Together #forSalem

For some reason, many Christians see themselves as the “moral police” of society. But Jesus has something better in mind for his followers… a way to experience love, peace, and hope and to share it with the world.

What if life is meant for more than working for more money in order to accumulate more stuff? Maybe life becomes more when we give more of it away.

One of the first words that usually come to mind when we hear “Christianity” or “church” is boredom. That’s understandable, but it wasn’t always this way. What happened? Can you really experience the excitement and adventure the first Jesus Followers experienced? You can.

Religion tells us that to be accepted we must meet an unattainable standard of do’s and don’ts. This causes us to hide our true selves in order to find acceptance. Jesus came to dismantle this horrible cycle and made a way for us to authentically connect with others while being our authentic selves.

Every part of our life gives us something to fear. This is a dangerous world and there always seems to be something new to be afraid of. We can try to ignore, numb, or control our fear but that only makes things worse. There is a better way. A way that allows us to experience peace and confidence no matter what is coming at us.

Crosscreek was planted four years ago with the vision of being a church for people who don’t normally go to church. As we turn four we have rethought and reimagined what a local church can really be. Join us as we create a community that is for our community.

Crosscreek was planted four years ago with the vision of being a church for people who don’t normally go to church. As we turn four we have rethought and reimagined what a local church can really be. Join us as we create a community that is for our community.

So we can trust that the biblical writings are accurate… but what do we do with them? How can something written to people of a different culture, language, and place 2000 years ago apply to anything happening in our lives now? But the thing is… when we understand how to use the biblical writings we can understand our role in the Kingdom of God.

The Bible. No matter what that phrase brings to mind, we can’t deny that this book has had a huge impact on our society. But what is it? Where did it come from? And what’s the big deal anyway?

Our relationships are supremely influential in our lives and determine our life outcomes to an enormous degree. The problem is, many times, we participate in relationships that aren’t necessarily healthy for us. The good news is that we can choose to build nourishing relationships with Jesus and others by focusing on and prioritizing them and being mindful of the influence they have on us.

If we constantly fill our bodies with empty calories we won’t be able to live healthy lives. The same is true with the quality of the influences we allow into our lives. But how do we know which influences are healthy and which are empty? It all comes down to asking the right questions.

We seem to live through the same unhealthy and unproductive cycles over and over. How can we make different choices that lead to better and healthier outcomes? The first step is changing our thinking.

It seems there are only two types of Christians… Aggressively loud or passively silent. But the first Jesus followers were neither and the world was changed forever. The world can be changed again, but first we need to rethink what it means to follow Jesus in the 21st Century.

Following Jesus should make Christians the happiest and most humble people in the world. Then why does it seem that they always are fighting each other and society? Maybe it’s time to rethink what it means to follow Jesus in the 21st century and rediscover what actually made the first Jesus Followers so different and inviting.

Why does our society seem so polarized and contentious? We have chosen to define ourselves by what we are against… which forces us to define others as either allies or enemies. But Jesus showed us a better way. Following Jesus in the 21st century requires us to define ourselves by what we are FOR.

We often assume Jesus is FOR what we are FOR and AGAINST what we are AGAINST. But what if we are wrong? What if Jesus has a purpose better and bigger than our personal agendas?

“You just need faith.” What does that even mean and how do we “get” more faith? Faith is something that seems mysterious and complicated. But Jesus made it simple and powerful. Let’s rethink what it means to “have faith” for the 21st century.

For many, the idea of following Jesus sounds about as interesting as doing our taxes or freshman algebra. But Jesus’ first followers got in trouble for having too much fun. What have we missed? Maybe we need to rethink what the life of a Jesus Follower actually looks like.

So much of what we think it means to follow Jesus would seem strange to his first followers. By looking at Jesus’ interaction with his first followers we can rethink what it really means to follow Jesus in the 21st century.

How is Crosscreek going to be a community that invites our neighbors to discover, enjoy, and share the life Jesus offers… together? The key to all of it is YOU.

Crosscreek’s mission is to invite our neighbors to discover, enjoy, and share the life Jesus offers… together. What does that actually mean and what role do we all have to play in this mission?

For many, the idea of religion brings up negative feelings and thoughts. And for good reason: religion has been used to control and manipulate people for thousands of years. We see in the Gospels that Jesus created his Church to be something completely different. But if that is the case, why does the American Church seem so religious? How can we get back to what Jesus intended from the beginning?

When we read the historical accounts of the first Jesus Followers there seems to be a vast difference between what we see in them and what we see in our current American Church. Why is that? What made a group of persecuted Jesus Followers who were on the run for their lives such an effective force for change in their world? What have we missed in our current view of the Church?

The world has changed. This new future needs a Church that adapts as well. This episode sheds some light on how the leadership of Crosscreek has imagined this adaptation and where we see ourselves heading in the near future.

We were created for more than we have yet to imagine. But often, we settle for so much less because we fail to make a few simple yet powerful choices. It is time we choose to take our place in the Kingdom of God.