Justyn Smith • A Heart For Revival

  Assisting The Pastor You have no idea how much relief and encouragement a Pastor gets when the Lord brings a handful of good, Christ-honoring, servant-hearted, hard working, dedicated church members into the church he pastors. It certainly lightens a hefty load that many will never understand. I’ll say it like this… the value of many good assistants is priceless. Thankfully, I can type with joy today as I think of the many church members at Crossroads who bring great relief and encouragement into my life. If you are one of these (you know who you are, and I emphasize it again-there are many) thank you for jumping on board and serving the Lord beside my bride and me as we enjoy our journeys with Jesus together…you are a blessing! Let’s take a brief moment to point out a few places in the Bible where we see how assisting the Pastor really does help “lighten the load” by bringing relief and encouragement: 1. Great assistants will stand by the Man of God and brace the Man of God up t...

  Back To School Challenges Whether you go to public school, private school, Christian school, or you’re homeschooled there may be a few challenges you will face this year, and, as your pastor, I wish to address them. :) 1. You will have the temptation to forget about God.  It can be easy to forget Someone Who you’re never around..stay faithful to the things of God. 2. It will be a challenge to make God first.  I encourage you to practice  Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."  Then make it a point to practice the following things: Get in the Word of God. Have a real prayer life. Make it a point to be in church when the doors are open. Choose to serve God over other things. Honor God with you giving. 3. You will be tempted to become worldly.  Remember, this world is just our home. We’re just a passin’ through…our treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue!  1...

  Why Is Immersion (Dipping Under Water) Our Only Mode of Baptism at Crossroads? First, let’s start with the translators of the Bible. When they were translating from Greek to English, every once in a while they would transliterate a Greek word because there was not an English word to describe it. When transliteration took place in the translation process they would make a new English word based on the formation and sound of the Greek word at hand. The Greek word “Baptidzo” (to dip, bury, place under, or fully immerse) therefore became transliterated in the English to “baptize”. The Greek word for baptism was used when one took something and placed it into and fully under something else. For instance, women of the past had to dye their clothing to make it colorful. So to allow the whole garment to be fully dyed the garment had to be fully immersed in the colored water. Likewise, to be baptized in a church should still carry the definition of the word to dip, bury, place under, or t...

  Why do we hold a Vacation Bible Time at Crossroads Baptist Church? I will give you three reasons out of many as to why we still hold a Vacation Bible Time at Crossroads, and those reasons are as follows:  1. We desire to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who have never heard It.   “So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the Gospel to you…” Romans 1:15 (It’s astounding to realize how many of our young people have only heard Jesus Christ as a curse word, but they have never heard that Jesus Christ came to set us free from sins. We want to change that!) 2. We desire to invest all things spiritual into our next generation.   “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” Deuteronomy 6:6-7  (Not every child has the blessing of ...

  Quitting Is NOT An Option We miss out on so much when we decide to give up. Grant it, it’s easy to become exhausted, weary, and worn, but, oh, if we would just understand the rewards of finishing for the glory of God! God, through the mouth piece of Paul, says in Galatians 6:9 “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Proverbs 24:10 says, “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.” And Psalm 27:13 proclaims, “I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” Not quitting requires an understanding of future reaping, great strength, and hope in the goodness of The Lord. Do you possess these three necessities Without them you’ll quit every time. Decide to finish your course. You know, we just dealt with how to not quit, but maybe we should address why quitting should NOT be an option. I want to address this by stating, “Remember why you started.” Why did you start serv...

  When Two Become One Seven years ago yesterday (July 21st, 2014) I married the lady of my dreams! She is smart, godly, and lovely on the inside and out, and most of all, she is God’s perfect match for me! I call her my “good thing” based upon Proverbs 18:22 which says, “Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favor of the LORD.” (God knew I needed her to obtain favor with HIM…so He gave me Rachel!) :) The date: Saturday, July 21st, 2007. The location: Birch Harbor Baptist Church, Wasilla, AK. The occasion: God taking two individual people and making them one by the bond of holy matrimony (a term which many today disregard) before God and many witnesses.  Seven years have passed since that wonderful day when we said, “I Do,” and we thank the Lord for every minute of our marriage. The valleys, the mountain tops, the trials, and the joys have all been profitable to bind us together for the glory of God, for after all, two did not become one for the purpose of be...

  Are You Prepared For Death? My mind has rested upon my family several times through out this day, for, today, my great aunt on my mother’s side was “laid to rest,” as they say.  Death certainly has a way of creeping around and revealing its grim face when you least expect it. The spontaneity of my aunt’s passing has me asking myself that question we all come back to from time to time, “Am I prepared for death?” My answer? In some ways, most definitely! In other ways, I’m not so sure. Let me major on a couple areas that I have most definitely prepared myself for when it comes to dying, but first, a verse from the Scriptures! Hebrews 9:27 “…it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment…” This verse reminds us that life as we know it will come to an abrupt halt at some point…it also reveals that many will face judgments they aren’t prepared to face because they do not take the time to prepare for such judgments before their passing. This verse invited me to ...