence, we’re lost.

3 – Let your praise be defined by Who, not what. In other words, praise God for Who He is not what He gives. Pursue the Presence of God; we can do the right thing, but without His Presence, we’re lost. If complacency has set in, ask God to help; He’s in the resurrection business.

I missed how he got to this, but he said amen means “I offer myself up as a sacrifice” which in this context I took to mean obedience to God’s direction. He said we need to come to God in humility, offer our “amen” and then be ready to live out that amen.

The final question was, what is God calling (me) to say amen about? And a good question it is…I will need to consider that.

Worshipers were invited forward for prayer during the final song, and I noticed small groups praying all around as the music continued. It may not be for everyone, but I thought it was pretty terrific.

Our prayer for this church:

Lord, we pray this congregation offers a resounding “amen” to whatever it is You are calling them to. Amen!