WELCOME Dear First Time Guests and Friends, Welcome to The Crossing. We are so thankful you are here! Our Spiritual Development Pastor, David Oates, will be preaching today on “Community.” Specifically, he will be talking about how a LifeGroup allows us to be loved, to belong, and to be changed. If this is your first time here today and you have questions about how you can join a LifeGroup we encourage you to stop by the LifeGroup café just outside the doors of the main auditorium before you leave where a leader can share with you more. We pray that you have an amazing day and that you will be blessed during your week.
Pastor Greg & Tamara Dumas Lead Pastor
Your Pastor, Greg and Tamara Dumas, Lead Pastor
UPCOMING EVENTS First Wednesday Join us for a very special First Wednesday on October 6 at 7pm as guest speaker Dr. Mark Rutland joins us. Dr. Rutland is the former president of Southeastern University and the author of 13 books. His 30-minute daily radio program, Herald of Joy, is heard in multiple markets. He is the new president of Oral Roberts University and a tremendously gifted speaker.
Change in Hosted Prayer Times We are changing our hosted prayer times at the Crossing. We will now offer prayer on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7am and Noon. Hosted prayer is a time where our staff members meet in the café to pray for our church, community, and nation.
30-day Prayer and Fasting You have been hearing Pastor Greg talk about a 30-day prayer and fast beginning in October. It’s here! The Crossing Church will be joining together to ask God to change us personally, change our church, and our nation. The bible teaches that through prayer and fasting God often speaks and humbles us. You are invited to join this important event. For more information about fasting visit our website at www.crossingonline.org/pray-and-act-30-dayfast.
Help Our New Spanish Campus Pastor Dave and Alicia Murphy need items for their home. They sold all of their belongings to move from Ireland and are in need. Visit a Target store and ask for the “David Murphy” registry.
For Zion’s Sake Bring your family and join us as we celebrate the Jewish Holy Days/Fall Festival with our local Jewish partner, For Zion’s Sake Ministries. Go to www.crossingonline.org/for-zions-sake for more information or call Beth O’Brien, 813-857-7818 for reservations.
Women’s Christmas Coffee Benevolence Event Interested in hosting a table? The event will be on Thursday, December 9. For more information on hostess responsibilities, please contact ashleysmith96@verizon.net.
Instruments of Change Today as you leave, stop by the table in the lobby for our local mission agency, Instruments of Change, and see how you can help their mission by bringing music to the lives of children of need.
The 26.2 Discipleship Process is an 18-week process that will help you discover and apply Biblical truths in your everyday life and learn how God has designed you to connect, serve, grow, give, and reach. We encourage everyone to join in the race. Register for the 26.2 Discipleship Process at: www.crossingonline.org/262DP. •
Warm up: November 7th – registration closes October 31st
For more announcement details: www.crossingonline.org/announcements
Saturday, October 2 Sunday, October 3
WELCOME TO THE
CROSSING CHURCH
Is It In You? The Crossing Core Values: Excellence Ephesians 4:1
Lead Pastor: Greg Dumas
SCRIPTURE Ephesians 4:1-2 (NIV) As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 1
1 Corinthians 9:24-26 (GW) Don’t you realize that everyone who runs in a race runs to win, but only one runner gets the prize? Run like them, so that you can win. 25 Everyone who enters an athletic contest goes into strict training. They do it to win a temporary crown, but we do it to win one that will be permanent. 26 So I run—but not without a clear goal ahead of me. So I box—but not as if I were just shadow boxing. 24
Luke 12:48 (NRSV) …From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.
48
OBSERVATION • • • • • • •
Do you want to win? Do you think you (we) can win? Choose a global team, you can’t play for Christ and for Satan at the same time. Choose a local team, learn their system, follow their coaching, and adopt their values. Ephesians chapter four describes the six values of the Crossing Church: 1. Excellence (4:1); 2. Humility (4:2); 3. Unity (4:3); 4. Authority (4:11); 5. Maturity (4:13); 6. Love (4:15-16) If you are a Christ follower “The Spirit of Excellence” lives in you!
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APPLICATION We have to face two looming giants: 1. Attitude (Revelation 3:16; Philippians 4:8) 2. Actions (2 Corinthians 9:6-8 MSG) a. Wordlessness (John 15:5; Matthew 12:33) b. Prayerlessness (Isaiah 58; 2 Chronicles 7:14; 2 Timothy 1:7)
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PRAYER Raise the dead, Lord! Do what you did in Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones. We have been so defeated for so long, help us to wake up, help us to truly love one another, help us to see that we have to return to you. Help us to listen to our leadership and to learn the way of the church, help us to grow into a formidable force in our homes and in our city and in our country. We repent, we call and we will pray and fast because we know that without you we will continue to live in a cycle of defeat and decay. We need you to step in and change the game! Lord, thank you for giving us the ability to win over the enemy. Thank you that you transferred us out of the slave trade and the dominion of darkness. Thank you that you have delivered us from the power of the evil one through the Word of our testimony and the blood of the Lamb. We do have an identity in you, and we are proud to be called Christians. We also have the strength and love and life-giving presence of our local body, the church of Jesus Christ. We have unity and authority to stand together, to fight together and to win together.
LIFEGROUPS Use the following as a resource for your LifeGroup to go deeper with this week’s message. We hope this helps you as you “do life together.”
Opener: Does excellence matter to God? Does God care about quality? Is He concerned with how well things are done? Share with your group about excellence in your life. Think about a certain something that makes you think, “Wow I’m pretty good at that.” It could be sports, games, cleaning … or just simply being a parent. Also, share with your group what it took for you to become excellent in that area. This is a great opportunity to brag on yourself! Digging Deeper : Have you ever given your best to someone whom you later found out didn’t deserve it? (Employer, friend, husband or wife, pastor, kids)? That will never happen with God. He is worthy of our love and devotion, worthy of our worship, worthy of our labor. He is worthy of late nights and early mornings. Do you believe that He is worthy of making sacrifices for? If so, why? Why should we give God our best? How did God give His best to and for us? Pastor Greg talked this past weekend about two giants that will either be our greatest assets or destroyers in our lives. Attitude (Phil 4:8) and Actions (II Cor. 9:6-8). Let’s look together at them in more detail. Application: Attitude is the major difference between success and failure. Our attitude determines our altitude. So the question we ask is, “What robs you of your peace?” It is largely determined by the way you think. Share with your group one way you can change the way you think? We also looked at our actions. I believe that most of us here share a deep desire to be more intimate, more devoted to God. But something gets in the way of that devotion. The desire we all have to give our hearts to Him is shared with a desire for things. In other words, we are so full on food & entertainment, that we have no appetite left for God. The challenge this weekend was to join in the Fast. What does that look like in your life? What would it look like to replace a “thing” for God for 30 days? It’s been said Jesus is either ‘Lord of all OR not Lord at all!” So as we walk this life together ask yourself what in your life needs to become excellent. What are you holding onto and not allowing God to be the Lord of? Make a commitment this week that you will release and give it to God.