THE CROSSING WEEKLY
LOOKING AHEAD
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 1ST
Dreamers’ Ranch is excited to announce a new and innovative opportunity ahead and we want you to be a part! Over the next two weeks, we are raising $100,000 to secure 48 head of cattle for our new youth cattle program that will impact lives, families, and communities! Will you join us?
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 27th - SUNDAY NOVEMBER 28th
24 Hour Prayer Burn from 8PM – 8PM come pray for the new month, the holiday season, and for our community, and nation.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 3rd & SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4th
Check out our video and learn what Christmas at the Crossing is all about! Partner in our mission to spread Christmas cheer to the community, volunteer below.
We have many ways you can volunteer from greeting to crafts – and everything in between! Click the button below to find out more.
Calling ALL bakers! We are transforming our bake sale into something special this year, click the button below to find out more.
JOIN US WEEKLY
EY (Emerging Youth) 6:30 PM, is a gathering of ages of 12 – 18. Contact Josiah Armstrong to get involved jarmstrong@lifealliance.org
Prayer Furnace 7 PM in the sanctuary, come pray and worship with us!
Young Adult Group 7 PM, contact Laura to get involved messinanc@gmail.com
Life Groups are at the core of our community expression and are the primary place for connecting with people in our community at a personal level. Find one near you!
Celebrate Recovery 7:30 PM in the sanctuary – Celebrate Recovery is a Christ-centered, 12 step recovery program for anyone struggling with hurt, pain or addiction of any kind. Contact Aaron to get involved aaron_tocci@yahoo.com
Life Groups are at the core of our community expression and are the primary place for connecting with people in our community at a personal level. Find one near you!
First Principles classes are at 6:30 PM. The First Principles Series is a set of 13, six-session Bible study guides used to establish believers and churches in the Christian faith. New enrollment occurs in fall and spring. Learn more about First Principles!
Coffee and Conversation Women join us every third Saturday morning of the month from 9 AM – 12 PM, contact Anna Benedict Anna.benedict@gmail.com
Worship Service 10 AM. Find our messages HERE.
Children’s Church drop off times are from 9:40 AM – 10:15 AM. Kingdom Kids (age 1-5) is across the street at the Daycare. Power Kids (ages 6-11) is in the main building’s hall. Learn more about Children’s Church.
Café Kerygma is our very own cafe which opens at 9:30 AM for coffee and fellowship.
Dreamers’ Ranch sells their products from 12-12:30, or directly after service. Come buy our beef, lamb, pork, and eggs as available.
SCHOOL OF WARRIOR ARTS:
NOT YOUR AVERAGE DOJO
Picture this – take a practice of self-defense, punches, kicks, blocks…add some exercise and physical development…throw in some moral character education and philosophy… and now, dunk it! BAPTIZE IT in The Gospel of Jesus Christ! That’s how The School of Warrior Arts (SOWA) came into existence!
With passionate vision, SOWA hit the scene in the fall of 2014 as a ministry to The Crossing Life family and surrounding communities. While it began through offering a “dojo” (a place to practice “the way” of martial art), the purpose has always been to become an extended campus housing all the arts, academics, prayer and healing, fitness and nutrition …all Jesus-centered and unto empowering the whole being – body, soul, spirit!
As a dojo, SOWA does not exist solely to teach self-defense; rather, we use the dojo as a creative context for discipleship. “Self defense” in this context takes on more than just defending our physical bodies against attack. Even embedded in SOWA’s logo, “the dojo” takes on a layered meaning as students do not enter to merely practice the way of a traditional martial arts, but rather to practice The Way of the True Master and Sensei, Jesus Christ.
Every dojo has a creed and will talk around the “virtues of a black belt.” For SOWA students, our creed expanded to include “I intend to honor God in all that I am and do, and I commit my practice to be pleasing in the Lord’s sight.” And our black belt virtues are none other than The Fruits of The Spirit. We teach these on the mats and talk about where they can be practiced off the mats in life via what we call “mat chats”, character application emails, (and coming soon) “Bushido Bytes”, our first official podcast, and hopes of “Bushido Books” being published in the coming year as well!
SOWA has just celebrated 7 years of forging a Christ-centered program, and has recently added music lessons and dance classes. SOWA is also a forerunner of a faith-based program in the prestigious traditional martial art association, the Uechi Ryu Butokukai based out of Atkinson NH. Under the head instruction of Josiah Armstrong (4th degree black belt), SOWA has promoted one Nidan (adult 2nd degree BB), six Shodan (teen/adult 1st degree BBs), and two Level 1 Jr. black belts! This is a great accomplishment as it takes a minimum of 3 1/2 to 5 years to reach a Shodan/Level 1 rank; (These Jr. black belts are 10 and 11 years old!!! That’s incredible!)
Over the past 2 years, in the midst of world wide adversity, SOWA has prevailed and triumphed! The staff, students, and families of SOWA, learning to be grounded in their Faith, have proved stronger than opposing forces by becoming those who live with G.R.I.T. – Grace, Resilience, Innovation, and Truth (more on that to come! Hint, hint).
Need a fresh kick in the pants? We can do that! Seriously though, being a student of a martial art, especially an art that has been washed by and infused with The Gospel, can be an incredible “restart” in many ways. We’d love to see you on the mats! Check out SOWA’s web page for detailed information on classes and the opportunity for a 4-week trial. You can also reach out to Josiah Armstrong or Susan Michelson for more information.
(Pictured below are this year’s graduates! Left to right: Susan Michelson (Nidan); Sensei Josiah Armstrong; Josh Ozaroff (Shodan); Finn Christensen-Kraft (Shodan); (front left to right) Skye Michelson (Lvl 1 Jr. BB); Leo Tanguay (Lvl 1 Jr. BB)
We’d love to know… Is God on the move in your life? If you have a testimony, click the button below to share in an upcoming edition of The Crossing Weekly!