Crosspointe Church 2000-2017

I am feeling sad today, almost like I’ve been to a funeral; but not because anyone has actually died. You see, we “buried” my home church yesterday.

Granted, it was more like a celebration. A celebration of what we had accomplished over the last seventeen years. Yet it was a sad occasion in that, in spite of all our good intentions, I know that there are some of my brothers and sisters there that I will not see again this side of Heaven.

Crosspointe Church was formed in 2000 from a uniting of two smaller congregations “who wanted to make a bigger impact for Jesus than each could do on their own.” That same summer some of the members became involved in providing the music ministry to the Adventureland congregation. That is how and where I became involved with them a year later in 2001.

My friend the late John Besselssen introduced me to the Crosspoint congregation when I was looking for a place to attend church on Easter Sunday one year and he suggested that I go with them to “Joni and Terry’s church”, which I did.  At that time they were meeting at Jordan Creek Elementary School. I don’t remember if it was that year, or a later year, but I began to attend there in the off season when I was working in the park before and after the Adventureland chapel services were in session.

I very quickly began to feel at home at Crosspointe. I continued to attend there as often as possible during the off season.

For numerous reasons that are irrelevant to this story, I began to feel that I needed to be in a different congregation than the one that I was at that time a member of. Travelling around the country as we do, I have several “home” churches that I have felt close to and have attended when we are in their areas, yet I felt that the Lord was opening the door for me to unite with Crosspointe. We had an end-of-season gathering of the Adventureland Congregation a few years ago, which of course, Terry and Joni attended (they were even camped out in the space beside me). I asked Terry that night how he, as pastor, felt about “absentee members”, explaining that I felt the need to be a formal part of a more evangelical, Bible-believing congregation, and that I would not be able to attend more than I already did, and would be gone all winter, as usual. He assured me that not only he, but the whole congregation would welcome me to be an official member. So I formally joined the congregation that next Sunday.

Several years earlier, Crosspointe had begun to shrink. They had moved to Hillside Elementary School. At first they met in the cafeteria, and had the Wednesday night meal there. After a while they moved into the library. I think we all knew it would be just a matter of time before it would be all over. I, for one, had hoped that it would not be this soon, but just a little longer. Recently, Terry felt led of the Lord that it was time for him to “retire” from congregational pastoral ministry. The congregation felt that instead of trying to seek another pastor and struggle on, it was time to call an end.

I have been a member of a congregation once that re-formed, and reinvented itself. I have been a member of a congregation that probably should have disbanded but didn’t. I have never been a part of a congregation that actually disbanded. It is proving to be a more traumatic experience for me than I had imagined

We did it all the right way over the last few weeks. We dotted every “i “and crossed every “t”. We did it right, businesswise. Terry has affirmed his commitment to helping us all find new church homes. I know that God will lead me to a new Church home, just like He did this one. Yet I feel “adrift”.

One usually looks at disbanded churches as those who had grown cold and were dying a natural death. Crosspointe will be remembered as a church that met the spiritual needs of its congregation to the very end. It should be noted that, numbered among us were several “special needs” individuals, who I fear will have a difficult time finding a new place to meet their spiritual needs. Please pray for us that we will find His leadership in finding new church homes.

 As you are probably aware, we Southern Baptists are obsessed by numbers. The following are some numbers (estimated) that were published in our last Sunday bulletin:

Number of Worship services & Wednesday night meals = 833

 Offerings given to the Cooperative Program = $121,195

Offerings given to Lottie Moon IMB Offering = $11,127

Offerings given to Annie Armstrong NAMB = $9,835

Baptisms = 20+

People cared for and pointed to Christ – Hundreds!

I am grateful for what Crosspointe Church has meant to me through all these years.

I also want to extend a special thank-you to Bro. Dennis Bradley for leading the final Worship service at Crosspointe last Sunday, assisting Terry during that very emotional time.

Thanks for sharing this moment with me today.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Revival

 “We need a mighty wave of grace to push back the tides of evil flooding our land. We plead for a blood-bought, Christ honoring, spirit-filled epoch . . .”                                   

  (from the prayer card entitled “Revival”, Turning Point Ministries, 2016)

As I shared in a previous post (Make America Great Again, For God, February, 2017) I have been using a set of prayer cards that I got as a gift from Dr. David Jeremiah’s Turning Point Ministries in my daily prayer time. This morning I used the card entitled “a prayer for Revival”. I have read this card many times in the last several months and nothing in it was really new to me. I was struck, however with the actual concept of “Revival”.

I wondered, first of all, is revival actually possible? The entire concept of revival, that is, the awakening of the Church to the movement of the Holy Spirit in its life, and in the lives of individuals; the wholesale returning of the congregations to a strong, meaningful relationship with the Lord, and a great many of the lost turning to Jesus Christ to find salvation; just seemed unlikely in the world we live in today. It was completely off my radar!

And then I wondered; could it really happen? What if it did happen?

I think that most of us have given up on the world around us. We have seen it degenerate into a secular-humanist, God denying, Christ-ignoring, Bible-ignorant society. We have many come to think that we are approaching the last days and that it is too late for redemption for our society. We have come to think, as Jesus Himself put it “the love of many [has grown] cold”. (Matt. 24:11)

But what if we’re wrong about that? What if the Lord isn’t finished yet? What if there is one (or perhaps even many) more chapter to go? Wouldn’t it be great if there were to come about a great revival in our time, even this year! How about if it began today?

The card also went on to say:

“[we need a time] as in the days of Asa, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah [all of which were kings of Judah during times of revival], as in the days of Edwards, Wesley, Whitfield, Finney and Moody [prominent revivalists in American history].

What if? Is it even possible? As little as year ago, or even a few weeks ago I would have said no! But perhaps this is what the Lord has been preparing us for. Perhaps the fields are ripe for harvest.

 It is possible, if our Lord wills, it can happen. If He wills, it will happen. Peter tells us:

“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9, ESV)

If we are sliding into the last days, even then, a last-days turning to Him would be exciting! I pray that this is possible. I am beginning to pray that God will bring it about. Won’t you join me?

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem and of Israel

Thanks for sharing this moment with me today.