January 19th, 2012 by Tim Moore

As we near the end of this 12 day church wide fast for 2012, I pray that God has worked in your life in a powerful way. For me, this season has refocused my spirit on Christ.  I have journaled each day and God has really moved me to pray for specific things this year for our church.  God has also renewed my confidence in His promises for me and for our church.

Perhaps this fasting season has prompted you to pray for miracles.  As this fast ends, let me encourage you to not stop praying and believing God for His promises.  This fast might just be the awakening in your spirit to believe again.

I’m reminded of the promise that God gave to Abraham regarding his son, Isaac.  God promised Abraham that he would be a father of many nations.  There was only one problem, he didn’t have any children!  I’m sure he would have just been happy to be a father to one!

Abraham waited 25 years to see God’s promise fulfilled!  There were times when he surely gave up believing it would ever happen (see Gen 16.)  God had to renew his promise to him 15 years in just so he would continue to believe.

I sure hope that you and I don’t have to wait that long to see some of the promises we are believing for from God.  But, it is a great reminder that just because we prayed and fasted for 12 days, it doesn’t mean that we will obtain the promise now.  It might just mean that God has released the promise to us in His time.

I want to encourage you to continue to press in and pray through your miracle.  Don’t just pray for it, but pray it through. Pray until you see it happen.  Pray with complete confidence and faith that God is hearing you, and that He is moving on your behalf – even if you have yet to see it.

January 18th, 2012 by Tim Moore

Are you a fly by the seat of your pants type of person or someone who plans everything out?   I’ve typically been more of a “procrastinate until the last minute then get prepared in time” kind of person.  Yet, the older I get, the more I see the importance of preparation.

In the church, there has often been an attitude that you don’t prepare so that God can move.  That attitude is so anti-biblical it’s a joke. It usually has just been an excuse for laziness. If I could be honest, what I’ve discovered is that failing to prepare is preparing to fail!  

Our creative team took an entire day this week to simply plan out the 2012 sermon calendar.  Some people think that doesn’t allow God to move.  I believe that the opposite is true.  I believe that we must do the work and prepare, and then we allow God to change our course any time He wants!!

⁵ The plans of the diligent lead to profit
as surely as haste leads to poverty. (Prov 21:5)

Planning or preparing is not just something for ministry, but it is key to finding success in any area of your life.

• If you don’t prepare for retirement, you won’t get to retire.
• If you don’t prepare for a test, you’ll probably bomb the test.
• If you don’t come up with a plan for your finances, you’ll probably go backwards.

But it also applies to our relationship with Christ.

• If you don’t prepare your heart to hear from God, you’ll never quiet yourself enough to hear Him.
• If you don’t plan to serve, when opportunities arise, you’ll be too busy.
• If you don’t prepare yourself for God to use you, He probably won’t.

The truth is that if we want God to use us to change the world, we can’t just HOPE it happens.  We have to prepare as though it WILL happen.  We make plans to reach out to our co-workers and invite them. We prepare a meal for our neighbor so we can build a relationship with them.  We prepare ourselves through our relationship with Christ so that He can use us!!

So, are you prepared for success?  Are you prepared for God to use you this year?

January 5th, 2012 by Tim Moore

I have great expectation for what God wants to do through me and through our church in 2012.  I hope you do as well. You see I believe that every year we should expect more from God and more for Him.  If our lives are on a continual path toward Him, each year should be marked by growth in our lives.  You should be able to look back and see how far you’ve come and yet also look forward with anticipation to where you are headed!

One of the best ways to kick off a new year is to set aside some time to hear from God.  The Bible teaches us that fasting is a spiritual discipline designed to help us do just that.

In fact, Jesus fasted before He started His ministry on Earth (See Matt 4).  Perhaps it was a time of preparation for the work ahead of Him.  There was also a time when Jesus’ disciples couldn’t heal a demon-possessed boy, even though they had been given power to heal prior.  Jesus stepped in and saved the day, but later told his disciples, “this kind can only come out with prayer and fasting.” (Mark 9:29 - NKJV)

As we begin 2012, we are inviting everyone from our church to join us for a 12 day fast.  The focus of this fast is to prepare us individually and corporately for the ministry God has for us in 2012.  We want to use this time to ask God for His favor as we expand our reach of the Gospel in 2012.

There is just something powerful that happens in us when we deny ourselves through fasting and focus on God through prayer.  So join us in this fast and watch how God opens doors for you in 2012.

See Fasting Guidelines

December 14th, 2011 by Tim Moore

I did not graduate high school with a very good GPA.  If I recall it was around 2.8 or something like that.  The main reason for my lower GPA wasn’t that I couldn’t do the work.  The problem was that I didn’t WANT to do the work.  I was lazy in high school.  I rarely did homework or applied myself to study.  My GPA indicated such.

But when I went to college, it was a different story.  I graduated college with a 4.0.  I actually applied myself in college.  I guess you could say that I had quite a bit of untapped potential in high school.  In college, I leveraged it.

I often feel the same way about the church.  We have so much untapped potential in the church. I truly believe that we have enough resources sitting in churches every weekend to change the world!  The problem is, so many people don’t WANT to invest in God’s Kingdom.

We are setting out to change that.  I will not back down from challenging our church to recognize God’s blessing is not just for us, but for those He wants us to reach.

This weekend we are taking up our Christmas Offering.  Our entire offering is going to launch a Crossroads campus in Lancaster in 2012.  God is beginning to open up some doors for us as a church and NOW is the time for us to tap into the potential within.  God has blessed us and divinely positioned us for this time.

I ask all of you to prayerfully consider what God would have you give to His work in this area this season!!  Together we can change thousands of lives!

December 13th, 2011 by Tim Moore

Everyone knows about Christmas.  But not everyone knows about Christ this Christmas.  Perhaps one of the greatest gifts you could give to someone is to introduce them to Christ this Christmas.

I know that seems odd and slightly uncomfortable for most of us.  We feel like we are intruding or invading someone’s private space when we talk about Christ.  We are being conditioned by our culture to say “Happy Holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas.”  But people are craving something more this Christmas.

Just today I stopped to invite a couple of people that I see in the gym regularly.  I gave them each an invite and told them about our Christmas Experiences.  One lady began to tell me how she grew up Catholic, but really didn’t stay connected to God.  That was until about four years ago when she went through one of the hardest times of her life.  As she is telling me this, she started to cry.  All I did was give her an invite, and here she was telling me about her life’s struggles.

This made me think about how much people need Christ this Christmas.  How many people seem like they have it together this season, but are really dying on the inside?  Perhaps they just need someone to extend Christ to them.

Who have you invited to hear about Christ this Christmas?  We try to make it very easy for you to invite someone to hear the Gospel this Christmas.  And when you invite them, don’t just give them an invite and walk away.  Ask them to come with you.  Ask them if you can get them a ticket so they can attend with you.  And don’t be so easy to back away.

Oh, and hurry… because we are running out of room quickly this Christmas.

[Christmas Tickets]

December 7th, 2011 by Tim Moore

It’s Christmas time, and that means you’ve got to get a ticket to go to church! Say what? Yep, here at Crossroads, we are asking everyone who wants to attend a Christmas Experience to get a ticket. Oh, by the way…they are FREE tickets.

The question that many people ask is, “Why do I need to get a ticket if it is free to get in?” I wanted to take a few moments to help you understand why tickets are very important for big events in our church.

The biggest reason is to make sure there is ENOUGH room for you when you show up. Last Christmas we had around 1,100 people attend our Christmas Experiences. This year we are expecting more. Our auditorium only holds 250…jammed in. Imagine what would happen if 400 people showed up for one particular experience! I’d hate to tell 150 people to try back at another time.

So, it might seem somewhat of an annoyance to have to reserve tickets, but it really is for your benefit. It also helps us track which times are best for our church for future Christmas Experiences.

Also, remember to get a ticket for anyone you are bringing with you. If you invite someone, make sure they get a ticket to the same experience.

Just a friendly piece of advice: I would not wait until the last minute to make a decision. We’ve already given out almost 800 tickets, and some of the experiences are almost sold out. And it’s only December 6th.

Click here for Christmas Tickets

November 30th, 2011 by Tim Moore

We all have to start somewhere. I remember my first job out of High School. I was a cart boy for a local general store. I’m not sure if that was my official title, but that’s what I did. I walked the parking lot and corralled carts. When I wasn’t doing that…I was cleaning the public restrooms. It wasn’t a very glorious job. But I did it well!

Most of us have grand ambitions or goals for life.  We can’t wait until we’re the one in charge. We can’t wait until we can reach a higher altitude.

You might be working as a cashier, but you want to become shift manager or floor supervisor.
You might be an accountant, but you have dreams of being accounting manager one day.
You might be a camera operator, but you hope to become the producer soon.

Even when it comes to ministry, we can look at some of the heroes in the Bible and think, “I wish I had their influence.” Peter was the guy that started this whole church movement. He gave the famous sermon in Acts 2 where 3,000 people got saved. I couldn’t imagine that!!

But Peter wasn’t always preaching to the masses. He didn’t start out that way. He started out following Jesus doing whatever was asked of him. At one point, Peter seemed more like a bus boy than a preacher.

Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.” (Luke 22:8)

I read this verse and laughed. Jesus asked Peter to “go set the table.” It seemed like such a small job for someone so important to our faith. Yet, Peter was faithful to do even the littlest jobs.

When you show your faithfulness in the small roles, God opens doors for bigger ones. Too many of us in today’s society want success handed to us. We don’t want to work our way up. We want to start at the top.

But it doesn’t work that way in life or with God. Matthew 5:23 says, “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.’”

Be faithful in the small things and watch how God opens the doors for bigger opportunities.

November 29th, 2011 by Tim Moore

5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; He has risen! Remember how He told you, while He was still with you in Galilee: 7 ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’” 8 Then they remembered His words.  (Luke 24:5-8)

As I read through the account of Jesus’ death and resurrection, it always amazes me how quickly Jesus’ followers forgot what He said.  He told them countless times that He was going to be killed, and that He would come back to life three days later.  But it seems that all of His followers were so stunned by the events, that they couldn’t recall the good news that Jesus gave them before (that on the third day He would rise again!) It’s like they had temporary amnesia!

But I don’t think that they are the only ones to develop temporary amnesia.  In fact, we do it all the time.  How often does our situation cause us to forget what we know to be true?  Sometimes the shock of the moment leaves us with temporary amnesia.

• It’s hard to remember that Jesus will provide when you are laid off?
• It’s hard to remember that a friend really does love you when they speak the truth to you?
• It’s hard to remember that God has a plan when every door looks bolted closed?

Sometimes, we just need to be reminded of what Jesus said.  If He said, you can stand on it!  He promised He’d come back from the grave…and He did.  If He can do that, then I’m pretty sure every other promise in His Word will be true as well.

Maybe today, you just need to be reminded that God is true to His Word!

November 23rd, 2011 by Tim Moore

Christmas is almost here.  If you’ve never experienced Christmas at Crossroads, then you don’t know what you are missing.  We put more energy and planning into our Christmas experiences than any other time of the year.  Primarily, because it has become our best opportunity to share the Gospel with people who don’t know Christ.

Here are some things I want to share with our church in anticipation:

1. Get your tickets! We are only doing 6 Christmas Experiences this year.  We are expecting them all to be near or at full capacity.  You MUST have a ticket to attend one. The tickets are FREE.  The tickets allow us to ensure that everyone gets an opportunity to attend.  We don’t want an extra couple hundred people showing up at one experience time.  If you want to make sure you get the experience of your choice, get your tickets early!  They will be released early Black Friday here. (Childcare will be provided for ages 0-3)
2. Get involved! Again, it is the best opportunity to host guests and to share the Gospel with people who don’t know Christ. We know it’s a time when you have holiday parties, family time, etc.  Being a part of sharing what Christmas is really about with those who need to hear it is just as important. I would ask that all of you consider volunteering to help at one of the experiences.  We need parkers, ushers, stagehands and more.  Don’t consider this a time to check out, but rather a time to engage the lost!  If you would like to be part of this experience, please send an email here.
3. Invite someone! This Christmas will probably be one of the greatest opportunities for you to invite someone who doesn’t know Christ to hear the Gospel.  This might be the moment that it all changes for them.  I want to challenge everyone to bring as many as you can.  We are sharing the Gospel and are believing that many will embrace Christ.  [Don't forget to get them a ticket!]
4. Pray hard! Our staff has been praying for Christmas week for over a month.  I would invite you to pray for everyone who is coming and needs to find Christ.  Take just a few minutes each day to ask God to move in a powerful way!

Church, it’s going to be incredible.  The things we have planned are amazing.  Don’t miss out on this season in our church!

November 8th, 2011 by Tim Moore

James 4:13-14
Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

Today, I got the news that my grandmother passed away last night. It wasn’t a total shock as she has had some health issues for the past several months. But it was a sudden reminder that life is short…even if you live what we consider a long life.

My grandmother was given 98 years on this earth. I spent most of my adult life praying that she would embrace Christ. I personally shared the Gospel with her several times. There were moments that give us hope that she is with Jesus, but we’ll never know for sure this side of life. All we know is that God answered our prayers by giving her every last physical opportunity to hear it again.

Life is short. Even if it is 98 years long. In the perspective of eternity, 98 years is but a flash.

Who do you know that needs to hear about Christ? Maybe you’ve told someone you love about Christ, and they ignored you. Why not say it again? They won’t be here forever.

In the end, all that matters is what happens NEXT, not now.

Nini, we’ll miss you. Hope to see you again someday.

98th Birthday!