Hello, Crossroads Family !
Here are a few reminders about what’s going on. This week feels a little different due to Spring Break for some and also the work going on at our building on Highland Ave.
There is no Immerse tonight ; however, Men’s Recharge is happening tomorrow (Thursday), 6:30-8:00 pm. Men, I hope you can be there. It’s a good time of encouragement and male fellowship which is a unique kind of fellowship we need ! Hope you’ll be there. Reach out to Cris Rodriguez if you have questions. Immerse will pick back up next Wednesday night, and everyone is welcome !
There will be no women’s Breakfast & Bible Study this Saturday morning. This weekly study and fellowship for women will pick back up on Saturday, the 28th. Contact Erin Townsend if you need to know more.
This Sunday morning we’ll worship as usual starting at 10:00. In case our access to the bathrooms is limited due to the work being done on the floors in other parts of the building, we will have a port-a-potty in the parking lot. Not ideal, we know, but we want everyone to feel they can be present for worship this Sunday ! We’ll also try to keep the service on the short side ! Keep your coffee intake low Sunday morning !
I am more and more amazed at how much the book of Psalms is about Jesus. We read in the Gospel of Luke that Jesus explained to His disciples, on Resurrection Sunday, all the things written about Him in the Law, the Prophets, and in the Psalms ! David, the writer of many of the psalms (especially at the beginning of the book), is himself a picture of Jesus ; and parts of his psalms really do point to the coming Savior. I was blessed this morning in reading Psalms 28-31. Here are some things I saw that pointed me to Jesus :
Psalm 28:8 says, “The Lord is a saving defense to His anointed.” Who is God’s anointed, except Jesus ? Yes, David was the anointed king in his day, but the great anointed One is the person we anticipate in this psalm.
Psalm 28:9 — “Be their shepherd and carry them forever.” Jesus is, of course, the good shepherd, so here we see Him again.
“The Lord sat as King at the flood ; the Lord sits as King forever” (Psalm 29:10). Jesus is our king now, sitting at the right hand of the throne of God.
In Psalm 30:3, David, in his praying, says, “O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol.” “Sheol” is a word meaning “the grave.” Of course, this statement is literally true of Jesus who was raised from the grave on the day we call Easter.
In Psalm 31:5, David says to God, “Into Your hand I commit my spirit.” These are words Jesus spoke on the cross — His last words before dying.
What a wonderful Savior we have ! And how good God is to point us to Him, early in the Bible and often !
Bible, prayer, fellowship, witness, and obedience — these are the principles for growing and staying strong as a Christian. Including these five disciplines in our lives, even a little bit each day, keeps us walking with the Lord and experiencing the life He has intended for us. They seem like such small things — and how easy it is to drop them out of our daily habits — yet they are the key to abundant life in Christ. They are like eating food ; few of us skip a meal, but we may not realize how often we are skipping these five essential practices of life.
Church attendance is also one of our necessary intakes for healthy life. Again, on the surface it might not seem that way. After all, maybe you don’t really like to sing (and singing seems to happen a lot at church) ; or maybe the idea of sitting and listening to a sermon seems old-fashioned and tedious … or even boring ! Don’t worry, sometimes my preaching bores me too ; but there’s always something I take away, and it’s an act by which, on a regular basis, I maintain connection with God (and with others who love Him). There are only 52 Sundays in a year. That’s not many. When we miss, we whittle that number down quickly ; yet we may wonder why we’re not experiencing the joy, peace, love, and strength God has promised His children.
I will be out of town Thursday and Friday this week to visit my son Billy and daughter-in-law Hannah who live in Wichita. But I look forward to seeing you Sunday morning ! Our sermon will be from 1 Corinthians 15 and John 18 and will be on the subject of life after death. What happens to our body when we die ? What is existence like for us at the point of our dying ? What is God’s ultimate plan for our physical body ? It will come to its end on the earth, but there is a plan to be reunited with it in a new way one day. Come Sunday and find out more.
Some final reminders :
- We will have Easter cantata practice this Sunday afternoon, 12:30-1:30. We’ll learn one last piece, “The Hope of the Cross,” and try to schedule an extra rehearsal in order to be ready for Easter Sunday. Thanks to all who are participating ! We’re going to have a wonderful, special Easter morning.
- Don’t forget the Bible Quiz Night coming up on Saturday, March 28, 6 pm, at First Baptist Church in Nevada. Some of you are competing on a team, but everyone is welcome to enjoy the fellowship with brothers and sisters from Crossroads and from other area churches.
- The next 8-13 year-olds Bible Class will take place Sunday, March 29, during the sermon.
- Easter worship is at 10:00 on Sunday, April 5. We’re not planning a breakfast this year, but come early as I’m sure there will be food anyway, and we can have some extra fellowship that morning. Our Easter worship will feature the cantata that is being prepared, “The Hope of the Cross.” Invite your friends and family. There will be an ad in the Nevada Daily Mail.
- We’ve scheduled a baptismal service for Sunday, June 28, following our regular morning worship. The baptisms will take place at the home of David and Heather Vestal, and we’ll plan to eat together that afternoon as well. Please let me or one of the other elders know if you’re interested in being baptized.
Thanks to everyone who contributes to the life and ministry of Crossroads Church. We often overlook the fact that we have a bulletin to guide and bless us each Sunday morning ; our rooms are cleaned by someone from the church each week ; food and drink are provided by kind, generous hearts ; lessons are lovingly prepared for children ; offerings are counted and deposited at the bank ; and now, soon, folks from the church family will be taking care of the yardwork once again around the building. Thanks to everyone for what you do for the glory of God and for the beauty of His church !
The Lord will give strength to His people.
The Lord will bless His people with peace.
Psalm 29:11
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