EASTER

Sorry about being so long in getting back to this. I'll still do "Part 2" of "Convictions and Lessons", but I can't resist just reflecting a moment on Sunday's worship service and the times before and after the service.

I had personally come to a conclusion (was a vision or word from God? -- I don't know) that we were going to see 300 people come to the Easter Service. These kinds of milestones are important for a congregation. Only recently did we start to consistently pass the 200 mark in attendance.

Many authorities on church-life have documented how certain sizes are difficult to pass through. The levels of 100, 200, 400, 800, and 1000 are commonly recognized "barriers." Statistically speaking, it's extremely rare for an American congregation to break the 200 barrier, if it doesn't do it in its first few years of existence. Crossroads is now 17 years old. I believe what we are witnessing is truly a work of God in our lives.

My (our) challenge is to submit our lives fully to God and cooperate, not push against, what the Lord is doing.

The immediate future will be full of decisions we'll need to make. The Elders are preparing a full range of recommendations to help us prepare for what God is doing at Crossroads. We're looking at where, when, and how to house small groups, when to add additional worship services, when to build additional facilities, and how to address our responsibility for an exploding population within minutes of our facililities.

Buckle up -- God's about to take us on a wild ride! It's going to be great.

Ken