Crossroads Church

Today we worshiped at Crossroads Church, 8533 Peters Road, Cranberry Township, PA 16066, 412.494.9999, xr.church, Mike Arnold, Campus Pastor.

 

Scripture – NIV

John 16:13 –

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

John 14:16-17a –

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.

Galatians 5:25 –

Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Galatians 5:22-23 –

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Acts 6:6-10 –

They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.”

Romans 8:1 –

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

Galatians 5:1 –

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

2 Corinthians 3:17 –

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

 

Bob’s thoughts:

We have felt the strong desire to get back to worship and pray our readers have felt the same. God wants to meet with us in worship.

We chose to start back at our daughter’s family’s church (and to visit with grandchildren). The weather has cooperated, and they have been able to set up on the porch of the church with worshipers in the parking lot and on the tree-covered hillside. There was an impressive 119 people in worship today…I’m sure God was also pleased.

The setting is picture perfect. I didn’t see any today, but sometimes cows come right up to the fence and many deer travel through the property. The parking lot sits right above the road and there are signs indicating the outdoor church service. I noticed when a motorcycle traveled by it was quiet as it went by till it was down the road.

A church member went around and offered bottled water, even to we who were sitting near the table where the water had been.

Another member noticed the old aluminum chair I brought to sit on was not too sturdy and moved a heavy chair beside me in case mine let go.

A car came after the service started and it amused me: there is no sliding into church unobserved when you meet in the parking lot.

The message was on the Holy Spirit, the oft forgotten Third Person of the Trinity. Yet He is the one at work in us.

The pastor mentioned in his message a woman who had been forced into prostitution, caught, arrested, and sent to jail where, for the first time in a long while, she felt safe. The Spirit opens our eyes to a perspective we might not realize, otherwise our worst could be our best.

The servant mindset makes this church a loving place, when you think of the multitude of details to move your service outdoors and how many tasks are picked up automatically. This is the Spirit at work in Christ’s church.

We encourage you to let the Spirit lead you to a church and show you why you’re there. Let the Spirit work in you.

 

Jan’s thoughts:

First, I pray everyone who reads this has been and remains healthy physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

It has been 5½ months since we worshiped physically in community with other believers. I never thought there would ever be a question, but in my opinion, churches are an essential part of life. Worship can happen anywhere at any time of the day or night, but the corporate lifting up of praise to God is a guaranteed right that many have given their lives to defend.

Our grandkids noted recently that we had not come to visit their church for a while, so this was a perfect place to start getting back on track. I did wonder how they managed all the details of a worship service, with worshipers spread out all over the parking lot, and the answer was – very well. Tents were set up, most guests brought their own chairs and there were some chairs from inside set up also. Bottled water was available, and the parking team smoothly handled directing visitors and pedestrians alike. I was happy to hear they continued to break their attendance record.

Without a screen to project the lyrics, words to the songs were displayed on a page of the church’s app. We sat about halfway back and were able to hear perfectly. Tithes and offerings were placed in a centrally located box and social distancing was observed.

The message series is called “Holy Ghost Stories: Experiencing the Power of the Holy Spirit.” Apparently last week’s message spoke to who the Holy Spirit is, and this week the topic was how He works. We were told:

1 – The Holy Spirit convicts us, or reminds us when we get off track. He does not convict in anger though; He is gentle and sweet and loving.

2 – The Holy Spirit guides us. He is always speaking to us, so we need to listen for Him constantly, and not just when we need something.

3 – The Holy Spirit sets us free. He does not condemn us and loves us no matter what.

The pastor closed with a story about a woman who ran away from home and found herself trafficked and enslaved in a life of prostitution. After spending 2 years in prison, she reunited and reconciled with her parents and together they formed an organization called Valiant Hearts (valianthearts.org) which helps free women trapped in these sorts of situations. This young woman learned about God’s freedom and is working to teach others.

The pastor’s final question was: “What does freedom look like in your life?” This feels like a question each of us should ask ourselves.

 

Our prayer for this church:

Father, we pray for the continued guidance and strength of Your Spirit for this church. Help them as they lead people to the Cross of Christ where they can know You more and help us all be open to the leading of Your Spirit. Amen.