Church guide

Pastor Woodrow Walker's Meditation: June 15 “It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools” (Ecclesiastes 7:5). The course that many have chosen is one of sensationalism and entertainment. Their religious experience is only a palatable and rhythmic sound to lull their consciences to sleep while their hearts are further hardened against the truth. The rebuke of the wise is a wakeup call to attention among the masses which are in a drunken stupor intoxicated by worldly passions. It is the awakening to God’s Truth convicting the soul in order for the Holy Spirit to turn them from darkness to light. Dispelling ignorance of God’s ways is the truest expression of God’s love, thus leading towards an expected end. It is the rebuke, not merely the words of affirmation and consolation that redirects the course of the wayward traveler. We must know where we may have strayed if we are ever to return to the perfect path. Many would merely listen to the song, the lullaby of fools. When the music comes to an end, would our eyes be fixed on the prize of the high calling of God? Truth is often painful to begin with, but it eventually becomes the salve to heal the wound that it causes.

Pastor Woodrow Walker's Meditation: June 14 “By knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches” (Proverbs 24:4). The knowledge of God is the principle thing to be attained by all who would be wise. We are built up as the House of God and the Household of Faith. God Himself is to inhabit what the Holy Spirit is establishing as His permanent residence. This has to do with our personal identity and corporate identity. We are made wise to consider how the Church is interdependent and must function as the Body of Christ. It is through our unity that we are rightly constructed. Then each part contributes to the growth of every part. Never should we become exclusive in our endeavors to please God. The small portion given to the part will only inflate the ego and eliminate it from receiving the blessings of God’s promise. If the rooms are too filled with precious and pleasant riches, each room must allow Jesus Christ in that He might rearrange the furnishings, discard of the rubbish, and restore what is broken. When the fragrance of His presence fills the room, life leading to life is the aroma of life. All is most precious because He determines the value of what He puts in place.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 13 “but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head — Christ —“ (Ephesians 4:15). The alternative to flowing with the wind and being influenced by the culture is hearing, that we might do what the Word says. It was Paul’s passion to speak only what the Lord had to say. Even though the message is a challenge to current culture, it is the expression of a higher and deeper dimension of love. It is spoken in love, when the desire of the heart of the messenger is to see those he has been called to address grow into developing the character of Christ. Often the growth of the hearers may exceed the level of the speaker, but he should not be jealous of his spiritual children. Instead, he should encourage them to take what they have received beyond his level of understanding for the Word alive within the hearer increases as seed to produce a great harvest. Ministers should not waste time addressing every other subject rather than God’s Truth. There is no growth in these side issues. Christ is the answer to every problem but He can only be known through faithful ministers. We are obligated to counter the movements that prevail against the souls of the wayward. Then they have a course set before them leading them to life.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 12 “for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1John ‪4:20‬). There is that moment in the life of every Christian when love is indiscriminately distributed. This is the mark of true conversion that one has passed from death unto life. It does not mean that the person will remain there, but if he has never been there, he has never received conversion. All too often very little is required of the seeker that limits his expectations of God. If God does not require the whole heart of the individual, how can that individual expect to receive the fullness of Christ? The test is openness to others with a heart overflowing with love. We cannot contain the authentic love of God for its objective is to be given away. Our mission is to fully follow after Him allowing His love to be shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. If we love Him we will love our brother—love, and keep His commandments.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 11 “Let Your work appear to Your servants, and Your glory to their children. And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hands” (Psalm 90:16- 17). To see with our eyes what God is doing is a blessing beyond measure. God allows His servants to see where He is in the midst of confusion and apparent hopelessness. He is there working His plan even when all appears to be still or falling apart around us. Not alone do His servants see His works, they are used by the Lord to participate in what He is doing. His works are established through His servants as evidence that He is in fact the same yesterday, today, and forevermore. He seeks those who would fully avail themselves to Him. Why should our lives be filled with clutter that works against His plan? Our greatest joy can be found in pleasing Him through reflecting His will on earth as it is in heaven. Oh that Christ might be seen today through those who earnestly and exclusively seek Him as the only stability in these uncertain times

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 10 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness” (Malachi 3:3). God Himself will purge His people as silver and gold. He has invested in the lives of His own and is committed to removing the residue that would shroud the beauty of what is deposited deep within the heart and soul. There are desires polluted and misdirected by the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches. The hearts of His leaders may be turned in the wrong direction, yet they remain His leaders; they are purged of the dross in order for His glory to shine through them. He is aware of the tendency within the heart of humanity to stray, but the fire of the refiner must burn away all that should not be. It is a painful thing to be refined but the end result is glorious! When we are tried, we will come forth as pure gold. Offerings are not enough to please our Lord. He seeks after an offering in righteousness. It is the life of the offeror that qualifies him to give Him what He has requested. The Lord is purifying His servants in order for pure words to come forth from pure hearts.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 9 “It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ's sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb” (1Peter ‪1:18-19‬). The grace of God has been freely given to us but it is not cheap. Love requires sacrifice. And the more we love the greater the sacrifice. Since God is able to see the depth of our sinful state, only He would be able to convey to us what we needed in order to be set free. The naïve may think that a moderate adjustment is sufficient to stop the free-fall to destruction. But who, independent of God, is able to know the effect of even apparently innocent acts upon the character? This is the environment in which all were raised. No one knows any other life than this. But God knew of our need for help. And He supplied it before we had the sense to desire it. Jesus Christ, God’s Son redeemed us with His blood while we were yet sinners. Now all must apply what has been appropriated for us if any is ever to benefit from such great a sacrifice

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 8 “I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God's great mystery. All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we've been shown the mystery! I'm telling you this because I don't want anyone leading you off on some wild-goose chase, after other so-called mysteries, or ’the Secret’ " (Colossians 2:2-4 MSG). The knowledge of God connects as a woven tapestry of love. Each part finds its significance in the whole thus touching every aspect of each life. The problem lies in one trying to understand and find answers to the influx of life’s questions apart from the Truth. It is there and has always existed, but that aspect of Christ yet to be known contains what is presently needed. Do not lose your focus on Him. When you do, you are out of focus. Other things may appear as more than they are. They are but smoke and mirrors, tricks of the enemy to lure you away from your primary purpose. The further you travel down that road the more confused you will become. Wisdom is embedded in the mysteries of Christ and nowhere else. Know this and you will be wise in your pursuit of wisdom.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 7 “Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach” (Mark 3:14). The series of events are in sequential order. First they were appointed that they might be with Him. Then they were sent out to preach. If they had not come to Him when He called them to be with Him, they would not be in position to be sent out. They learned from Him how to live and what to preach by being with Him. It is not enough to merely hear about Him from a book or word of mouth. The experience must be personal. We are called to an intimate relationship with Him. His life is an open book to those who will to know Him. But to the casual inquirer, He is misunderstood and often maligned. They accuse Him of things that are not a part of His character because they only know Him from a distance. John, the beloved disciple laid His head upon His breast. Peter the Zealot stepped out of the boat in order to join in on what Christ was experiencing while walking on the water. Intimacy includes both emotional and experiential connections.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 6 “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift” (Ephesians 4:7). The Lord has dispensed to each member of the Body of Christ a measure of grace. We have been enabled to function as a whole but yet dependent on every part doing its share. It is from the wholeness of the Body of Christ the witness of Jesus is made known to the world. A fragment may have an effect to a degree, but the full effect can only be experienced when we come together as a whole. Coming together and sharing together as one is the prayer of Jesus Christ. The enemy’s attempts to divide the Body may have delayed the witness but can never destroy the witness. There will be a people equipped for service with understanding of the times, and a clearer knowledge of purpose in the last days. They will not hoard their gifts as exclusive to their party, but see the whole as being greater than the sum of its parts. It is through the synergized efforts of the Church that the world will know that Christ has come down from the Father. Then the love of God can be shed abroad in our hearts by way of the Holy Spirit impacting the world in areas where the need is the greatest

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 5 “God is far higher than you can imagine, far deeper than you can comprehend” (Job 11:8 MSG). Dimensions of God extend far beyond our imaginations. It is impossible for any of us to understand what is to be known of God. Even those with vivid imaginations who can create fiction with such realism as to draw out tender emotions from the coldest of hearts are left wanting in comparison to the majesty of God. There are no limits to Him. The only way to describe Him is through the use of superlatives in contrast to what is known. He is higher than the heavens. He is deeper than Sheol, or the depths of hell. There are some who cannot accept what they cannot fully understand. They restrict themselves to the finiteness of their own minds which cannot be expanded to understand spiritual things. Only those who believe on His Name are given the opportunity to explore the depths of God. Throughout eternity, the mysteries of His Kingdom will forever be our quest and our joy in their fulfillment. We now see it, we have the privilege to enter into it, and ultimately we will know its mysteries as we explore its height, width, breadth, and depth throughout eternity

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 4 For He says, ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation, I have helped you. Behold, now is the accepted time; and behold now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). When the gospel of Jesus Christ is heard, the day of salvation and the accepted time of deliverance comes. Eternity is interjected into time in order to produce within the soul what would otherwise be impossible. It may appear to be so simple, and often it is taken for granted and generalized among many other statements that are made but not fully understood. But something more dynamic has happened. Its entrance is so subtle that those seeking the spectacular will often miss it. The grace to become what the Lord has promised is introduced through such simple words as these. They prepare the heart and soul to be with Christ and to reign with Him throughout eternity. We have been given the assignment and the authority to deliver salvation to a dying world. As the Holy Spirit so directs us, we can speak His Word with power and at that very moment a life-changing experience occurs among the hearers. We cannot afford to be silent. God will use somebody. Why not us

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: June 3 “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3). In an age of diversity, tolerance, and political correctness, to speak exclusively that One would stand out among the crowd condemning all others beside as false, lifeless, and insignificant is seen as intolerant. So it is with God who has no respect for other gods. None other is to be worshiped than the Father through His Son, Jesus Christ. What is most difficult to many is to understand the effect of original sin. None had access because of man’s nature as sinners. When sin is ignored then the need for a Savior is unnecessary. But thanks be to God, a provision was made through the death of His own Son that we might be redeemed! Idolatry is the pursuit of a god that is either after Him or in place of Him. He must stand alone if He is to be worshiped. Renounce any idols in your life that may be competing for your exclusive obedience to Him.

Pastor Woodrow Walker's Meditation: June 2 “For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required” (Luke 12:48). God expects a return on His investments. The gifts of God are given to each person in order for all to profit as the result of His distributions. It is not based on what most would consider as the criteria for God’s judgments. God is not equal in His judgments, but He is equitable. Grace is freely given, but God determines who will receive what is being distributed. Yet we may covet what we deem as necessary, but it must only be for the advancement of His kingdom and not our own. When our hearts yearn to do more for God and we feel powerless to fully participate with Him in what He wills to do, it is in order to seek Him for the empowering gifts that would further qualify us. Yet in our earnestness to receive, it does not obligate Him to any measure to give us what we consider to be necessary. He will give us what He knows is best for us as well as what’s best for others. But, the warning is not to frustrate the grace of God. What God gives must be used as He wills for it to be used. God requires faithfulness of His servants. Only then are they obedient and not wicked.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: May 31 “For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1Samuel 16:7). The external things may be impressive and rewarding to those who would settle for less than God’s approval. Men celebrate success and imitate the lives of those who appear to have accomplished what they, one day, wish to achieve. It is often that gifts and talents may carry a person where character cannot maintain them. Their truest nature will all too often peek around the corner and betray them, thus exposing their motives. We cannot fool ourselves, nor will ourselves into having the heart of Christ. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to change our hearts so that our will is to do His will. All other works are rejected because the motives are not pure. We must pray that God will give us a clean and pure heart and a steadfast spirit. Then we must constantly pray that nothing will enter into our hearts to turn us away from remaining pure before God.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: May 30 “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1Peter 1:6). Faith is placed on trial when you are given a seemingly legitimate reason to rebel against God as the result of current circumstances and the decisions of others. Logically the thing to do would be to disobey God and partake of the forbidden, or curse God for relief that does not seem to be on the horizon or even a part of the plan. One is for self-gratification and the other is to remedy the effect of constant misery. Faith rises in the midst of trials as being more precious than whatever the outcome would have been if you had relented in the midst of your greatest and most fierce battles. It is precious because in the end, God will prove Himself to be faithful. He will reward those who do not cave in under pressure, and will avenge them from their enemies. It is also the proof of character to further convince you of the Holy Spirit yet working in you in spite of the challenges you may be facing. You will see Jesus Christ in a way that would otherwise be impossible unless you had passed the test. It is worth it to maintain your focus in the midst of trials. There will be great rejoicing on the part of the faithful.

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: May 29 “And the tongue is a fire, a world ofiniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell” (James 3:6-7). Words give expression to the disposition of the heart. Eventually, not always immediately, the mouth will be engaged in speaking the truest feelings that reside deep within the soul. It is never a matter of merely guarding your words in order to sound off appropriate expressions. The issue must be addressed at its root. From the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. When the heart is rightly governed, the tongue is sure to follow. But what comes out of a man defiles him for when he speaks he spreads the contagion to others. You are responsible for how you influence the people with whom you come in contact. Not just your body, but the whole body is defiled and set to follow the course of nature. It is what you have heard in the past that has influenced your future. Sweet water must flow from a pure fountain for no bitter water is contained there. God gave you a new heart in order for His Word to be given expression through a new creature. Now guard your heart so that the old references are no longer your conversation

Pastor Woodrow Walker's Meditation: May 28 ‘‘Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low” (Isaiah 40:4). God reaches down to valleys in order to lift them up and pulls down ever-exalted mountain. He encounters the mighty when they trust in their own strength. Nothing is able to stand above Him. These mountains stand to challenge His authority. His is the power to uphold mountains, and He has the right to remove them. By His Word mountains quake and the earth trembles. He is awesome in power and majesty. Yet He dwells in the high and holy place with the humble and the contrite. He exalts the valleys. The same power that brings mountains down is the power that lifts valleys up. The purity of their hearts permits them to see God. Their perspective is not the same as those who have lofty goals and are selfish in nature. They possess His heart. Their wills are in synch with His will. The way up is down and the way down is up. So different from the nature of fallen man, but the way of life that leads us down the path of life.

Woodrow Walker's Meditation: May 26 May 26 “And the disciples came and said to Him, ’Why do You speak to them in parables?" (Matthew 13:10). He spoke to them with simplicity, but with profundity. There were natural things that they were able to see and understand. Therefore the language of Jesus was overly simplistic. Often His message is ignored because those to whom it has not been given may easily dismiss truths with such depth that the sharpest of minds may spend a lifetime examining one sentence, yet not be able to scratch the surface of its meaning. God has “hidden these things from the wise and the prudent and has revealed them unto babes.” There is a language that is coded for those whose hearts are open to receive the message. One must have a heart of understanding in order to have a mind of understanding. When Jesus speaks, we must hear Him with our hearts and not just our ears. The parables separated the seekers from the groupies. There are crowds that gather for entertainment. There is a select few who want to know the Lord. They have blessed ears to hear, eyes to see, and hearts to understand

Pastor Woodrow Walker’s Meditation: May 24 God, my strength, my stronghold, my safe retreat when trouble descends” (Jeremiah 16:19 MSG). God does more than provide strength thus leaving us with the responsibility of knowing how to apply the pressure where most needed. He is our strength, upholding us when we are in our most weakened state, and warding off the enemies lurking around to take advantage of our vulnerabilities. As long as we maintain our focus on Jesus, He will fight our battles. And He upholds us with the right hand of His righteousness. When we enter into battle alone, we are prey to be devoured by one with more force, shrewdness, and experience in deceiving the self-confident. But when we humbly submit to the Lord, we are in the safest place we could possibly be. Trouble may bear down upon us as a storm that is out of control. Yet our God is our refuge in times of trouble. God is my strength, my security, and my sanctuary. I praise Him as my weapon of war, and worship Him as my place of rest

"The Heart of God" Children's Ministry tribute for all Moms. Happy Mother's Day!

More Than Conquerors, Inc. Mock Wedding featured this morning on Channel 11 WXAI. The play will be held at Cross Culture Church this Saturday, March 23rd at 4PM.

Pastor Woodrow Walker's message during his 70th birthday celebration.

Pastor Solly Mahlangu Ministers at CCC Midweek Service Wednesday, September 19th at 7PM

Join us for Midweek Bible Study this Wednesday evening at 7PM when Pastor Gregg Johnson will be continuing his message from Sunday. https://livestream.com/ccclithonialive/events/8361729 Spread the word.

Hightlights from Cross Culture Church Mission Team ministry in KIngston, Jamaica

Join us this evening as Apostle Oscar Hoffmeester from Capetown, South Africa ministers

Powerful Ministry continues tonight at CCC 7PM with Pastor Luke Van Weren & Apostle Omar Morton. SPREAD THE WORD

Our 38th Anniversary Celebration continues with Pastor Gregory Smith tonite @ 7pm, Bishop Matthew Ferguson on Sunday, March 11th @ 10am and 4pm and Pastor Tracy Howard next Wednesday, March 14 @ 7pm. Please join us for the celebration! We look forward to seeing you!

Cross Culture Church Celebrates 38 Years of Ministry