March 31st, 2010 by Tim Moore

This week is often called “Holy Week” as it focuses on the most important event that have ever taken place on this earth – the death and resurrection of Jesus. It just so happens that in my daily read through the Bible I am reading through these events in Luke. I thought I would share some of the things that speak to me as I read through the story again. Perhaps you might want to read through this with me every day.

Today, I was reading through Luke 22. Even though the events aren’t funny at all, I found some points of the story comical and others powerful. Here are some quick thoughts from Luke 22.

– Before the Passover meal, v.3 says that “Satan entered Judas”. No wonder he did what he did.

– At the Passover table the disciples starting arguing as to who was the best disciple (v.23-24)!! Seriously? With Jesus right there? Jesus response spoke to me… “The one who rules” should be like “the one who serves.” That challenged me as a leader.

– Jesus told Simon (Peter) that he prayed for him that his faith would not fail (v.32). Some might wonder if Jesus was praying that Peter wouldn’t betray him. I believe he was praying that after Peter’s royal failure of denying Him…that he wouldn’t stay trapped in a prison of shame for what he had done!! Some people live there, while Jesus prays you repent and move on!

– Jesus knew all hell was going to break loose, so he told his disciples “if you don’t have a sword, go buy one” (v.36). (I wonder how the anti-gun liberals feel about Jesus at this point.) The best part comes in verse 38, his disciples said, “See, Lord, here are two swords” (as they pull out these huge swords from under the table). All I could picture would be my staff pulling out some concealed carry pistols and saying, “See, we’ve got a couple here now.” I wonder if Jesus knew his followers were armed??

What speaks to you from Luke 22?

March 30th, 2010 by Tim Moore

This week I challenged our staff to fast food for one full day and to pray for people that we will have an opportunity to meet this weekend. As we hold our Megga Hunt and Easter Experiences, I am praying for God to move in ways we have not seen yet. To be honest, I’m desperate for God to transform lives.

I believe that many people in our communities are desperate for a God they can’t find. They wonder if there is hope, but are not sure how to find it. Sometimes desperate situations call for desperate measures.

I want to invite you to join me today, Tuesday, in praying for the lost and broken in our area. Perhaps even fast with us and take time to pray that God moves in people’s lives this weekend through our church. Pray for someone in particular that you can bring to church with you this Easter. I promise you they will hear the gospel. And I am convinced that when the gospel is shared, God moves. (Rom 1:16)

If you follow me on twitter (@followtim), simply tweet the name of someone you are praying will find Jesus and I’ll pray for them today.

March 25th, 2010 by Tim Moore

I want to recognize someone who serves in CC Kids, but has volunteered for so much more.

Today, I want to recognize my wife, Lorelei.

Why today? Because today is her birthday. And in honor of her birthday, I thought I would recognize the real sacrifice she has made for Christ – she married me. All joking aside, she knew that God had called me to ministry before we got married and she still went through with it. She has at times had to give up a lot for the ministry God has called me to. To me, her greatest volunteer effort for our church is not teaching in CC Kids, but taking care of me and our family! She is a lifer…volunteer for life.

Thanks babe for being an incredible wife and support for this church. I hope you have a wonderful birthday!!

March 24th, 2010 by Tim Moore

When we think of volunteers, we often think of people on the front lines of ministry (greeters, parkers, etc.). But one of the best ways to grow an organization and remain fiscally sound is to use volunteer leaders as well. We have relied heavily upon key leaders in this church who are volunteers!

Today, I want to give a shout out to Beth McCoy.

Beth’s face in one that most of your probably recognize. She is often on the stage doing our live welcome or in the foyer connecting with people. Beth began as our “Connections” leader, but has since been promoted to our Core Ministry Leader. It was a promotion of leadership duties, not financially.

Beth currently overseas all of the core ministries of our church (Connect, Grow, Serve & Go). That is a huge undertaking. She has been very successful in business and is a regional VP for Partylite. (So if you need candles…find Beth). Because of her self-employed nature, she is able to volunteer time during the week to work at the church.

Beth started out 1 day per week, but has invested far more than that into this church. She is often at the church 4 days during the week and leads many projects and ministry leaders! By the way…did I mention she is a volunteer?

Beth was “promoted” to a higher role of leadership, because she demonstrated leadership qualities. Just because you are a volunteer and not a paid staff member, doesn’t mean you can be a leader in what you do! In all rights, Beth is a highly important staff member, with a really big heart!

Beth,
thank you for ALL that you do for Crossroads. I say this often, but I’d be in trouble if you weren’t here. Your dedication to this vision is apparent by your sacrifice of your time, talents and finances. People like you make this church what it is today.

March 23rd, 2010 by Tim Moore

Today, I want to highlight a volunteer who puts serving on steroids at our church. His name is Andy Morris.

Andy serves this church in ways most of you never see. Andy has been laid off for several months. He was impacted by the downswing of our economy. The moment Andy lost his job, he asked if he could help serve here at the church.

For the past several months, Andy has been coming to the church ALMOST every day of the week to clean. He doesn’t just come for a couple hours, but he will be here early in the morning until late afternoon. He often give 30-40 hours of his time each week to the church. That blows me away!!

On top of that, Andy is one of our Seaters in the auditorium and often serves at all 3 of our weekend experiences. From time to time we have been able to bless Andy, but not to the extent of his service.

This church would not be able to do the ministry we do without people like Andy.

Andy…you rock and we are blessed to have you here.

March 22nd, 2010 by Tim Moore

To jump on what I preached yesterday, I want to take a moment each day to highlight a different volunteer as my way to say thanks for all that they do. They did not ask for this and quite honestly might not want this attention. But I want them to know how much I notice what they do for our church and I want our church to know the people who make our church what it is.

Today I want to highlight Mike Grossman!

Mike Grossman is a great guy who has given HOURS of time to help us paint the incredible Big City Studio mural in our basement. He also serves many weekends preparing coffee early in the mornings. Mike has been a firefighter for many years, which might indicate why he has a heart to serve! Yesterday, I had to the honor to scrub grout lines in our tile floor while he helped grout the new areas. (I’d better mention that Joe Miller was also there grouting!)

Here’s the thing about Mike, he is going in for surgery today to repair a torn tendon (I think) on his arm. He has one bad arm, yet still volunteers to come to the church Sunday afternoon for hours to grout our floor! Most people would sit on that excuse when approached for help. They would talk about the surgery they are having and how they are disabled until it is fixed. Not Mike.

Mike, thanks for the hard work and I’m praying for you today!

March 21st, 2010 by Tim Moore

Today, I preached from John 5:1-8. In this story, Jesus meets a paralyzed man who had been waiting near the pool of Bethesda for a long time hoping to be cured of his ailment. Interesting story if you’ve never read it.

What inspired me about this story was what this guy said to Jesus when Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed. He said, “Sir, I have no one to help me into the pool…” You see this guy couldn’t get into the pool when the waters were stirred, because he couldn’t do it on his own. He needed help.

What we often don’t see is the many heroes of the church who give of their time and talent to HELP spiritually sick people meet Jesus by simple things like….

making them feel welcome the moment they drive on the church property.
not judging them, but offering to shake their hands and say ‘we’re glad you’re here’.
teaching and caring for their kids so they can focus on what God wants to say to them.
helping them find a seat in the worship experience (ours is dark).
running the lights and sound without glaring distractions from the presentation of the gospel.
and more…

You get the idea. I guess I just wanted to say to the 100+ volunteers who make Crossroads Church what it is…THANK YOU!!! I don’t say it enough. I promise to say it more. You are the reason we see people meet Christ all the time.

March 18th, 2010 by Tim Moore

I’m tired. Things have been so crazy around the church for the past few weeks. Construction projects are like that in the final days. We are hoping to get our final CO tomorrow, so keep that in your prayers.

But I’m not the only one who is tired. All of my staff is very tired. The number of hours that they are putting in to get us ready for Easter is immense. I want so desperately to tell them to take some time off…but we can’t.

But what we could use most right now is HELP. We need people who attend this church but never give any time outside of attending a weekend experience to step up and show up. There are many people who SAY they will volunteer, but never show up. I may have to do a message in the future about keeping your word!! Enough of that rant.

If you would like to help out clean, lay tile, or just be available to do any job needed, email us at info@crossroadschurchwired.com.

For the many, and I do say many, who have volunteered over the past few weeks to paint, build furniture, clean and more…YOU ARE REAL HEROES!! This church wouldn’t survive without you.

Thank you!

March 17th, 2010 by Tim Moore

This past weekend, we wrapped up The Wall campaign with a big commitment Sunday. I have been asking people to join with me to help us expand our auditorium. Unfortunately, I don’t have an exact total of what was pledged because we are still waiting on some of the final pledges. I can tell you this, with the amount that was pledged so far we CAN move forward!!

Some of my thoughts from this…
I was moved by how many pledge cards we received.
I saw many names that I did not recognize giving to this vision.
My wife doubled me up for our pledge after God already told me to double it (quadrupled). (She is still more generous than I am at times!!)

Sometimes you never know if you are standing on a ledge by yourself or if anyone else is willing to jump with you. From this past weekend, I know you are there. I know you are with me and ready to jump when I jump.

I love my church!

Thanks to all who have invested in this vision to help MORE people get on the path to God. I can’t wait to share the totals this weekend with every at Crossroads.

March 11th, 2010 by Tim Moore

Okay, to say I am a little excited about this weekend’s message is an understatement.

Not only is it our opportunity to give in a big way to fund our expansion project, but I believe it will be so incredibly inspirational to you. I don’t want to give it away, but the things we are planning to share and show you will move you…if you have a pulse. God is working in big ways and we get to be part of it.

This weekend don’t forget 2 things:

1) To set your clocks forward 1 hour for Daylights Savings Time.
2) To bring your greatest gift to help us expand our auditorium. (Bring it separate from your regular tithes or offerings as we will do something special to collect it.) I believe it is our honor to build God’s Kingdom before our own. (See Matthew 6:33)

I can’t wait and I’m praying that we see God move in the most incredible ways. Join me in praying for this weekend and expect great things!