Hey guys!  Wow, have we been busy here at Crosspoint!  With all of the meetings and preparation for our teams this summer, I've been lax on writing my blog.  I promise to do better!

I've been thinking this morning about the enormity of the task to which we've been called.  Did you know that the earth's current population is close to 6.25 billion people?  Six hundred twenty five BILLION people!  I can't even think that high.  There are approximately 320,000 births every 24 hours as opposed to 160,000 deaths in the same amount of time.  That means that the population of the world increases by about 62 million people every year.  Statistics tell us that we reach somewhere around 2 million people with the gospel every year, that's only 1 in 30 of the world's population increase.  There are 3 million (MILLION) villages around the world without a resident gospel witness.  More than 1/2 of the people in the world do not know the way of salvation.  That's over 300 billion that haven't yet heard of the saving grace of Jesus Christ!  The Bible still waits to be translated into more than 1500 languages and dialects - at the present rate of progress that would take at least 150 years.  As I mentioned earlier, approximately 160,000 people die every day - that's 6500 per hour, 111 per minute!  Most likely 80-90% of these do not know Christ as their Savior.  Are you beginning to see the urgency of the task at hand?

Now let me dazzle you with some more eye-opening news.  Do you ever wonder why many western believers aren't aware of the awesome move of God across the globe?  It's probably because the western view of God's work no longer aligns with reality.  Western Christians compose only 25% of the worldwide body of Christ.  Of that figure, North Americans make up only about 15%.  That means that westerners (us), without communication links to the world, are missing out on at least 85% of what God is doing!!!

George Otis Jr. said "Today, mounting evidence forces us to acknowledge that North America had been largely by-passed by the great spiritual harvest occurring in other parts of the world."  If we in America only concentrate on our quiet little corner of the world, it is no great wonder that we are discouraged.  Do you ever find yourself thinking that God just isn't moving anymore?  Nothing could be farther from the truth.  In the two-thirds of the world (that part of the globe we considered "non-western"), the church is growing like wildfire!  In 1992, a baptismal service in South Africa took five pastors five hours, and the line of those waiting to be baptized was almost five kilometers long.  In that one afternoon over 7000 new believers were baptized.  During the height of the civil war in Angola, there were similar reports of even 10,000 being baptized in a single day!  A gospel crusade in Cuba reported more than 22,000 commitments to Christ.  A prayer meeting in Guatemala was held in a soccer stadium with over 45,000 in attendance.  The evangelical church in Argentina has grown more than 800% in the past 10 years.  There are three congregations in Argentina in excess of 100,000 members.  In Russia, 22% of the former atheists now believe in God and another 25% say they have always believed in God.  In May of 1995, 80,000 Korean students publicly dedicated themselves to world evangelization.  God is moving!

If we accept reality, we must face the fact that we, as Americans, are a minority in God's worldwide church.  The majority of believers today are non-white, non-western, non-English speaking and live south of the equator!  God has moved His front lines! 

Now, don't get me wrong, God hasn't forgotten about America!  The Great Commission in Acts 1:8 includes Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost parts of the earth.  America is our Jerusalem and Judea.  It is just as important to be at work here in our own backyard as it is to be working around the world.  It is not an "either/or" - it is a "both/and."  Oswald Smith once said "the light that shines the farthest, shines the brightest at home."  But he also said "no one has the right to hear the gospel twice until everyone has heard at least once!"  Do you want God to give you a new passion to reach those in your community?  Then I encourage you to go on a foreign mission trip.  Experience what God is doing around the world and I promise you it will revitalize your burden for lost souls, wherever they may be!

Blessings, 

Steve   

Hey guys! Thanks for checking back to see what's going on!  I can't wait to share with you just a few of the wonderful things that God is doing through Crosspoint International.  Before I do, let me tell you that I just finished reading a manuscript by E.M. Bounds called The Necessity of Prayer.  Man, you can't believe how this article has changed my prayer life!  It is jam-packed with incredible truths about prayer that I promise will change your life as well.  If you want to check it out, here is the link: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/bounds/necessity.txt

Anyway, let me share with you what's on my heart today - Africa!  There are billions lost without Christ around the world, and we pray that God will use us to reach every corner of the globe.  But today God is burdening my heart for the continent of Africa.  Between civil wars, natural disasters and the AIDS epidemic, the countries of Africa are hurting on a scale that few of us can imagine.  No doubt God is at work.  Through all of the pain, through all of the tragedy, through all of the loss, God is moving to bring the gospel to those who so desperately need it. We cannot stand idle and leave the work to someone else.  God has a plan and that plan is to use His church to reach the world.  There is no backup plan, no plan B.  The plan is US!  This is not the time to stand on the sidelines, it is time to get in the game!  Someone once said "the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."  How true those words are!  To do nothing is not to be neutral. To do nothing is to allow the enemy to advance without lifting a finger to put up a fight!  I refuse stay on the sidelines.

Crosspoint International has a plan to do our part.  No,we can't reach the entire world alone, but we can reach some.  It takes all Christians working hand in hand, side by side, to accomplish God's work and we want to do the part we believe God has called us to do. Our plan is to build a Ministry Training Center in the villiage of Ngiini, Kenya where young men can receive the training to become missionaries, pastors and evangelists to reach out, not only to Kenya, but to all of East Africa with the gospel.  Our plan includes the construction of family orphanage homes to reach out to the staggering number of children left destitute by the AIDS virus.  Our project is totally dependant on God.  Our prayer is that God will send those who He can use to make this project a reality.  Funding is critical.  Our budget for the project is close to $200,000.  To accomplish what God has called us to do, we need your help.  We need those with a burden to do their part to reach God's creation in a very real and personal way.  We need partners to come on board with us to reach out to Africa.  Will you pray about helping?  Will you seek God's guidance in earnest, sincere prayer about how you can be a part of this incredible project that God has led us to?  I pray that you will be blessed beyond measure for being obedient to God, regardless of where He leads you! 

Please keep our ministry in your daily prayers!  By doing so, you are truly a part of our family at Crosspoint International!  I invite you to contact me personally if you ever have any questions about our ministry -

Love in Christ,

Steve

Wow!  God never ceases to amaze me!  I didn’t know until just the other day what a blog was; now I find myself writing one!  I would tell all my buddies, but I know what they would say – what’s a blog?  I guess I’m telling my age, huh?   Don’t ever say you can’t teach old dog new tricks! 

I’m so excited that you have visited our website.  The Lord has blessed our ministry so much in the past year and a half that I could write volumes just telling you what He has done!  I have learned so many things, first and foremost that it isn’t about me, it isn’t about our staff, it isn’t about Crosspoint International – it’s about Jesus!  I’ve learned to be obedient, I’ve learned to be flexible, and I’ve learned that I still have a lot to learn.  But most of all I’ve learned if I will just get out of the way and let the Lord take the lead that our efforts will be successful. 

I hope to use this blog in the coming weeks to keep you informed about what’s happening at Crosspoint International.  I look forward to sharing my heart and my passion with you.  I hope you’ll make this a regular stop on your daily journey into cyberspace.  We’re partnering with our friends at The Joshua Project to promote awareness of the unreached people groups throughout the world.  The link on our home page is designed to encourage prayer for the lost and cultivate a desire in your heart to intercede for those without Christ.  It is different every day; please make it a daily habit to pray that these will be reached with the gospel. 

I value your comments and cherish your prayers.  Our ministry revolves around bringing Christians just like you together to make a difference for Christ. You can give, you can go, YOU can make a difference!

Love in Christ,

Steve