Crossroads East Liberty

Breakfast Video

2010-04-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

Watch this new video about our 9:30am FREE breakfast!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZxi8QBq06A

Good Friday Sermon

2010-04-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

Here is a text of my message from our Good Friday Service...

Welcome...It has already been a very long week. Jesus enters the city on Sunday to the cheers and crowds. It has been a powerful week of teaching, intrigue, confrontation, and politics. The hopes of the disciples have been raised, dashed crushed, and raised again. It is Passover week and there is a heightened sense of frustration, of expectancy.

Sort of like the feeling before an election. Some fear change, some look for it quickly. Some despise their situation, others look to the past for memories. Some don’t even care. Some are oblivious. There is a distrust of leadership, insecurity, financial concerns. 1st century Jerusalem can be a stressful place…

Good Friday actually began a number of hours ago. Jesus has not been to sleep yet. After leaving the comfortable surroundings in the upper room where they celebrate the Seder, they make their way to the garden. Jesus asks his disciples to pray, so they don’t fall into testing. But he is about to face his greatest test. The disciples begin to get it at the Seder, something just ain’t right.

Once in the garden, Jesus begins to feel it, he begins to feel emotions in the moment. He asks his father if this is really what you want…

22:43 tells us, “An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.” The Father sends an angel at this crucial moment to give Jesus what he needs.

22:44 (And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.) tells us that Jesus (Agonizesthai) enters the agony/struggle. And it is my invitation to you this evening to enter the struggle. Some of you have been fasting today, actively doing things, but now I want you to enter in.

Jesus is arrested, brought before a false court and read false charges. His exchanges with the Sanhedrin and Pilate and bought meaningful and pointless. We already know where this story is going…

Given that we know where the story is going, that is the challenge of this whole week. The challenge of the day. We know the story of the cross, we have heard it for years, many of you have seen the movies, Jesus Film, Passion of the Christ. But how do you enter in to it?

There is a lot that upsets us about the story, the midnight trial, the beating, the skirge.

The choice between Barabbas and Jesus is ironic, are you kidding me? But like much that happens in our lives, we are left to shrug… “It figures!” We are all kind of used to things going bad. People getting away with it. It stinks when we know there is an injustice and it still goes on. But what can you do? Nothing really changes.

It is hard to watch this stuff, but the reality is I don’t want you to watch, I want you to step in to the agony.

There is a line between us and this event. For most of this story we are not involved. V. 27 tells us, “A large number of people followed him.” For most of this the crowd stays uninvolved. The religious leaders get involved with what they say, the Guards contribute, even the criminals get involved…But the crowd, just follows behind, watching.

Like a wreck on the Parkway, we all slow down to look. I’m annoyed at what has slowed my progress, I wish people just kept going, but when you get up to it, you still pause to look at the extent of the damage. Oh man, that one is really bad. You might even pray for the people. But then you keep going.

Then there is a point where the story breaks into the crowd in a violent way. V. 26 tells us that they seized Simon…they didn’t ask. He was made to pick up the cross and follow Jesus. The crowd and Simon follow Jesus. Not the perfect picture of discipleship.

For many of us we have watched, voyeured at this day. Some of us know lots of trivia. Why do they call it good? I was always fascinated about historical accounts about Pilate, the trial, etc. I read doctors accounts of what happened medically to Jesus, the pain of Crucifixion.

But at this point, I am still just watching. I am going to church… I guess that counts. But I am still watching, glad that I’m not Simon.

Why I am not involved? …Oh it’s very risky. Why? Because there is a point where getting involved changes everything.

There is a point in our own personal faith where Jesus has to die. For most of us the Jesus that dies is a complete victim. In the way our story is crafted. He is the tragic hero. He is the martyr. I mean, he is the nicest guy I have ever met. He doesn’t raise his voice, he doesn’t pick up the rock against the adultress. He would play football with my kids if he had the chance. He would totally go to Starbucks with me and watch the final four. He is my buddy, He is a plastic Jesus.

Then… Sometimes we struggle with things like unanswered prayers, sometimes we doubt. Sometimes we struggle with the emotions of feeling abandoned by God, asking the Father, just like Jesus in the garden…do I really have to go through this?

We mumble, “Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” Hating the words as they come out. I really don’t want to go through this. Why can’t you just fix this? Why would this nice guy not do everything we ask of him? Then we read a best seller about the purpose driven Jesus or the Jesus that will expand our borders and we are patient with him a little longer. We read the “Footprints” poem on someone’s wall, and we sigh and go on.

The disciples usually are portrayed as lazy in the garden. They can’t stay awake. Luke points out in 22:45, they were sleeping for sorrow. I have known that feeling. That feeling that the world is so painful, all I want to do is sleep. The disciples have caught on, perhaps to realizing following Jesus means something entirely different. How could they have followed Jesus for years and not gotten what it means to be a disciple? How could they indeed. How could I? Rather than face the fact that their image of Jesus, their image of God is falling apart, they fall asleep. Some of us have done the same thing.

Fell asleep.

That is what makes today so vital.

But when this plastic Jesus dies, when this Jesus doesn’t work, we still hold on, we don’t quit on the faith or the church. When the fairy tale Jesus stops working for us, we just slip back into the crowd. We have too much invested. If I have doubts, at least I still have a great group of friends around me. I can stay involved from back here.

And when this Jesus dies, I will dutifully go to the tomb with spices and prepare his body. For many the Christ that dies on Good Friday is the Historical Christ of a dead and dry faith. This week is just a walking through the motions. Going through the stations of this week are like going to rides at the carnival. They are neat for a few minutes.

That’s not the real Jesus. The real Jesus is the prophet we see in Luke, in the last few minutes of his life he is still doing it.

He is still praying, even more earnestly, calling his disciples to pray, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation."

He is still healing. He even heals the guy who had his ear cut off. After the trial he is delivering prophecy,

Jesus turned and said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. For the time will come when you will say, 'Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!' Then " 'they will say to the mountains, "Fall on us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!" ' For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?"

Don’t cry for me…cry for yourselves. That is what this is about. This scene is an injustice, but that is why he is doing it. He suffers this so we can be with him.

He is still forgiving, (23:34 "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.") he is still giving words of peace (23:43 "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."). It is harsh, it is blunt, it is courageous. Luke tells us that Jesus is not going to go quietly. He is still Jesus, the real Jesus even to his last breath.

Luke gives us a picture of Jesus that doesn’t fit with our notions…Luke’s telling, how he frames this ending is the most unfamiliar to us. It would be a lot more comfortable for Jesus to stay quiet as this happens, but he doesn’t, he keeps engaging us, he keeps speaking to us. He speaks of paradise, warns of the future. He reassures us this is not the last chapter. He doesn’t bend, he doesn’t break, He keeps inviting us.

Paul tells us in Philippians 3:10, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection, and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death.”

To know God, to know Christ—To be godly in the deepest sense is to know the suffering of God, the utter grief He knows because of our abandoning him. This is what Christ experienced on the cross—the abandonment of it all. It is what we must experience if we are to know Christ intimately and to be like him. It is what we must experience if we are to truly understand, at a place in our souls, the measure of God’s love for us.

Undoubtedly, you have noticed the mirrors. That might be a bit uncomfortable, as much of this experience has tried to create. The meaning is simply this, you can’t look at the cross without looking at yourself. You can’t be a spectator, a rubbernecker. You can’t stay in the crowd. You can’t just watch.

On this Good Friday, the reality for you is this, the invitation for you is clear. Step into the agony, step into the suffering. If you really want to understand discipleship, you have to be seized, you have to carry the cross, follow behind him. You have to see yourself on the cross and let it transform you. Don’t watch, don’t stare, don’t rubberneck.

I know you are anxious for Easter. Thankfully the scriptures don’t waste any time moving from the burial to Resurrection Sunday. Thank goodness. But we can’t rush. Our Christian experience is Good Friday and Easter all the time, it is death and resurrection. There are days when the Power of God is obvious and days when the Power of God is not obvious. THE POWER OF GOD IS JUST AS REAL ON BOTH DAYS.

Luke knows something very true, it is this Jesus that changes lives. He records it in Acts. On this good Friday, let the fake Jesus die, allow yourself to be seized. Share in the suffering of the true Christ and understand what this day is all about.

Pastor David's Sermon

2010-03-24T12:22:00.000-07:00

Check out Pastor David speaking to youth of Crossroads:
http://vimeo.com/10018146

The Future of East Liberty

2010-03-08T07:02:00.000-08:00

Check out this Article from the NY Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/03/realestate/03pittsburgh.html

To Turn The Other Cheek in Pittsburgh

2010-03-03T02:54:00.000-08:00

This is my family's first winter in Pittsburgh. I sure picked a winner. Everyone said that Pittsburgh gets cold, a little snow, but that's it. What the reality has been is one of the most dramatic winters in Pittsburgh's history. When the first blizzard hit, we could not get into our vehicle for 3 days. We walked to the grocery store and drug store...there was no other choice in East Liberty.

One of the things I quickly learned about was the chair. The folding chair is an important tool in Pittsburgh. Once you shovel yourself out, you realize a few things. One that was a lot of work, two that the rest of the street still has snow, you have just enough room to get your car out and back in once you return. Also if I pull out and someone else pulls in then I have lost my space and there is no where for my car to park.

The solution is the chair. The chair serves as a placeholder. Don't take my spot. During the first few days of the storm, we made a fatal error...we forgot to put the chair out. Sure enough, someone put their car in our spot. My wife went out to politely ask if the person could move. The answer was a quick no...too bad. My wife's request turned to pleading, which was supported by the neighbors out shoveling. They all knew how important this was, and the time they had put in as well. She finally left and we had the spot again.

That same day we discovered that someone had stolen our shovel. My shovel! Someone stole my shovel. I spent the whole day going from store to store looking for a shovel. Everyone was sold out due to the storm (which is probably why it got stolen to begin with). I finally found one at a Home Depot 40 minutes from my house.

I mentioned these both in a sermon the following week at church. My point was on forgiveness and letting it go. Well a few days later, it happened again. But this time the crime of all crimes happened. Someone moved our chairs and they parked their vehicle in our spot. Anger upon Anger filled my heart. I immediately wanted to go out and do harm. I wanted to pour water on the car, put honey on the car handle, re-bury the car with snow, place my chairs on top of the chair. But what I ended up doing was...nothing. I tried to let it go.

Luke 6 says, "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Whether it is a chair, a cloak, a shovel, or a parking spot. Letting Jesus' words transform me is hard stuff. God may you keep working on me this day.

Riding the Bus!

2010-01-22T02:30:00.000-08:00

I had a cool experience today. I rode a bus. Now on the surface, that doesn’t sound all that exciting. But this bus ride was cool. I have a good friend through our ministry at East Liberty who works for the Port Authority. He drives a bus route for people in East Liberty every day. We have been very busy promoting our new breakfast ministry at our church. Cayenne (the bus driver…cool name) has given me permission to sit on the bus during his route, pass out invitations and talk to people. It is amazing what you come in contact with on a bus. It is a cross-section of society. Everything from the homeless guy, who can’t find his bus pass to the business person heading home from work.

I met a lot of people, passed out a lot of invites, and had the opportunity to pray with one lady. What did I learn? people will talk with you if you approach them. People will talk with you if you listen. if you ask questions, people will answer.

I also learned that people are looking for something. They are looking for what is different, what interrupts the routine. Some people are just glad to be noticed. You could see people getting on the bus with heavy burdens. Getting people to smile is sometimes a challenge. If you want a heart for people, for a city, for an area…spend time with the people.

Happy New Year

2010-01-08T03:35:00.000-08:00

How can I have a happy new year?

Everyone has a theory on how to have a great year. Right now people are talking about resolutions, changes, starting over. All of these are good, but here are a few thoughts for you as you begin a new year, a new decade.

Only God brings change...If you want a resolution, make the best resolution possible...get your relationship with God back on track. If you haven't talked to God recently, spend some time doing that today.
Don't try to do a bunch of new things...master the things you are supposed to do. Setting new goals within your life, your family, your work, your small group, your ministry will be a lot easier to maintain than a list of impossibles.
Fix relationships...making sure there is no static in the important areas of your life will energize you in other areas. It is a very interesting idea to know the connection between your goals and your relationships. Many people wonder why the diet doesn't work, the promotion never happens, the stuff never changes. My first question is this...how are the key relationships in your life right now?
Read God's word daily. If this isn't a daily thing fix it today. If you don't do a regular SOAP make it your goal to begin that today. I also do a podcast called the Daily Audio Bible. It is good for people like me who are audio learners. See the links to the right.
Connect to a small group. If you haven't gotten involved with small groups yet, make this a priority. It is going to help you grow and give you the support you need to reach out to those around you.

Bonners Work Day at EL

2009-09-29T22:48:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, we hosted a group from West Virginia Wesleyan College. They helped paint the main floor of the East Liberty building and helped clean. They put together a little slide show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5Gqtm8hKgA

The G-20

2009-09-26T01:54:00.000-07:00

I live in Pittsburgh, and this week Pittsburgh has been the focus of a lot of attention. Pittsburgh hosted the G-20 Summit. For 2 days the world turned upside down here. Representatives from dozens of nations came together to meet. While I am not all that interested in what the G20 talked about, or accomplished, it was intriguing to watch the organized chaos of the city. Protestors began gathering throughout the week. Though it should be compared to other G20s, it was still pretty hectic.

On Thursday, I celebrated a birthday. My family wanted to take me out to dinner. We drove down from our home and turned onto Liberty Ave. Liberty was one of the hot spots of the city. Our goal was a small little Mexican restaurant. But instead of finding chips and salsa, we were met by police, troopers, swat teams, busses of soldiers, motorcycles, hummers, trucks, low-flying helicopters, guns, etc. It was a scene straight from a movie. I thought for sure the Joker was going to show up and turn the town upside down.

Needless to say, I didn't get my chips and Salsa. Once we landed in a restaurant (chinese) we were watching CNN and saw scenes of protesting, windows, being broken, arrests, etc. It was interesting because as we were watching we realized, this is just a few blocks away.

Very cool, very stressful.

My mind went to a few different places, one of the was this, "Do we impact our culture and our cities like the G20?" Now I am not talking about throwing bricks, wearing masks, and being an acarchist. But I am talking about impact. for two days, G20 impacted Pittsburgh. Everyone was talking about it, everyone was affected by it. Every retailer, school, public servant, hospitality center was affected by G20.

Could the church ever affect the city like this? It did at one point. Acts 2 tells us about the G20. When Pentecost came upon the disciples, the 120 that had gathered in the upper room spilled into the streets. The whole city was in an uproar.

The church needs to make an impact. Allowing the Spirit to shape us can bring about something bigger than the G20.

Acts 2

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs--we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?" Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine. "

Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: " 'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

Connecting with Kindness

2009-08-03T09:31:00.000-07:00

Had a great morning today. We are doing a lot of Servant Evangelism this week. We are excited about our movie event coming up this weekend, but more importantly we are excited about connecting with people.

Today we did a Bus Stop Breakfast. We made about 200 simple bags with a granola bar, a capri sun, and an AOK card.

We went to the major bus station in East Liberty around 7am and we handed them out. It was a lot of fun. It only took about an hour, and got a ton of good reactions.

One lady had just missed the bus, and was on her way to having a very bad morning. I gave her a breakfast bag, and you coulld see her whole demeanor change. Had a cool quick conversation with her. The best past of SE is seeing people react. Making someone smile, shocking people, etc. It's pretty cool.

Good way to start the week.

High Rise Implosion

2009-07-28T20:23:00.001-07:00

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09138/970898-53.stm

East Liberty Becomes A Vibrant Community

2009-07-28T20:08:00.000-07:00

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09159/975799-53.stm

Red Wings Fan in Pittsburgh

2009-07-03T09:56:00.000-07:00

I am a Hockey Fan. I am a Red Wings fan. God in all his wisdom called me to Pittsburgh. His sense of humor shines when I arrive in Pittsburgh during the Stanley cup playoffs in which my team the Red Wings are battling the Penquins.

I am used to a hockey crazed town. Growing up in Detroit as a young boy, I was used to seeing Red and White everywhere. I know about the Octopus, the whole deal.

Being in Pittsburgh during the Stanley Cup was like being in a foreign land. There was no Red and White. All this Black and Gold. Pure torture.

A few things to be said. How can you not respect the Penguins. Coming off a huge game 5 loss, they showed a lot of heart. The fans in Pittsburgh are really great. Watching everyone in our church celebrate was really cool (though personally painful).

Pittsburgh is a cool town, just in the sports area. I really have enjoyed it my first few weeks here. I can empathize with having teams like the Pirates. Almost as bad as being a Lions fan.

The coolest thing is God is a fan of us, not teams, not cities, not players. I know there was much "praying" in two cities during the Stanley Cup. But the greatest piece is that he loves me and knows where I am, regardless of city.

What Happened to the Andersons?

2009-05-31T01:48:00.000-07:00

We are in Pittsburgh!

I am writing to friends in California, Reno, Virginia, Atlanta. Some of you getting this know that we have moved to Pittsburgh, some of you getting this might be hearing this for the first time.

What happened?

As most of you know or were a part of, we went out to Reno in 2007 for the purposes of starting a church.

We had an exciting process leading up to the launch in the Fall of 2008. We launched with 117 people and in the course of 4 months saw 37 decisions for Christ. It was one of the most amazing experiences of our life.

That being said, we experienced some huge setbacks. There was this thing called the economy that took it’s toll on Reno. We were renting a movie theater downtown to reach into the area. It was a great location, but expensive. What we soon discovered was that the congregation we were attracting was very needy. In fact over 50% of the group was homeless, and that percentage grew week after week. We were torn. We were seeing great things happen in people’s lives, and yet we were seeing our funds disappear quickly.

Then tragedy struck on the personal side. While in Reno, I was working for my father-in-law. His business suffered an unexpected economic set back in November. We basically watched the business shut down in front of us. I soon found myself unemployed. Not a good place to be with our large family.

What followed was a series of crushing events that brought us to one of the darkest places in our life. Through November and December we searched for income solutions and employment to no avail. The economy affected every part of our life. Reno has struggled more than most cities. 20% of all commercial property in the city of Reno is vacant. Economists in Nevada think it will be 3 to 4 years before Reno will see true recovery. Needless to say there was no one hiring. We also saw our own denomination struggling financially, so while they were as helpful as they could possibly be, it was not sustainable.

January was a very hard time. In January, we decided to stop meeting at the theater. This was coupled by moving out of our house into a 3 bedroom apartment, selling much of our belongings in the process.

Words cannot express the pain and frustration that we experienced in February. Watching our dreams and vision go away coupled with personal financial hardship was extremely difficult.

February and March were some of the lowest points I have ever experienced. I have read much about people experiencing the “dark night of the soul” or the “desert season.” Feeling like God has completely disappeared. That is where we were. It affected our emotions, relationships, our marriage was stressed, the kids felt insecure. It was pretty bad.

I had no idea that he was preparing us for something new.

After we stopped meeting in the theater, I entered into a process where I began sending out resumes. Resumes went out to everything I could find in Reno and everything across the country. That was simply our prayer. “God if you want us to stay in Reno, open a door. We will stay here or go anywhere.” That is a crazy prayer to pray. We kept meeting with people downtown, tried to stay connected to other downtown works and opportunities. We looked for every possible scenario that would keep us in Reno.

I was soon contacted by a church in Pittsburgh. When I first heard Pittsburgh…I mean, Pittsburgh? I could have picked 100 cities before Pittsburgh. This church called Crossroads wanted me to help them move along their multi-site model. They had begun a work in urban Pittsburgh, but needed someone to bring it to the next level. They saw my resume, background, and asked if I could bring what I was doing in Reno to Pittsburgh.

After a series of conversations, where I gave them every reason to look elsewhere, they kept coming back to me. They invited us out in April for a week long interview assessment process. Making a long story short, we felt like this was the place for us.

The process of making the transition came very quickly. Much of May has been spent packing up and moving out. I came out the second week of May, and have gotten right to work. Shawna and the kids spent a few weeks visiting friends and family in California.

We are still in transition, but everything looks pretty good right now. We are excited about this new chapter and look forward to what God has in store.

The last few weeks have been rejuvenating and refreshing, and I am feeling like my old self again. One of my goals is to spend time reconnecting.

Thank you for your continued prayers and love.

David