A Christmas Carol

The Crossroads Church Christmas production this year will be called "A Christmas Carol." We decided to share our version of the classic tale in conjunction with the release of the blockbuster movie starring Jim Carrey. Ours is a modern retelling of the story. It features Carol Ebenezer - a middle-age 'Devil Wears Prada' type successful business woman who hates Christmas.

In Christmas past, little Carol was named for her mother's favorite holiday hymns that personify the spirit of the season, but a childhood tragedy leaves Carol bitter and mean in Christmas present, closed to any hint of celebrating the holiday and despised by her employees. A persistent witness from her assistant, Ms. Cratchit and an insightful look into Christmas future gives Christmas Carol an opportunity to reclaim her song!

We've written an all-original score and the production will be as close to a Broadway musical as anything we've ever attempted. I think it's going to be incredible!

The New (Used) Car

This week Robin and I drove over to Lake Charles and picked up her new (used) car. It's a 2005 Ford Escape. She loves it! She test drove this vehicle and a Mustang and preferred the Escape. She said she felt 'safer' in it. (What a smart girl!) God really blessed us with a great deal.

Since the kids were born, one of our goals was to bless them with a good car in their Senior year of High School that they can drive while in college. I am so thankful that God helped us to meet this goal with Robin. She's such a good girl and has been such a good student and I'm so glad we can bless her this way.

I know those who are reading will remember your first car. It's a really cool experience and Robin responded in typical fashion. She was giddy. Giggling the entire time. The truth is, I was too. Driving home from Lake Charles, I kept looking back in the rearview mirror and it seemed like Robin's smile took up the entire windshield of that car. My heart was so full I asked God, "Is this what you feel when you get to bless your children?" I think it is.

The Place They Tried To Kill The Dream

This past weekend I spoke for a pastor friend of mine in Memphis, TN. Pastor Matt Anzivino and his family were such gracious hosts and I had a wonderful visit with them. One of the things we did was drive by the Lorraine Motel - The place where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. The motel was converted to the National Civil Rights Museum in 1991. I didn't get a chance to go through the museum, but I will next time I visit Memphis. We stopped at the motel on Saturday night and just stood outside for a few minutes. I can't explain it, but a great sadness came over me as I looked up at the balcony where this great American hero was killed. Growing up in the deep south during that period of extreme civil unrest, I have a great appreciation for the accomplishments of Dr. King. As I gazed up at the wreath that marks the spot where Dr. King paid the ultimate price for the cause he believed in, I had a keen awareness of the fact that the election of our first African American President a year ago is directly linked to that sacrifice. They tried to kill the dream - but they failed!

Pies

I love a good piece of pie! Pie is such a great social food. We get together with our friends over a piece of pie and a cup of coffee and have a wonderful visit. Pie is such an everyday part of our lives, we have adopted a number of pie metaphors within our conversations. We call each other sweetie pie and cu-tie pie, we teach using pie charts and when we come into some money, we refer to it as a piece of the pie.

In the early 20th Century, Americans were struggling. There were pockets of extreme poverty across the country. God responded by raising up organizations like the Salvation Army, whose members would wade into that human suffering providing food and assistance while preaching the gospel. They reminded the poor and the downtrodden of the promises of God. Around the same time, labor unions were forming and they didn't appreciate the work of the Salvation Army. They felt they were offering false hope to people and they even coined the phrase "Pie in the sky" about the Salvation Army's theology. The term stuck and today, when we think of something that seems too good to be true, we call it "Pie in the sky."

This past weekend we kicked off a new message series at Crossroads called "Pies" by reminding everyone that God's promises are not 'pie in the sky.' God is trustworthy and His promises are reliable!

One of our families favorite restaurants is Marie Calendar's. We love it because their Pie menu is as large as their regular menu! As it relates to His promises, God has a menu. It's called the Bible. On that menu you'll find salvation, healing, provision, protection, peace, direction and comfort - just to name a few. Those promises can be relied on! 2 Corinthians 1:20 says they are in Him, 'Yes' and 'Amen' to those that believe! God is ready to serve us up a big piece of what we need right now!

Cousins

This weekend I got to spend some time with my cousin Greg Ables who pastors in Jenks, OK. He brought me in to speak at his church and we enjoyed catching up on old times, hanging out watching football and talking shop (ministry stuff). His wife Tina and youngest daughter Hayley were wonderful hostesses (his oldest daughter Whitley is away at college) and they have a beautiful home.

Greg's staff is a great group of guys that I felt an instant connection with. His church is made up of wonderful people and they are getting ready to plant a new church in a town a few miles away. I got really excited talking about church planting. It's something we hope to do soon at Crossroads.

Mostly, we talked about family. He shared with me how important my dad was in his life and in his father's life. (My dad was his father's oldest brother). We talked about what a joy our own families are to us and how much we hope to stay more closely connected to one another in the future.

Here's a picture of Greg and I in his office before the Sunday service. (Yes, that's a picture of General Lee hanging on the wall behind us. He's from Arkansas and no one ever let him know the South lost the war!)

Putting a Face On Ministry

At Crossroads, we’re asking God to help us to put a face on our ministry. We’ve discovered that we talk a lot about people who receive Christ through our church, people who’s marriages are saved, people who are healed in some way, but what does that ministry really look like?

In Acts 16, The Apostle Paul, after looking into someone’s face, launched perhaps the greatest ministry in the history of the church. That face belonged to a man from Macedonia who, in a dream asked Paul to come and preach the Word of God to him. If you think about it, the entire Bible is really a book of stories about individuals. The Bible isn’t just a book about courage; it’s a book about the courage of a little boy named David who God used to slay a giant. It’s not just a book about obedience; it’s a book about the obedience of a man named Noah who was willing to build an ark. The Bible isn’t just a book about opportunities; it’s a book about a beautiful young girl named Esther who made the most of the opportunity she was given to save her people. We’ve started asking, “Who are the David(s), the Noah(s) and the Esther(s) of Crossroads Church? They will put a face on our ministry!

The reason it’s so important that we place a face on our ministry is because God is interested in individuals, not just crowds. He certainly can move on crowds, like He did on the day of Pentecost when His followers were filled with the Holy Spirit, empowering them for ministry! However, that move of God wasn’t about a crowd. It was about the individuals in that crowd. Their stories make up the remainder of the New Testament. If we aren’t interested in putting a face on our ministry, perhaps it’s because we don’t really love individuals like God does: We just love crowds!

The most important reason to ask God to put a face on our ministry is because, when we do, people get to see Jesus. Remember what He said when he was asked by those who stood before Him in judgment to explain to them when they may have fed the hungry, clothed the naked or visited those sick and in prison? He said, “When you’ve done it to the least of these my brothers, you’ve done it unto me.” When we put a face on ministry, it’s the face of Christ!

Every occasion in the Bible when people looked into the face of the resurrected Christ, they were filled with worship, wonder and humility! That’s why we want to put a face on our ministry. So people will be filled with that wonder, that worship and that humility that only comes about by looking into the face of Jesus Himself.

Choosing The Right "Brand"

I got a message on Facebook from a young mom in our church this week that really blessed me. She wrote,

Hey pastor, Just wanted to share something with you... My son Nathan who is two years old took a crossroads magnet off of the fridge this morning and looked at it and said, "Jesus Loves Me!" How awesome is it that he associates the crossroads symbol with Jesus' love for him! It gave me chills and warmed my heart to know that a child as young as mine has that kind of understanding. God bless you and your family!

Several years ago when we changed the name of our church to Crossroads Church, we did so for a lot of reasons. We had been founded as Bethel Assembly of God Church. When the church moved to the corner of I-10 and I-49 and built the worship center we're in today, they added Crossroads Cathedral to the name. So we were Bethel Assembly of God Crossroads Cathedral. (It would barely fit on the letterhead!) We felt Crossroads Church was easier to remember, and didn't sound as denominational or religious. It also provided a catch phrase that capsulizes our mission statement: Reaching people at the crossroads of life. When we designed our logo, we were careful to make it contemporary and appealing. We really have bought into the idea that "branding" is important. We believe that just like Nike or McDonalds' success hinges upon how their product is branded, the church must be conscientious of what people associate us with as well. This email tells me our brand is working. You see, it really is all about the love of Jesus isn't it? If a little boy can look at the Crossroads logo and be reminded of that, then by the grace of God we're doing something right!