Connect

I’ve added a page to the CrossLink site called “Connect.”

If you church has an event for young adults let us know and we’ll add it to the page. Email me at calebnei@yahoo.com.

Thanks. Caleb

March Event Flyers

Here’s what you need for our March event!

Download these flyers, print ‘em out, paper the town! Pass them out at church on Sunday. You’ll also find a 2-up version suitable for most church bulletins.

Here’s the flyer.

Here’s the bulletin version.

Our Need

We would find it way cool if someone famous we loved actually showed up at our place to hang out with us. We’d tell everyone- at least I know I would- with lots of pics and postings to facebook about it! But the truth is God, the very creator of the entire universe knocks on our door each day and asks us to share life and hang out with Him. This is way cool when we really stop and think about it… 

We all have many needs- food, shelter, air, love, safety… we need to have purpose and belonging and intimacy as well. This is expressed in the fact that we are all wired to worship. You may think well not everyone worships, heck some people don’t even believe in a higher power… and yet I believe we ALL worship…something. Maybe it’s another person, or wealth, or power, or performance… whatever it may be we all worship. And when it comes to the Lord we need to worship Him way more than He needs us to worship Him. Read that again… for it is important to understand that God is holy and powerful all on His own. We need to give Him glory for our sake- we were wired and designed for it- to have that connection and intimacy and belonging to our creator.

Though there are many kinds of worship- true worship begins at the foot of the cross. Jesus is our connector. His love and sacrifice is what allows us to worship a holy God. This need we all have is something we can share and do together. It is good and right to gather together in His name as one people. Let us acknowledge our need and reach out to others and invite them to share in this response.

None of us fully knows yet what God intends to do through crosslink but we can journey and pray and worship together as we seek God. He is the creator of the universe and He is big enough to meet your needs.

The Prayer of Jesus and 100 Pianos

Jesus is leaving. He knows the end of his work on earth is done. The next scene is Gethsemane, but before he goes, he prays. What is on the heart of Jesus as he’s preparing to die? He prays for us.

John 17:20-23

20″My prayer is not for them alone (the 12 disciples). I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. “

If this idea of unity is important enough for Jesus that it’s the last thing on his mind before Gethsemane, then it’s important enough for us to consider.

When I was younger, I didn’t understand why there were so many churches.  We’re all Christians, right?  We all love Jesus, right? Why can’t we just have one huge worship service every Sunday morning? That would be so cool!

Unfortunately, as I age I understand. One group responds to the excesses and mistakes of another. A second group likes their tradition; a third loves their lack of tradition.

I’m not even saying it’s all bad. We have the responsibility to like up to what we know Christ has called us to. We’re all at different places in our journeys and come from different backgrounds and perspectives. I’ve been reading the book of Acts. It’s clear they had to work hard to find the unity God was calling them to- and some of them had seen the resurrected Christ! But as I said earlier, if it’s important to Jesus it had better be important to us.

Dream with me.

What if the churches of the Winchester area really took on the prayer of Christ in John 17 as a goal?  What if our goal was the unity Jesus asked for?  He doesn’t force us.  He invites.  He prays for us.  He gives us the strength to do it by the Holy Spirit.  But, be doesn’t do it for us.

I would estimate that there are about 20 churches actively involved in CrossLink. That’s pretty cool! We’re on our way.

CrossLink then isn’t just a worship night.  It isn’t just a website.  It isn’t just a party at the bowling alley. It’s a dream.  It’s the dream of the people on the leadership team…and, we believe, it’s the dream of God

Practically.  What can you do?

Pray. Pray for unity. Ask God to show you if this dream we have is His dream. Ask Him if you should be a part of it. Ask and trust Him to show us what the unity he prays for looks like in the Winchester area.

Volunteer to help us out with our mission. We meet every month to talk and pray about what we’re doing. If you think this is a great idea then get involved.

Website: Tell us what you young adult ministry is doing. We’d like book reviews, CD reviews. Do you write about what God is doing in your life? We might like to publish it. I envision the CrossLink site being the hub for what God is doing with young adults in the area.

Facebook. I see Facebook as being a key way to invite the young people that we have in mind. Join. Post on the wall. Add pictures.

More? I’m sure there’s more. What it looks like remains to be seen so, join us for the ride.

Closing thought.

Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow. So one hundred worshippers meeting together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become “unity” conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship. Social religion is perfected when private religion is purified.

A.W. Tozer

Jeremy Horn at Blue Ridge Bible Church

Jeremy Horn will be in concert at Blue Ridge Bible Church in Purcellville, VA at 8pm on January 27th, 2009. Recently sharing the stage with the likes of David Crowder Band and Charlie Hall, Jeremy is a worship leader from Christ the Rock Church in Memphis, Tennessee.

“Mr. Horn does a good line in rock worship with a sound that mixes The Beatles with Delirious?. The result is an organic rock sound packed with catchy songs and lyrics that are a million miles away from the trite throwaway of so much modern worship. With a crisp production in place, there is plenty to enjoy…it’s a worshipful uplifting album…If you like the sound of Tim Hughes and Chris Tomlin, here’s another name that you need to add to your list and an album that is waiting for you to discover!”
- Mike Rimmer (Cross Rhythms Magazine)

Brought to the area by Whisper to a Roar Promotions.

Get tickets here.

Visit Jeremy’s website.