By Sonya Ward, Connect Group Pastor

“Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other.  Love each other as brother and sisters.  Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will bless you for it.”                                                                                                                                                      

This year at Crossroads, we will be making some major strides in being an outward focused church…a church that exists to bring the lost home to Jesus Christ. We have a Community Outreach Pastor whose main focus is reaching out to the community in Jesus’ name.  This means Crossroads' presence outside of its four walls will be even greater.  We will be known in the community………but what will we be known for?  As we invite the community inside our four walls, what will they see?  Will they see people loving each other as brother and sister? Will they see people with tender hearts and humble attitudes? 

How great would it be if we were known as a church full of God’s love and peace? A church where unity and caring abound.  A place where the lost are overwhelmed by the love of God’s people.  We are called to be “that church” and if we are obedient to that call, then Crossroads will also be known as a church blessed by God!

Questions for Reflection:

1. Do I consider myself a part of the Crossroads family?
2. What part do I play in helping my church family answer the call put upon us in I Peter 3?
3. What do I need to change in order to strengthen the unity in our church?

 “Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” (Colossians 3:14-15)  


We ARE Crossroads!

By Jeremy Duggins, Associate Pastor

I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
- John 17:22- 23 


Let me set the stage here. These are the final words of Jesus as He is sweating drops of blood while praying in the garden of Gethsemane. This is just moments before Jesus will be betrayed by his friends, beat lifeless, and eventually crucified. In His last conversation with the Father before His arrest Jesus prayed that the church would experience complete unity.

Let me be honest, I doubt very seriously that I would dedicate my last prayer to ask for unity between myself and the people that were about to betray me, and then ask God for unity among believers. What in the world was Jesus thinking?

The motive of Jesus prayer is revealed in verse 23, "Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." Wow! Jesus makes a connection between the church being completely unified and the world knowing how much He loves them. That is powerful!

When you think about it on a practical level it actually makes a lot of sense that one of the best ways the church can share the love of Jesus with the world is by being unified. One of the reasons the world is so turned off by the church is because statistically speaking nothing is different when it comes to unity. Churches fight with other churches like businesses fight with other businesses. The divorce rate is the same among believers as it is with non believers. And the list goes on.

What would it look like if Crossroads Vineyard Church was an example to our community of what it looked like to be believers in complete unity with one another? What if we made a commitment that we would not let a spirit of division invade our culture. What if Crossroads Vineyard Church was an answer to Jesus’ prayer?

I believe we would experience revival in our community. I believe that non believers would come into our church and feel such a sense of community and family that they would feel at home. I believe we could join forces with other local churches in Fredericksburg and see the Kingdom of God advanced in a mighty way!

I think Jesus was onto something when He made the connection between unity among believers and the world coming to know His love. Jesus wasn't just praying, He was making a prophetic declaration that when the church becomes unified the world will experience His love. If unity was that important to Jesus it should be that important to us.

Let’s cultivate a culture of unity and community at Crossroads so that we can reach the world with the love of Jesus!

Questions for Reflection:    

1. Is there a feeling of division between you and any other person at Crossroads?    
2. Would you be willing to address that issue with them so that a spirit of unity can rule that relationship again?  
3. Do you think Crossroads would be more effective in reaching our community with the love of Jesus if we committed to making unity a part of our culture?

By Dave Baldwin, Outreach Pastor

But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.    - Acts 20:24


Read Acts 20:16-24

Most of us know the words to the hymn Amazing Grace by heart:

                  Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
                  That saved a wretch like me
                  I once was lost but now am found
                  Was blind but now I see.

Sometimes when an idea becomes so familiar to us, we have a tendency to forget the true meaning behind it. In Philip Yancey’s book, What’s So Amazing About Grace, he tackles that issue at the core. Yancey points out that in Jesus’ day, people who were the outcasts, the most conspicuous types of sinners, (prostitutes, tax collectors, etc.) ran to Jesus.  On the contrary, today many people that are down and out or struggling with sin and brokenness think that the church is the last place for them. How many times have you heard people say things like, “I’ll go to church after I clean my act up” or “why would I go to church with a bunch of hypocrites?” or “church people aren’t any fun, you can’t smoke, drink, … fill in the blank.”

The Greek word root for grace is charis which literally means “I rejoice, I am glad” In Acts 20:24, Paul tells us exactly what the Good News really is, “telling others about the wonderful grace of God.” Unfortunately, many times the church doesn’t really look like a place of rejoicing and gladness. When non-Christians think about going to church most of them don’t recognize it as a place where they can go and experience the free and unmerited favor of God. You see, that is what grace really is. And it’s revolutionary. Think about it. Does a salesperson keep their job if they don’t make any sales? Does your bank care if you pay back your car note or mortgage? Even in our churches, don’t we expect that the people that run our sound, play our worship, teach our kids, preach our sermons are qualified to do so and do it with excellence?

Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs mastered the art of tantalizing consumers with his “one more thing” at the end of keynote speeches. But the “Gospel of grace” has one more thing that is far more impressive than any iDevice ever created. God’s grace tells us that there is a level playing field. Not one person is righteous enough to earn God’s favor. Everyone is disqualified. The wages of our sins is death.  But wait, there is “one more thing:” Because Jesus died for those sins, none of those other things matter. We all have a seat at God’s table.

What good news! You don’t have to clean up your act before running to God, and no matter how hard you try to earn God’s favor, you can’t! He gives away freely to those who love Him. That’s where breakthrough in the church comes in. When everyone takes the time to remember how amazing grace really is and acts like it is the revolutionary, life-changing, celebrating, party-worthy Gospel that the Apostle Paul gladly laid down his life for, we will see God move throughout His church in ways we never thought possible.

Questions for Reflection:

1. Are you living life in a way that demonstrates regular gladness and rejoicing that comes from the freedom of God’s grace? If not, pray that God would help you experience that freedom that overflows in every aspect of your life.
2. Are you struggling with feeling like you don’t deserve God’s grace and love? If that is an area you struggle with pray that God would help you to stop trying to earn His love through performance and that you would fully know Him as the loving and generous father that He is.

By Nadir Lawrence, Children's Pastor

…the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men.  The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them.  - Daniel 3:27

There is no doubt that as a Christian, your faith will be tested and put through the fire.  We’ve visited what it’s like to experience that testing through personal breakthrough this past week - and I pray that God is moving in your life like never before during this fast. One of the best things about this 3 week fast is that there are so many other people experiencing it along side of you at Crossroads and I’m sure in the days to come many of you will have testimonies to share of how God moved and even brought us all closer together as a church. The camaraderie that comes from living, doing and experiencing life together within the church body can’t be matched.

Every day as we journey through life, God tests us to see if we’re ready for His next step. Confrontations and trials arise that God uses to see how we respond as individuals - and the same goes for how we will respond as a church. In almost 6 years of attending Crossroads I’ve seen the church go through many challenges and over the years as we grew and made various changes.  Even I wondered if we were ready for the next steps ahead of us. Were we ready to meet the challenges that presented themselves over and over again? And time has shown that the breakthroughs I’ve seen Crossroads come through aren’t much different than what I experience in my own life: losses, triumphs, deaths, life and so on. What Crossroads experiences, I experience because I’m a part of this amazing body of believers.

One story in the bible that represents the church body to me is that of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. It captures a representation of not only what’s applicable to my walk as a believer, but as testimony of what a united church could go through in the modern world. These men stood among a sea of idol worshipers with their arms raised towards heaven and chose to praise God in the midst of conformity!  They knew in their circumstance - choosing to praise God meant their certain death -  and so they were thrown in the fire.  And in their unity, God honored them as they stood amidst an unimaginable situation.  God stood in the fire next to them & protected them!  And when king Nebuchadnezzar had them brought out, they weren’t even singed. Such power in unity convicted the king of his sin and even he praised and worshiped God and proclaimed for himself that there could be no greater God than this.

Imagine the breakthrough we’d see if we stood together in faith, strong among the conformity of the world and trusted God as a church the way Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did!  God always promises to see us through when we remain consistent in adversity -  and just as He brought these men together to stand for what they believed in, God wants the same unity to break out in His church. I love the line from Daniel 3:27 that reads “…the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men…” the world can have no power over us when God is for us!


Questions for reflection:

1.     What steps do you need to take to experience breakthrough within the church?
2.     What needs to change in your life for you to experience unity at Crossroads?

By Joel Lowery, Lead Pastor

“So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.” - Genesis 32:24


As we wrap up week one of the CVC fast, how are you feeling? Have you been able to spend quality time alone with God?  When fasting, it is easy to get caught up in the details like, what is ok to eat - or deciding if it's worth the headache or the pain in my stomach.  In fact, I would say that giving what is important to us, over to God, is usually painful. I think God designed it that way, even if it is only for 21 days. 

When it comes to personal breakthrough, have you ever felt like you're in a wrestling match with God?  It’s like you know where you need to be…at least you think you do...and usually, the frustration sets in because you feel that either God is not doing it fast enough or that He just isn’t hearing you.

And this is where we usually get in to trouble…just like Jacob in the BIble.  His story is found in the book of Genesis.  Jacob was born in an unfair situation.  He was the 2nd son, which means he had no birthright. His older brother Esau, the 1st born,  was a man’s man…a hunter and supplier for the family.  Scripture tells us that Jacob preferred to stay at home & make soup. Not much in bible days would get a man made fun of faster than a man that wouldn’t get out of the kitchen to go get the food.

Jacob wanted a blessing but it was apparent that he wasn’t going to get it from his family. So what he did next is what so many of us do in our own "unfair" situations. He took matters into his own hands.  And just like us, that got Jacob in trouble.  Jacob made a mess because he thought he knew best. By trying to do it on his own, he actually made things worse.

But we read in Genesis 32 where his breakthrough comes. It comes when he is alone with God. Once Jacob was alone with God, he wrestled with Him. And you know what? The blessing that Jacob was willing to lie, manipulate and steal for...was available to him all along!  It was in his alone time with God - yes, even his wrestling - where he received his blessing.  


Questions for reflection:

1. How often do you get alone with God? Is it a priority?
2. How do you need to reschedule your day to make time with God a priority?
3. What breakthrough have you been trying to achieve on your own strength that needs to be given over to God?

By David Hernquist, Worship Pastor


Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.   - Hosea 6:1-3 



I’m not a big fan of fasting ☺.  Anyone who knows me knows that I love to eat.  If it were up to me I’d unapologetically eat Italian food every day.  And if I’m completely honest, I think Daniel was missing out...but that’s actually the point. 

For me, fasting is a time where I focus in and get a pulse on where I'm at in my relationship with Jesus, and also to do everything I can to get where I need to be.  This usually has to deal with what's in my heart.  See I can say all the right things and do what I should out of obligation...but yet still be far off the point. 

These scriptures really put it together for me:

“Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds. In just a short time he will restore us, so that we may live in his presence. Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.” - Hosea 6:1-3

“I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings.”               - Hosea 6:6 

There's 5 things that stand out to me from this passage that apply to fasting and seeking the Lord:

1. The need to return to The Lord: Over the long periods of time where I'm plugging away at life, I find there’s a gravitational pull to drift from where my heart should be if I’m not intentional in my times with the Lord. Personally, I can find myself in somewhat of a survival/maintaining mindset where I’m tempted to cut corners in my relationship with God compared to what He’s called me to. It’s not a salvation issue. It’s a love and obedience issue ("if you love Me you obey My commands”, John 14:15 ).
2. He has torn us apart/now He will bandage our wounds: This sounds extreme, but this is important for us to understand. There’s a concept of dying to self that is uncomfortable to talk about and therefore often gets neglected. But fasting brings it right to the forefront. Remember when I said I love Italian food? During fasting, we’re giving up something we enjoy or hold dear in order to focus on God and what He has for us. And part of that is realizing you need to forgive someone, or confess sin, be held accountable, own up to responsibilities, etc. God has to get us to a point where we realize that. And it hurts, but He heals us so that we can be whole again, living life the way He intended us to: in His presence. 
3. Press on! Meaning it's going to seem hard, mundane, boring, or all of the above. But the need to push! The need to keep going! 
4. He will respond! 
5. And finally, The Lord cares more about the love behind our actions than just the actions. And that's a heart issue. I think the question is, do you love Him?  If not, what do you need to do to get there?  Because that's the thing that matters the most. Everything else falls into place when you love Jesus. 

Questions for Reflection:

1. What are the areas in your life that you need to “return to the Lord” in? 
2. What are some practical things that you feel Jesus calling you to instill in your life to cultivate and grow love for Jesus? 
3. How can you press on to know the Lord?
   
    
   
   

By Christina Lowery, Co-Lead Pastor

 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”               -Matthew 7:7-8

Patient persistence.  That sure sounds like an oxymoron to me…yet this is how scripture teaches us to bring our cares to the Lord.  When we are in need, stuck, desperate or lost – when we have come to the end of our rope – the Master urges us to “Keep asking.  Keep looking.  Keep knocking” at His door.  He says, “Don’t stop!” He promises us that everyone who asks, receives.  Everyone who seeks will find.  Everyone who knocks will have the door opened for them.   Everyone who persistently asks for His ear’s attention – will be heard and answered.

The last time I checked my friends, “everyone” includes you and I.  So if you are being persistent in your prayers, keep it up!  Be encouraged!  The answer IS on the way!  He WILL give you what you need.  He WILL open His door to you! 

Now, here’s the question of all questions:  Will His answer come to you at the precise moment that you want it?  Will it even come within a day, week, or month? Or heaven forbid, will you have to wait a year…or two…or twenty?  Will God send his provision, answer your questions, shut the mouths of your accusers, deliver you from hardship on your clock?  See, we humans are funny creatures.  We seem to know…or ‘think’ we know when the time is right – and as funny as that is, we also tend to think that the right time is “now” or really, really soon, right?    

Friends, He calls us to be persistent in our prayers…yet patient.   The definition of “persistence” is the quality that allows someone to continue doing something or trying to do something even though it is difficult or opposed by other people.  So even though patience and persistence may seem like an oxymoron at first glance, they actually work together quite powerfully. 

To be persistent, one must be patient.  Patient when obstacles seem to arise and block you from moving forward.  Patient when given the answer “no” or “wait” instead of “yes, go ahead!”  Patient when reprimanded instead of promoted.  Patient when it seems like everyone and everything opposes you.  Patient when, despite your knocking, the door has not yet opened.  Patient when the fog comes in and confuses you – and you can no longer see the path.  Patient when He only gives you enough to get to the next minute, hour or day – to only take the next baby footstep ahead – and when the end result that you so desperately long for seems so. stinking. far. away.

Hebrews 6:15 says that “Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised.”  What does that mean for us?  Well, Jesus promised that He would answer us if we keep asking, seeking and knocking.  So that’s what we do.  We keep on…persistently…and patiently…doing just that.   

Throughout the course of this 21-day Daniel Fast, we have encouraged you to seek God for breakthrough.  This week specifically, we are seeking Him for personal breakthrough.  Have you journaled out what personal breakthroughs you are seeking?  If not do so now and get started knocking down the doors of heaven!  He WILL answer!

Questions for Reflection:

1.     Have I found myself in a “holding pattern” or “waiting room” when it comes to unanswered prayers?  What has been my attitude been like towards God?  Patient or not?  Confident that He will come through, or discouraged and anxious?

2.     Is God’s priority giving me what I want or making me more like Him?  If my answers don’t seem to be coming, could He possibly have more work to do in me?  Take time to seek and ask God what part of character He is trying to develop in me during the waiting. 

3.     Have I given up on asking for something that I really want or need?  Is there something that I need to start asking for again?  In confidence?  With patient persistence?

Further verses for study: 
·       Luke 18:1-8
·       Psalm 27:14
·       Psalm 46:10
·       Psalm 37:7
·       Habakkuk 2:3
·       Romans 8:25

By Sonya Ward, Connect Group Pastor

“We are human but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.”                                                

2 Corinthians 10:3-4


As I sat down to reflect upon the past year, and think about my goals for 2014, I couldn’t ignore the fact that the breakthroughs I wanted to see in 2013 are the same breakthroughs I am waiting to see in 2014.  I realized that I am struggling with some of the same issues.  I am in need of growth in some of the same areas.  

As I looked at my list, I wasn’t hopeful for 2014.  I wasn’t expecting to see God move and breakthrough in my life this year.  In fact, I had fully subscribed to the human reasoning that “it didn’t happen last year and it won’t happen this year”……at least, not for me.  

In the midst of feeling sorry for myself, God highlighted verses 3 and 4 of 2 Corinthians 10.  I had some “false arguments” and “strongholds of human reasoning” that needed to be destroyed.  I had to use God’s mighty weapons of prayer and His word to wage war on my thinking.  Instead of thinking, “Why am I still struggling with this or that?”  I will remind myself that my God says “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand (Isaiah 41:10)”. I will stand on God’s truth and not the enemy’s lies.   

I refuse to be the roadblock to my own breakthrough in 2014. 

Questions for Reflection:  As you reflect upon the breakthroughs you desire in 2014, make sure you’re not your own roadblock.  Ask yourself these questions:

1. What strongholds and false arguments do I need to destroy?  
2. Which of God’s mighty weapons do I need to employ?
   

By Dave Baldwin, Pastor of Outreach

 He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.   
- John 3:30

The idea of personal breakthrough can be a tricky one. If you type in the words “personal breakthrough” into Google, the results that come back all have something to do with self-help seminars , books, yoga, and a host of other humanist solutions. It isn’t until page 5 of Google’s search results that a Christian link pops up, and you have to browse all the way though to page 7 before you get a link to a sermon that has anything to do with God or the Bible. Therein lies the problem.  Most personal breakthrough solutions that people offer, have “you” as the focus.

In order to experience breakthrough in our personal lives we have to remember that it is God, not us that conquers sin. Trying to take on sin ourselves is a fool’s errand. No matter how strong your resolve, your willpower, your determination, it will fail you sooner or later. Our flesh is weak. Many Christians with good intentions try to encourage one another by saying things like, “You can do it, Philippians 4:13 says ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!’” However when our focus in that sentence is the “I” can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, instead of I can do all things through “CHRIST” who strengthens me, we set ourselves up for failure.

John the Baptist says it right in John 3:22-30. When his followers came to him complaining about that Jesus guy who was stealing all the recognition, John the Baptist had to correct them by proclaiming, “He (Jesus) must become greater and greater and I must become less and less” (v 30). That is where breakthrough happens in our lives. It has nothing to do with the strength of our will. Victory through willpower only builds up our egos and makes it so that we don’t need to acknowledge God in our lives. Breakthrough has everything to do with Jesus becoming greater and greater in our lives and us becoming less and less.

As you pray this week for breakthrough in your life, whether it is victory over sin, or finances, or restoring broken relationships, or whatever is on your heart, pray that God would make himself greater in that area that you are struggling with, and give your desire to be in control of the victory over to Him.

Questions for Reflection:
1.     What is the main area(s) you need to see personal breakthrough in your life this year?
2.     Do you struggle with trying to rely on your own strength or willpower to get through life’s challenges? Pray that God would show you the areas that He needs to be greater in your life this year.

By Nadir Lawrence, Children's Pastor & Ministry Assistant

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.   See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you.  Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.  Lift up your eyes and look about you.   - Isaiah 60:1-3 

For many years I read and re-read countless scriptures, not ever really sure that what I was reading would become truth for me someday. I was trapped in a bad situation and felt lost and completely broken by the terrible decisions I had made. My life felt like a disaster that I was powerless to stop.  I knew only a miracle from God could change my circumstances, but for years I lived in the darkness that Isaiah 60:2 describes.  

I couldn’t understand why God wanted to change my life after how disobedient I had been towards Him. My focus had become my desperate situation and the shame I was feeling - which kept me from living the life He commands of His children, the life He’s promised to us.   Sin and shame will blind you.  The enemy will shift your focus towards other things and even tempt you to give up and walk away from the Lord all together.  

Eventually, I reached a point where I chose to believe that God had a greater plan for me and the only way I would ever receive personal breakthrough was when I shifted the focus from my circumstances to what the Lord wanted to do in me.  So I kept praying, reading and studying scripture; I believed that one day something would change and I would feel His peace in my life again. 

God can pick you up out of a hopeless situation and choose you to tell the story of His redeeming love when you shift your focus to Him and not your circumstances. God penetrated the dark place I was in and drew me out simply because He loves me and showed me that He had so much more in store for my life. It was never easy -  and at times, some of the words I read or prayers I prayed barely seemed real, I sometimes just went through the motions just to get through the low points.  But I believe those were the times that God was nearest to me and even helped me to press into Him even more. When I began to see the fruit of perseverance & experience my own personal breakthrough, it eventually helped to grow my faith and boldness in my prayer life. 

God never tires of hearing His children cry out to Him and asking big things of Him. It says in Matthew 6:26 “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” 

God wants to overwhelm you with his goodness and favor, He rewards those who seek after him no matter how impossible things can seem and promises to take care of you in your time of need. I encourage you to change your focus on Him, rest in the promises of His word and watch Him transform your life like you never imagined!   


Questions for Reflection:

1. What is it that you need to change focus on today?
   
2. Why is God’s breakthrough in your life important to you?
   
3. What steps do you need to take to experience your own breakthrough?