theCrossroads UPC

Sometimes God's plan for our life seems crazy or impossible. Join us today to learn about trusting God and following His plan.

Prayer on Saturday mornings is how we come together to prepare for our weekends. We can plan and prepare, but first, PRAYER!Connect with Us: https://flow.page/thecrossrdsStreaming License # CCLI: CSPL043706PRAYING OVER THE CHURCH1. Pastor & Leaders – Lord, I lift up my pastor and leaders to You. Thank You for giving them a servant’s heart. Keep them from losing heart when ministry gets tough. Help them prove faithful with the things you have entrusted to them. Teach them Your ways so that they knows You and find favor with You as they leads us. Keep them open and honest before You and help them to represent the truth plainly. (2 Cor. 4:1; 1 Cor. 4:1-3 Ex. 33:13)2. Adults – Lord, I lift up the adults in my congregation to You. May we live worthy of Your call on our lives. As we respond to that call, fulfill every purpose, every faith-filled act of service by Your power. May we be clothed in righteousness with hearts that sing for joy and delight greatly in You. We want to walk with You, Jesus, dressed in white, adorned with jewels. (Eph. 4:1; 2 Thes. 1:11; Ps. 132:9; Isa. 61:10; Rev. 3:4)3. Children/Youth – Lord, I lift up the children and youth in my congregation to You. May the little ones remain humble examples of what we adults need to become in the kingdom. Let their conduct always be pure and right with reputations that show that they remember You, Creator God. Teach them to declare Your marvelous deeds. May they flee evil desires and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace. (Matt 18:3-4; Prov. 20:11; Eccl. 12:1; Ps. 71:17; 2 Tim. 2:22)4. Seniors – Lord, I lift up the senior members of our congregation. Thank You for every gray hair attained by righteous living. We are blessed by their example and ability to train us. Help us to be humbly submissive as we benefit from their wisdom and understanding. Help them receive the strength and power You’ve promised to the weary and weak. May they put their hope in You and be renewed in the process. (Prov. 16:31; Titus 2:4; 1 Pet. 5:5; Job 12:12; Isa. 40:29, 31)5. Lost Among Us – Lord, I lift up the lost members of our congregation. Let the gospel be presented to them not only through the sermon but also with power, the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. Teach us to make the most of every opportunity to share Your salvation. Help us to be the fragrance of Christ to them. We stand against the enemy and his attempts to keep them blinded to Your truth. (1 Thes. 1:5; Col. 4:5; 2 Cor. 2:15; 2 Cor. 4:4)6. Worship Leaders – Lord, I lift up our worship leaders. Appoint people to this position who understand the splendor of Your holiness and praise You out of that understanding. Help them lead us faithfully in thanks for Your enduring love. Use their praise to defeat the enemy. May they be the true worshipers You are looking for who worship in spirit and in truth. Let them glory only in You, Jesus, so that they put no confidence in their own flesh. (2 Chron. 20:21-22; Jn. 4:23-24; Phil. 3:3)7. Speakers/Teachers – Lord, I lift up the speakers and teachers in our church. May everyone who holds that position—pastors, teachers, lifegroup leaders, guest speakers—rightly divide Your word of truth. Let them admonish and teach with wisdom. Reveal the mysteries of Your word to them and encourage them to speak those mysteries courageously and fearlessly. Let them speak with a spirit of faith that springs from their relationship with You. (2 Tim. 2:15; Col. 1:28; Dan. 2:47; Phil. 1:14; 2 Cor. 4:13)8. Women’s Ministry – Lord, I lift up our Women’s Ministry. Encourage our older women to train the younger in family issues. Teach our women to be virtuous—women with gentle and quiet spirits who put their hope in You. Let this ministry produce women who feel Your passion for them and who choose to spend time at Your feet. Train them to contend for the gospel side by side with the men. (Titus 2:4, 5; Pro. 31:10; 1 Pet. 3:4, 5; Ps. 45:11; Lk. 10:38-42; Phil. 4:3)9. Men’s Ministry – Lord, I lift up our Men’s Ministry to You. Use this ministry to build our men in their faith. Teach them to be in right relationship to You and each other, to love their wives sacrificially and to instruct their children with patience. Encourage them to hold each other accountable as they carry each other’s burdens. May they speak the truth in love to each other even when its hard. (Jude 1:20; Titus 2:2; 1 Tim. 5:1; Eph. 5:25, 6:4; Gal. 6:2; Eph. 4:15; Prov. 27:6)10. Youth Workers – Lord, I lift up our Youth Workers. Let these young men and women set an example in their speech, life, love, faith and purity. Cause them to be strong, alive-in-the-Word overcomers. Help them to have discernment as they deal with the young people in our church. Help them to notice any youth who lacks judgment so they can teach them to value Your life-giving principles. Pour out Your Spirit on them. (1 Tim. 4:12; 1 Jn 2:14; Prov. 3:21, 7:7; 7:2; Joel 2:28).11. Single parents – Lord, I lift up the single parents in our church. May they know You as father to the fatherless and defender of widows! Let us be a real family to them when they are lonely. Show us ways to include them and minister grace to them. Stir up practical ideas in us that show Your love and care. Help them relax in Your grace and provision which is more than enough for every weakness and need. (Ps. 68:5, 6; 25:16; Matt. 25:35-40; 2 Cor. 12:9; Phil. 4:19)12. Behind-the-Scenes Workers – Lord, I lift up the people who work behind the scenes at our church. Thank You for every nursery worker, parking lot attendant, office volunteer, building janitor, etc. who has devoted themselves to the service of the saints. Bless them for the obedience and generosity they have displayed—may You receive praise as a result! Keep them in an attitude of humility that comes from wisdom and wholehearted service to You rather than to be noticed by others. (1 Cor. 16:15; 2 Cor. 9:12-13; Jas. 3:13; Eph. 6:7)13. Spiritual Gifts – Lord, I lift up the use of spiritual gifts in our church. We eagerly desire spiritual gifts that You’ve given for our common good. Help us understand the various gifts and how they work. Teach us to use what we’ve received to serve others and faithfully administer Your grace—whatever form that takes. Help us exercise our gifts in love. Remind us to keep fanning into flame the gifts You’ve entrusted to us. (1 Cor. 14:1, 12:4-7;1 Pet. 4:10; 2 Tim. 1:6)14. Help for the Hurting – Lord, I lift up those who are hurting right now. May they come to know You as El Roi, the God who sees them. For every situation of rejection, help them feel sonship. Bind up the brokenhearted! In every area of bondage, set the captives free; in every case of mourning, replace it with Your oil of gladness. Comfort them so that they will have a ministry of comfort to others. (Gen. 16:13; Ro. 8:15; Isa. 61:1-3; 2 Cor. 1:3-4)15. Freedom from besetting sins – Lord, I lift up every one of us who struggle with sin issues. Keep us from the enemy’s scheme of condemnation. Grant us repentance so that we can escape the trap of the evil one. Thank You that sin was done away with on the cross and that we are no longer slaves to it. Help us to throw off everything that entangles—help us run the race with perseverance. (Ro. 8:1; 2 Tim. 2:25, 26; Ro. 6:6; Heb. 12:1)16. Kingdom focus/priorities – Lord, I lift up our priorities as a congregation. Give us ears to hear what Your Spirit is saying to our church. Open our eyes to see things as You see them. Help us move beyond issues of immediate need to pursuing Kingdom issues. Bring us to a place where “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” is more than just words we say. (Rev. 3: 22; 2 Ki. 6:17; Matt. 6:25, 33, 10)17. Our neighborhood – Lord, I lift up our community, especially the surrounding neighborhoods. Let us love these people as we love ourselves. May our concern for their needs override other things that take our time and focus. Rebuild and restore areas that have been devastated. Renew our community—send Your peace and prosperity into this place where You’ve planted us. Bless each individual home and family. Build each house from the inside out; watch over our city. (Gal. 5:14; Prov. 3:28; Isa. 61:4; Jer. 29:7; Lk 10:5-6; Ps. 127:1)18. The Church in our city – Lord, I lift up the Church in our city. Thank You for creating the body as one unit made up of many parts. Help us understand the value of each part as You have arranged them. We confess that we’ve minimized other parts. Forgive us, for we are all baptized by one Spirit into one body. Help us to work at being one: concerned about one another—suffering with and rejoicing with other congregations as appropriate. (1 Cor. 12:12-26)19. The Church in our nation – Lord, I lift up the Church in our nation. We humbly unite and confess as one people—one Church called by Your name—that we have sinned. We’ve operated out of acquired wealth thinking we could do it on our own—but we are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. We seek Your face, O God! Thank You for hearing and forgiving us. We wait on You for the healing of our land! (2 Chron. 7:14; Rev. 3:17)20. The Church around the world – Lord, I lift up the Church universal. Father, we claim the power of Your name over us so that we will be one, as You and Your Son are one. We want Your joy in full measure just as Your Son, Jesus, prayed for us. Help us live as though we are not of this world; sanctify us by Your word. May we be brought to complete unity so that the world will know the truth of the gospel. (Jn. 17:11-23)21. Protection from the Enemy – Lord, I lift up our need for protection. Protect and deliver us from the evil one. Help us be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves as we deal with the wolves around us. Show us how to test every spirit to see if they are from You. Help us recognize the enemy’s disguises and schemes so that he won’t outwit us. (Jn. 17:15; Matt. 6:13; Matt. 10:14; 1 Jn.. 4:1; 2 Cor. 11:14; 2:11)

Is it a ghost I should be afraid of? No way! Find out what the Holy Ghost is and why it is important in this lesson of Elements for children.

Have you ever been scared speechless or lost your voice? Find out about a man who couldn't speak for at least 9 months while his wife was pregnant! How would you communicate?

Prayer on Saturday mornings is how we come together to prepare for our weekends. We can plan and prepare, but first, PRAYER!THE PRAYER OF JABEZ Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that You would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let Your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request. 1 CHRONICLES 4:10The Prayer of Jabez is a helpful model of a prayer we can pray every day. 1. BLESSINGJabez begins his prayer by asking God for His blessing. We need more of God’s blessing to be better equipped to make a difference for His Kingdom. We need more provision, more spiritual gifting, more wisdom, and greater understanding so that we can bless others with what God has given us. James 4:2-3 tells us, “You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” God wants to bless us, but He is often waiting for us to ask with the right heart. We have a big God, and we can be bold in asking for His blessing. As James points out, God sees our heart, and we get His attention when we ask for blessing with the motivation to help others.“Oh, that You would bless me...”1 CHRONICLES 4:10Ask God for His blessing. Recognize your need for His provision, and set your heart toward wanting more than you need so that you can be a blessing to others.PRAYER:“God, I pray that You would bless me with more than I need so that I can bless others. I pray for more provision, that You would equip me to give generously to others and meet their practical needs in Your Name. I ask You to give me greater spiritual gifting so that I can strengthen the Church and be more effective for the Kingdom of God. I pray for an abundance of wisdom and discernment so that I can point others to You and make decisions that honor You. I ask You to help me grow in understanding of Your truth and Your heart for people so I can do my part to bring Your Kingdom to earth. Help me keep Your generous blessings in perspective, so that I never become self-serving but stay focused on using what You’ve given me to serve other people.”2. INFLUENCENext, Jabez asks for more influence. As God’s blessings increase in our lives, we ask for and experience greater opportunity to influence the world around us for Him. God has the power to bless us greatly, and He also has the power to open doors of opportunity for us to make a difference. We want to walk through doors that only He can open, and He responds when we specifically ask Him to give us more influence for His Name. “Enlarge my territory...” 1 CHRONICLES 4:10 Pray for more influence. Knowing that God can make a way, trust in Him to open doors and lead you on the best path for your life and for His glory. Ask Him for boldness to take the steps He lays out for you. PRAYER: “God, make me effective in my sphere of influence, and open new doors for me to be able to impact and reach even more people for Your glory. Give me a heart to make a difference in the lives of people I have never reached out to before and boldness to walk in obedience to Your calling. Help me to be a good steward of the responsibility You’ve entrusted to me. I pray for greater territory to impact for Your glory.” 3. PRESENCE In order to have lasting influence, we need God’s presence in our lives. Through His power at work within us, God can do more than we could ever ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). As we ask for blessing and influence, we also need to ask for His presence as Jabez did so that we are not operating out of our own strength but through the presence and the hand of our Almighty God.“Let Your hand be with me...”1 CHRONICLES 4:10In humility, acknowledge your need for God’s presence. Depend on Him and ask for more of Him in your life today.PRAYER:“Lord, I know that without You, I am nothing. I cannot do what You’ve called me to do on my own. I am desperate for Your presence in my life. I depend on You completely. I recognize that the same Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead lives in me. Through the power of Your Spirit, I pray that You will help me succeed in the opportunities You’ve given me. Thank You for being with me. I would never want to face today without You.”4. PROTECTIONFinally, Jabez asks the Lord to protect him. If we are influencing the world for Jesus, we must understand the enemy will try to stop us. This leads us to pray that God will not only help us if the enemy attacks, but that He will protect us from the enemy attacking us in the first place. Jesus has already won the victory, so we don’t need to fear destruction. God promises to be with us and protect us, and because He is with us, we have nothing to fear. “Keep me from harm” 1 CHRONICLES 4:10 Trust God to protect you. Tell Him specific areas where you feel the need for His protection and ask Him to cover areas that you can’t yet see. PRAYER: “God, as I walk out the purpose You have for my life, I pray that You will stop any and every attack of the enemy against me. Please protect my body, my mind, and my emotions. Don’t let the enemy get a foothold in my life. I pray, too, that You will protect my family and community from harm. I know that the One who is in me is greater than the one who is in the world, so I have nothing to fear. Thank You for watching over me. I love You and I trust You.”Connect with Us: https://flow.page/thecrossrdsStreaming License # CCLI: CSPL043706

Join us for a new series called Elements - The Building Blocks of a Spiritual Life (for children). Many ask what they should do after following Acts 2:38 - God's plan of salvation? What comes next? How do I live a spiritual life that pleases Jesus? Find out answers to these and many more questions in this series.

Join us today to see how confusing things can get when we don't trust God's plans in our lives!

Prayer on Saturday mornings is how we come together to prepare for our weekends. We can plan and prepare, but first, PRAYER!How to Pray for the LostWe can win anyone for whom God gives us a burden. If God burdens our heart for a soul it is evident that He intends to save that soul. It is also evident that He desires to work through us as the human vessel since He gave us the burden. Many times the soul is actually won in prayer. It is one thing to pray, it is another thing to “pray right”. Here are seven pointers for praying for the lost to be saved: Pray Believingly Mark 11:24 “Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”Prayer is the key, but faith unlocks the door. We must pray believing that God is working in the sinner’s heart and preparing him for our visit. Pray Realizing That With God All Things Are Possible Mark 10:27 “And Jesus looking upon them saith, with men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.”Recognize God in the picture, for nothing is too hard for God. In our praying most of us never get beyond human limitations and boundaries. We whittle God down to our own size and power. We are like the woman who said, “It’s no use to talk to my husband. He won’t listen to me.” Pray Asking the Soul to Be Saved For God’s Glory John 14:13 “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”We should not pray for a soul to be saved that they may be a better husband or wife. This is selfish praying. We should pray for souls to be saved so they will no longer dishonor God in their sins. Our great concern should be that they will stop trampling over the precious blood of Christ and stop spurning God’s love. This should be the real motive in soul winning rather than to put another “notch” on our belt, or add a few more figures to our report. Pray Beseeching God to Awaken Them Matthew 13:13, 15 “because they seeing, see not, and hearing, they hear not, neither do they understand. For this people’s heart is become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed . . . “Every sinner needs the Holy Spirit to reveal his sinful condition. Then Christ will be revealed to the heart. We should pray that the Holy Spirit will “quicken” their conscience, plow up their heart, and ring conviction in their soul. We should pray that God will give them “hearing ears” and “believing hearts.” Pray that God shall open their understanding. Pray Claiming That Soul Which the Blood of Christ Has Purchased II Timothy 2:26 “And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.”In our sense every soul is God’s purchased possession, though still held by Satan through unbelief. We must through prayer claim and take for God that which is rightfully His. This is praying on the ground of redemption. Pray Claiming the Tearing Down Of Satan’s Strongholds in That Soul II Corinthians 10:4 “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.”The Devil has built up lies, false doctrine, stumbling blocks and many other strongholds in the minds of the unsaved to keep them from receiving Christ. He has them blinded lest the light of the glorious gospel should shine unto them. We must through prayer rebuke the Devil and claim the tearing down of his lies and warped ideas that are keeping the sinner from trusting Christ as Savior. We must exercise our authority in Christ. Pray Perseveringly Luke 18:7 “shall not God avenge his own elect, who cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?”Perseverance is “not giving up.” We persevere not to persuade God, but because of the enemy. In persistent intercession we are pushing back the forces of evil. We are getting the Devil off of God’s territory. Daniel prayed for three weeks before he received his answer from God, though the Scripture says that God answered his prayer on the first day. Daniel spent three weeks wrestling with the forces of evil and hanging on to God in order that he might receive his “package.”Now go pray for that lost soul that God has laid on your heart, claiming these truths.Connect with Us: https://flow.page/thecrossrdsStreaming License # CCLI: CSPL043706

Tonight is step 3 of 3 things we NEED for salvation from Acts 2:38. Next week we will be starting a new series called Elements! Hope you continue to join us each Wednesday!

Today we will discuss the ark and how important it is to follow God's Word.