This past Sunday at CrossHope Chapel we examined the 20th chapter of Matthew, but we spent the bulk of our time discussing the parable of the workers in the vineyard. The chapter engaged us with the stories of Jesus healing two blind men, the mother of James and John asking Jesus to make her sons the two highest in command when He establishing His kingdom, and Jesus sharing the prophetic details of the events when … Continue reading →
I thought it might be good to update you on where are in our verse-by-verse study at CrossHope Chapel through the Gospel of Matthew and I am going to that by just hitting some highlights… Matthew 14 was a great chapter that transitioned us from the previous parables of the Kingdom of Heaven to the account of John’s beheading, Jesus’ feeding the 5000, and Peter walking on the water. I don’t know about you, but … Continue reading →
This morning at CrossHope Chapel was a good one as we went through the 14th chapter of Matthew. We studied through three stories recorded by Matthew, the beheading of John the Baptist, the feeding of the 5000, and Jesus walking on the water. All three of these accounts were tied together with Jesus’ response to the news of His cousin’s death and we reflected on how Jesus simply sought solitude as He likely was processing … Continue reading →
If you follow my Today’s Daily Promise devotionals you have likely noticed that I have recently been using the New International Version, having recently switched from using the English Standard Version. In this post I want to explain why I have been using the NIV again. This story has to begin in 1980 when I became a born again believer in Jesus Christ, (you can read about my miraculous conversion at my Adopted by God … Continue reading →
We are about a month away from our 10-year anniversary as a church fellowship, which we’ll be celebrating on January 3, 2021 at the Chapel in west Mobile. Please mark your calendar to attend or if it looks like you may not be able to attend, please consider sending us a note to be read on that day to your friends and family at CrossHope Chapel. In some ways it doesn’t seem like we are … Continue reading →
I’ve been thinking about Revelation 1:10 lately and how it relates to CrossHope Chapel. I probably need to mention that with this pandemic I’ve been thinking a lot about CrossHope Chapel, where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re heading. This coming January 2, 2021 when we gather we’ll be celebrating our 10th consecutive year of fellowship as a body of Christ, known as CrossHope Chapel. It has been a very rewarding pastoral ministry … Continue reading →
I was reminded this morning by a friend still living in my home town of Rossford, Ohio that it was 40 years ago today that we graduated from High School in the class of 1980. After the shock wore off that it was 40 years already, it occurred to me that Payton is graduating from High School on this very date as well. 40 years ago I would never have thought that I would have … Continue reading →
The church I serve as pastor, CrossHope Chapel, does not have an official sign on the dotted line type of local membership. You can’t sign anything that says you want to be a member of CrossHope Chapel or you can’t sign any commitment to be a member of CrossHope Chapel. One becomes a member of CrossHope Chapel by being a member of the larger universal body of Christ, by being in Christ in faith and … Continue reading →
The coronavirus is challenging many of the ways we do life in America. Some businesses are discovering that employees can work from home, families are adjusting to actually spending more time together, and church members are realizing that a weekly formal program may not be as necessary to their personal spiritual growth as they once thought. I am guessing that a lot of us are really missing weekly fellowship with like-minded believers in Christ. I … Continue reading →
This morning was a great time together in prayer, worship, and God’s Word. I enjoy every week when we gather together, but this morning was just a sweet time of fellowship. There was a song that came to my mind too, called, “Sweet, Sweet, Spirit.” If you don’t recognize that song, it’s one that goes, “There’s a sweet, sweet Spirit in this place, And I know that it’s the Spirit of the Lord…” Maybe this … Continue reading →
Our church fellowship began on January 6, 2011, meeting on Sunday morning at a community room of a Ryan’s Restaurant on Rangeline Road near I-10 in Tillman’s Corner, Alabama. The manager allowed us to use the room at no cost if we ordered their buffet breakfast, which we did and enjoyed, but after several weeks we all seemed to have gotten our fill of that buffet. We moved our meetings to my house in West Mobile, … Continue reading →
Mornings in our home are usually filled with the sounds from a Christian radio station. This morning a caller asked one of the disc jockey’s “What is the reason for Ash Wednesday?” The disc jockey said something to the jest of, “Christians have Ash Wednesday because by placing the ashes on their forehead they are proclaiming the sacrifice of Jesus.” I thought, that’s not biblically correct and that is not even what it means to … Continue reading →
Dear Church Friend in Mobile, Alabama, Have you ever invited the guy you work with or the lady at that office or the couple in your neighborhood to attend your church but they just haven’t? Maybe you have great Bible conversations with someone who doesn’t attend church anywhere. Maybe you’ve heard the same excuses as I have for not attending – burned-out, hypocrites, politics, clicks, personality conflicts, boring, bla bla bla.. However, there really are … Continue reading →
In the morning, thousands of people will wake up and get ready to attend a church of their choice. Some will put on their best clothing, some will happily re-wear something from the day before, and some will be more concerned over their toddlers and children keeping their cloths clean at least until they are checked into their Sunday School programs within a secluded room away from the adults. They will make their way to … Continue reading →
