Preparing for Worship
 
March 15, 2026
www.crossroadswsks.com

WHAT TO PRAY THIS WEEK
Speaker: Nate Butler

Pray for those who will lead in worship:
Clayton Portneir
Nate Butler
Pray that the Holy Spirit will move in our corporate gatherings, leading us to exalt Jesus Christ.
Pray that CCC will grow in Christ-exalting, Kingdom advancing ministry in 2026.
Pray that God will move on us to be more evangelistic and, through our obedience in sharing the Gospel, will save many.
Pray that we will become a house of prayer.
Pray that we will pursue lost people as Jesus did (Luke 19:10)
 
Nate’s sermon for this Sunday is entitled: “Who Goes First” using Joshua 3:1-17 as the text.
3 Then Joshua rose early in the morning and they set out from Shittim. And they came to the Jordan, he and all the people of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. 2 At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 3 and commanded the people, “As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it. 4 Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits[a] in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.” 5 Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 6 And Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.
7 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” 9 And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth[b] is passing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. 13 And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”
14 So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), 16 the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over opposite Jericho. 17 Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.
 
  
Beauty in Worship
THE LAVISH BEAUTY OF GOD
God sanctioned some fantastic beauty, even opulence, in the building of the temple by David’s son, Solomon. Imagine a modern committee’s reaction at the suggestion of a full width porch overlaid with pure gold, or of adorning the house with precious stones and using nails of pure gold to hold ti together (see 2 Chronicles 3). The beauty of the temple may be regarded as an example of the characteristic spiritual and aesthetic beauty of the believer. Christian, you are the temple of God; He has chosen to indwell you, and beauty must characterize His dwelling place.
 
Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
Ronald Allen and Gordon Borror, Worship: Rediscovering the Missing Jewel (Portland, OR: Multnomah Press, 1977), Page 100.-101

This Sunday's Music As we prepare for corporate worship, meditate on the lyrics from some of our songs of worship. Listen to them using the YouTube links below’.

Pre-worship
‘All Hail King Jesus’
‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’
‘On Jordan’s Stormy Banks’
‘Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine’
Listen to the songs on our website under the menu heading ‘Preparation for Worship’.
 
All Hail King JesusAll Hail King Jesus! All hail Emmanuel:
King of kings, Lord of lords, Bright Morning Star.
And through out eternity I’ll sing His praises.
And I’ll reign with Him throughout eternity.
(All Hail King Jesus) words and music by DAVE MOODY© 1978 Dayspring Music, LLC. All rights reserved. CCLI License # 2473598
 
Great Is Thy FaithfulnessGreat is Thy faithfulness, O God, my Father,
There is not shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not:
As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.
 
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed, Thy hand hath provided:
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
 
Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.
 
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed, Thy hand hath provided:
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
 
Pardon for sin and a pace that endureth,
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!
“Great Is Thy Faithfulness” Words and music by THOMAS O. CHISHOLM and WILLIAM M RUNYAN © Copyright 1923, Renewal 1951 by Hope Publishing company, Carol Stream, IL 60188.  All rights reserved. Used by permission. CCLI License # 2473598
On Jordan's Stormy BanksChorusI am bound for the Promised LandI am bound for the Promised LandO who will come and go with meI am bound for the Promised LandVerse 1On Jordan's stormy banks I standAnd cast a wishful eyeTo Canaan's fair and happy landWhere my possessions lieVerse 2All o'er those wide extended plainsShines one eternal dayThere God the Son forever reignsAnd scatters night awayVerse 3No chilling winds nor pois'nous breathCan reach that healthful shoreSickness and sorrow pain and deathAre felt and feared no moreVerse 4When shall I reach that happy placeAnd be forever blestWhen shall I see my Father's faceAnd in His bosom restCCLI Song # 3276620 Bill Wolaver | Samuel Stennett | Word Music Group © Words: Public Domain; Music: 2001 Curb Word Music For use solely with the SongSelect® Terms of use. All rights reserved. www.ccli.com CCLI License # 2473598Blessed Assurance, Jesus is MineBlessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh, what foretaste of glory of divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
 
This is my story, this is my song.
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
 
Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight:
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
 
This is my story, this is my song.
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
 
Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I and my Savior am happy and blest;
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.
 
This is my story, this is my song.
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
Praising my Savior all the day long.
 
“Blessed Assurance, Jesus Is Mine words and music by FANNY CROSBY and PHEOBE PALMER KNAPP arr. ©Cp[urogjt 2008 Van Ness Press, Inc. (ASCAP) (admin. by Lifeway Worshipe. Used by permission. CCLI License # 2473598