Support Crossroads Books and Coffee!

Shortly after moving back to the Valley of the Sun in 2005, I discovered a nice little bookstore at 67th Avenue and Peoria.  It was called Crossroads and was owned by Phil Cary and his family.  The store had a nice selection of Bibles, books, gifts, CD's and DVD's.  The staff was always friendly. They made shopping there a nice experience.

Crossroads, which has been serving the community since 1976, moved a few years ago to a new location - 9069 W. Olive - in Peoria.  The store is accessible off the 101 and is located in a shopping center on the southeast corner.  A coffee shop was added to the new location; the products and service certainly compare to your neighborhood Starbucks.

The bookstore business has really struggled in recent years.  We've seen Borders fall by the wayside. Barnes and Noble is a shell of its former self.  Nowadays, folks reason, why get in your car and go to a physical location when you can jump on your computer at home and order books, music, and video and have it delivered to your front door?

Bookstores that have really felt the hurt are the independents - those folks who have often operated stand alone stores.  Such owners usually don't have the deep pockets that chain stores have.  Their facilities are often not as large and don't feature all the product the chains can offer.

But when the independents close up shop and leave the community, their absence is deeply felt.  I sure don't want to see that happen to Crossroads.

If you live on the west side of town, would you go and check out Crossroads Books and Coffee?  If you're looking for a Confirmation or Mother's Day gifts, won't you give Crossroads a try?  If you're a pastor or leader in a church, would you consider throwing some of your business their way? What they don't have they'll order for you.  And you'll meet some really nice people who provide a needed service for folks who are looking for resources designed to enable them to better know and trust in Christ Jesus for forgiveness of sins, power for daily living and the hope of eternal life.

By the way, there's no benefit to me for writing about Crossroads.  Although I've spoken to Phil Cary when I've been in the store, I doubt that he really knows much about me, where I pastor and so forth. I'd just like to have a bookstore nearby that I can visit, maybe purchase a book that has been on my radar, so to speak, and then sit down and have a coffee while starting on the first chapter.  That's my idea of the perfect shopping experience.  If that sounds good to you, consider paying a visit to Crossroads Books and Coffee.

Give us a heart of flesh

Lord, heavenly Father, if we must fall into sin, let us fall into any other sin, but deliver us from a hardening of the heart, and keep us in and with Him You appointed Lord over sin and innocence.  If we do not deny Him or lose sight of Him, all sin, all death and hell will not harm us.  Yes, what is there that might harm us?

Martin Luther, from "Treasury of Daily Prayer," page 257

A true friend is...

About 25 years ago I heard John Maxwell speak at one of his leadership seminars.  He is a dynamic speaker and prolific writer who once was a pastor but now helps people learn how to get more out of themselves and others.  In working through one of his books I came across this definition of a true friend by author Richard Exley:

A true friend is one who hears and understands when you share your deepest feelings.  He supports you when you are struggling; he corrects you gently and with love, when you err, and he forgives you when you fail.  A true friend prods you to personal growth, stretches you to your full potential.  And most amazing of all, he celebrates your successes as if they were his own.

What do you think?

From "Becoming a Person of Influence," page 155

It's a marathon, not a sprint

Ministry, that is.  And it took me a long time to figure that one out.

Coming out of Seminary, I had the mentality of a sprinter.  I would get to my first parish quickly, fire out of the blocks and run as hard as I could toward the finish line.

Then the finish line began to move.

Every time I thought I had drawn near, it moved.  There was the new Stewardship Campaign and the Building Campaign.  Or the emphasis on evangelism or prayer.  Or a concerted effort to contact all the inactives.  Sometimes, the expectation was that all the above would take place at the same time.

I wore myself out.  Burned myself out.  I got a quick start out of the blocks and ran myself into the ground.

A friend from Hilton Head Island, SC helped me to see that ministry is a marathon, not a sprint.  He urged me to simply be faithful to what God had called me to do and then watch what God would accomplish.  Very wise advise, indeed.

Still, it's hard.  As a pastor you want to be there for people.  And you can really manufacture a bucket full of guilt when it seems that you are failing people.

There's phone calls you intended to make but forgot.  The cards you meant to send out but never got to.  The commitment you made to pray only to have gotten involved in something else.

The last few weeks I've worked a ton of hours and I'm tired.  And it's not just being tired physically. Ministry brings with it a lot of stress.  Sometimes I don't handle the stress very well.  And looking at my calendar for this week, I can count at least three stressful situations and I'm already dreading them.

Today is my day off.  I'll lay around here like a slug.  And feel guilty about that.

I need to pray and remind myself:  it's not about me...it's all about the Lord...I can do all things through Him who gives me strength...be faithful and let Him deal with the campaigns, the emphasis' and everything else listed in my planner...to find my joy and my help in my Lord and Savior who loved me and gave Himself for me...to thank Him for His agape love.

Maybe this week doesn't look so bad after all.

Another weekend, another set of services

Has it been a hard week? Are you ready for a little rest and refreshment? Come to Life in Christ this weekend and let the Lord serve you.

Saturday worship is at 5 pm and Sunday services take place at 8 and 10:45 am.  Bible classes for all ages meet at 9:20 in the morning right after a time of fellowship out on our patio.

Jesus said, Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Why not take Jesus up on His offer.  Come and rest and be refreshed by the God who loves you.  Join us!

Not "goodbye" but "see you later"

One of the privileges of being a pastor is the opportunity to become involved in the lives of the people you serve.

To walk with people, especially during times of illness or loss, and to offer them what is needed the most - the Gospel of Jesus Christ - is a very special privilege.

I've had that opportunity the past few weeks, joining the Kanzler/Lingenfelter families as they loved and cared for Virginia - dear mother, grandmother, great grandmother and friend.

These families have become very special to me.  They have appreciated my ministry and have offered unconditional love and support to me.

Connie is our Administrative Assistant.  Our church simply would not know what to do without her laughter and genuine concern for every person who walks through our office doors.  Our growing high school youth ministry was planted by Patti, who was willing to help us get a ministry started when no one else would step forward.  Scott, Patti's husband, reminds me of the phrase, "Still waters run deep."  His faithfulness at worship and Bible study is always an encouragement to me.  Scott and Patti's daughter, Nicole, is an amazing singer.  Those who participate on "American Idol" each year can be glad that Nicole hasn't appeared on the show - she would blow them all away.  And Kelcy, the youngest Lingenfelter, lives up to her grandmother's nickname for her - she is all "Sunshine."

Today, at 11 am, we are having a Memorial Service for Virginia.  Because of the hope we have in Jesus, today's service is not "goodbye" but "see you later."  In the resurrection of the dead on the Last Day, the Kanzler/Lingenfelter families will be reunited with Virginia and all of their family members who loved and placed their faith in Jesus.  They will rejoice.  They will hug.  They will laugh.  And together with angels, and archangels and all the company of heaven, they will laud and magnify the God of their salvation forever and ever, without end.  What a day that will be.

Until then, see you later, Virginia.

My dear, sweet wife comes through!

The meeting ended at 9 pm and I still had work to do.  I wanted to create a power-point presentation for tomorrow's Memorial Service for Virginia Kanzler.  I've not worked with power-point very much. Okay, I've never done this kind of stuff.  I'm told it's easy.  Still, I figured I'd be up for a while, trying to figure stuff out.

My dear, sweet wife, Sherri, does this kind of thing all the time.  She's a professor in the nursing department at Grand Canyon University and has become very proficient at all things technical.  When I explained to her what I wanted to do, she immediately said, "I'll help.  We can get it done quickly."

And she was right.  With great skill she went to work at creating the slides I needed.  What I thought would be a three or four hour project took about an hour.  And we got to bed before midnight.

Sherri blesses my life in so many ways.  Power-point specialist is just one of them.