Living at the Crossroads

I'm beginning to write this at 6:10 a.m.  We school district employees got an automated phone call 2-3 minutes ago letting us know that classes are postponed two hours due to fog.  I would have preferred a call to come in before I was all ready to head out the door but if the decision had to be made I say "better late than never."

Before the call came I was thinking I would write something more about the "altar call" that we experienced yesterday at Crossroads Community Church.  As I wrote yesterday in Invitation Accepted, this invitation to come forward is a new thing.  This morning the Lord was reminding me that this new thing, together with other unfamiliar ways of "doing church" is all a part of living constantly at the crossroads of life, understanding that God is constantly intervening and calling us to be more and more transformed into the image of Jesus.

Too often our church experience makes us comfortable with the way we are.  Being made comfortable can lead us to misunderstand the work of God in our midst.  God does come to us as the "Comforter," but He comes in that way not because we are already comfortable, but because we need him to comfort us.  Sometimes God needs to comfort us because He has made us uncomfortable! 

It's true!  In fact, we the better we know the Word of God, the more "normal" being uncomfortable is!  God grants us grace for life today, just as it is, but God loves us so much that he pushes us to change!  Many times it is at the most uncomfortable moments that God is doing his best work in us.  So Christian disciples should never be surprised at those moments.  In fact, we should expect them, especially at church.

The name "Crossroads" attached to our church is a prophetic, Godly statement about what God is doing in our midst.  He is growing us up to live at the crossroads, at moments of decision.  Imagine being comfortable with being uncomfortable!  Imagine relaxing and knowing "all is well" even when we are being pushed to change!  Imagine surrendering regularly to the work of God in your life.  That's what "living at the crossroads" can mean.

As we live there, God transforms and refines us, making us more effective and loving disciples, leading us to live more and more like his Son, Jesus, who knew no other comfort than the presence of His Father God.

For more on this, see "Enter the Circle."