People are always asking, “What are you all doing to pull off Sunday mornings so well?”  One word…Volunteers!  They are the backbone of Crosspoint Church and there is no way we could pull off Sunday mornings with out them.  With that said, “Thank You” volunteers. Thanks for getting up early on Sunday mornings to set everything up.  Thanks for breaking everything down and being the the last ones to leave.  Thanks for all your help through out the week to make Sunday mornings unbelievable.  Thank you!  Thank you! Thank you!

Tonight we want to specifically say thanks.  We are going to be having our first ever “Volunteer Worship Experience” just for you!  We want to thank you, encourage you, and challenge you to continue to keep up the great kingdom work that you are doing.  The worship experience will last a hour and then all of us will go to China Star to eat.  This event is absolutely free and we are asking everyone who volunteers at Crosspoint Church to come and bring your family at 5:00pm to the Morehead Conference Center for a great time.

I hope to see you there!

• Awesome Sunday!  Men we were challenged to step up and to “Be The Man”.
• On Sunday night preached revival at Fairview Baptist Church in Ashland, KY.  Had a blast sharing that the church needs to look forward, not backwards.
• Monday had a Holy Hang Over!
• Tuesday night watched Joe Sangl’s Financial Learning Experience online for free.
• Wednesday I went with a bunch of ladies from Crosspoint to Louisville and ate at the Cheese Cake Factory and then off to Southeast Christian Church to watch the Passion play. (Sorry Shelly for eating all that unhealthy food and chocolate chip cookie dough cheese cake with my sweet tea!)
• Today going over my message for Sunday!
• Tonight watching to see who gets voted off American Idol!

If anyone is struggling with their finances and needs help, tonight is your opportunity.  Tonight and tonight only Joe Sangl is going to be doing a live, FREE online training here (http://www.newspring.cc/webcampus)!  It begins at 6:30pm and I am sure it’s going to be great.  A lot of you need to take advantage of this free training.  It’s only going to be FREE once!

Here are the topics for tonight:

• Develop a plan for your life.
• Create a budget that works.
• Eliminate debt.
• Calculate debt freedom date.
• Calculate amount needed for retirement.
• Hear about the power of compounding interest.

If you watch it, I would love to hear back from you.  Let me know how Joe helped you out.

Joe Sangl is the author of “I Was Broke, Now I’m Not“.
www.josephsangl.com

“Call to Me and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3

This is what I am praying right now, for God to show me what’s next?  Where are we heading?  How are we going to get there?  Most people and churches settle for much less than what God wants to do through them. It is one thing to believe that God performed miracles in the Bible but God can’t do that today in my life or my church?

The key is obedience.  When God speaks to us, what we do next will determine what we believe about Him.  Do you sense that God has more for you? More for your marriage?  More for your job?  If so, ask God to show you what it is and then be prepared to obey Him no matter what He tells you to do.

I really believe that the best is yet to come in our lives and in our churches.  Keep believing and keep praying!!!

My friend and mentor Perry Noble just posted on his blog why people fail morally. Though he is talking to pastors, it applies to everyone.  This post is timing because last week we talked about sex and this week we are going to be talking about “How To Have An Affair.”  Remember, Perry is pretty raw and blunt…That’s what I love about him!

Here is what Perry had to say…

‘Several months ago I did a post entitled, “Pastors, keep your penis in your pants” that generated a lot of interest.  One of the main follow up questions I received as a result of that post was, “Why do pastors (people) have moral failures.”  I believe there are four main reasons…

#1 - No Personal Boundaries

Call me legalistic…but I am a FREAK about particular personal boundaries…such as…

• I do not ride in a car alone with a woman other than my wife!
• I will not be on an elevator alone with another woman.  (I have literally gotten off on a floor that was not my destination in order to keep this value.)
• I will not counsel a woman alone.
• I will not share a meal in a restaurant with a woman with it being just the two of us…under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES!  EVER!  (And PLEASE don’t hand me that crap about how it is “business!”)

Those are just a few of the examples…but the bottom line is this men…YOU CAN’T HAVE SEX WITH A WOMAN IF YOU ARE NEVER ALONE WITH HER (unless you are an absolute freak…which is another issue altogether!)

Too many men have sold their ministry down the river just to have an orgasm…it’s not worth it men–we’ve GOT to make tough decisions now and be willing to experience some “inconveniences” for the sake of the Gospel!  BTW…my wife absolutely LOVES the fact that she is the only woman I am ever alone with!

#2 - They Think That Temptation Will Never Overcome Them!

One of the Bible verses that has ALWAYS stuck out to me on the issue of temptation is I Corinthians 10:12!  Here Paul warns us to always be careful…because the minute that we think we have a particular sin mastered…we are in danger of that very sin actually becoming our master.

#3 - They Stop Pursuing Jesus.

One of the things I know is true about everyone of us is that we cannot pursue Jesus and sin at the same time…and if a pastor is trying to get in the pants of a woman who is not his wife…then he cannot claim that his eyes are on Jesus!

This is why I believe time in the Word of God is essential for anyone who wants to keep a pure heart!  Men…we are CALLED to pursue Jesus…and doing so will always lead us away from sin, not towards it!

#4 - Stress

When a man pastor experiences a time of intense stress and anxiety he is way more vulnerable to be lured into sin.

Pastors…we’ve GOT to take the fourth commandment seriously (that would be the one about rest!)  We’ve got to take care of ourselves emotionally, spiritually and physically…neglecting these things allows us to become an easy target of the enemy!

I believe that many times pastors and ministry leaders will allow the stress and anxiety of ministry to catch up with them so much that they see a “moral failure” as an escape of the life they feel enslaved to.

One of the things ALL of us need to keep in mind is that the church is HIS bride…not ours.  There is no need to stress if we believe He is completely in control!

My prayer is that there would NEVER be another pastor to choose to fail morally!  (I hate it when people say a pastor “fell into sin!”  THAT HAS NEVER FREAKIN’ HAPPENED–EVER!!!  Moral failure is NOT a sin that happens to us…we make it happen!

Men, I want us to make it…to keep our eyes on Jesus!  PLEASE, if anyone is struggling in this area and feel like you are about to sin…GET HELP!  PLEASE…talk to someone!  (Many pastors will not do this because they spend WAY too much time trying to BE the Messiah rather than leading people to HIM!)”

I told you he was blunt!  :)

That’s right…SEX!  We are going to be tackling this subject head on this Sunday and trust me, you do not want to miss it.  Make sure you bring everyone you can.  Anyone who thinks about sex, talks about sex, wants to have sex, or is having sex needs to be there. Yes, that even means you married couples (I am going to share how you can improve your sex life in your marriage).

I would like to stress that we have new people every single week coming to Crosspoint and the 11:30am Worship Experience seems to be the prime time.  With that said, I would personally like to ask that some of you all make the shift to the 10:00am Worship Experience.  This would help so much.  It would free up more seats and balance out Kidspoint.  The key here is to have empty seats, at optimal time, so that new people have an opportunity to hear the life changing message of Jesus.  With that said, this Sunday has the potential of being our largest attendance in the history of Crosspoint Church.  Regular attenders, please make the switch to the 10:00am Worship Experience.  Thanks!

Reminder:  Don’t forget to set your clock forward (Day Light Savings) this Saturday night!  And invite everyone you know to be at Crosspoint this Sunday!!!

I was reading last week in Exodus about how God used Moses to deliver the Israelites from Pharaoh. Everything was going normal until I got to Ex. 13:17.  I couldn’t get past it.  I stopped and mediated.  What was I reading?  God promised the Israelites that He was going to lead them to the land flowing with milk and honey.  They have been in bondage for 430 years and now it is time for them to get to their final destination.  Right?  Wrong…God takes them on a detour.  God takes them the long way around.  He did not take the shortest or quickest route.  Why was God doing this?   I believe He was testing them to see what they were willing to endure to get to the pay off or promise land or final destination.

Everyone wants to take the shortcuts.  Everyone wants the quickest route.  Here are some examples:

• I want to be the manager but I don’t want to work my way up.
• I want the highest paying salary right out of college.
• I want to be a great Christian but I don’t want to obey the Bible.
• I want to be a great leader but I don’t want to pay the price.
• I want muscles but I don’t want to work out.
• I want to loose weight but I don’t want to exercise.
• I want wisdom but I won’t search for it.