Issue 13, Volume 2 July/August/September 2015 $4.95

CrossPoint Church: Pastor Robert

Johnson Talks About History,

Challenges, And The Great Commission

My 35th Birthday 5K:

A Mid Life Journey

Fight That Fear With

Faith

Forgiveness Has Its

Reward

C-Commerce: The Modern Day “Church” Business

Power Of Your

Testimony

Published by Ekklesia Publications, Inc.Published by Ekklesia Publications, Inc.Published by Ekklesia Publications, Inc.

Ugera M. YesufUgera M. YesufUgera M. Yesuf

PUBLISHERPUBLISHERPUBLISHER

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ASSISTANT PUBLISHERASSISTANT PUBLISHERASSISTANT PUBLISHER

Emike OyemadeEmike OyemadeEmike Oyemade

DEPUTY EDITORDEPUTY EDITORDEPUTY EDITOR---INININ---CHIEFCHIEFCHIEF

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MANAGING EDITORMANAGING EDITORMANAGING EDITOR

CONTRIBUTORSCONTRIBUTORSCONTRIBUTORS

Idy MbekeIdy MbekeIdy Mbeke---EkanemEkanemEkanem

Lisa MitchellLisa MitchellLisa Mitchell

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Marva KaroMarva KaroMarva Karo

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Gloria DavisGloria DavisGloria Davis

ColumnistColumnistColumnist

Dr. Tonya LewisDr. Tonya LewisDr. Tonya Lewis

Pastor Francis K. OladelePastor Francis K. OladelePastor Francis K. Oladele

Editorial Board Editorial Board Editorial Board

Ugera YesufUgera YesufUgera Yesuf

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Table of Contents

Editor’s Note: Whose voice are you listening to? ..Page 4

Words are very powerful and the bible testifies that words can destroy just as

they can build; kind words spoken in due season is like medicine to the soul

and one ill word spoken whether in and out of season is enough to ‘murder’.

So who you listen ………………..

The Greatness Within! . . . . . . . . . . . . . .…... . . . . . . . .page 10

Overtime Economists have been majorly concerned about productivity on the

macro level, as getting more output for the same set of inputs leads to a higher

income for individuals and a higher GDP in the overall economy. However,

recent studies have also shown the importance of productivity and……..

The Platform of Influence……………………...page 11

My husband and I stood on a secluded beach in Maui, our toes wiggling in the soft

sand, as a Hawaiian minister preformed our wedding ceremony. Our only guest

was the photographer, who snapped pictures of us against the brilliant backdrop of

waves and sunset.…..

Rest Area……………………..………... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 14

In sports and other events, there are timeframes which team members are expected

to be in the game both mentally and physically. They are expected to join their

skills with other team members to help win the victory…Dr. Tonya Lewis

Do We Thank and Praise Our Jesus Christ Enough?............................page16

There are many things we take for granted in our lives, things we never deem nec-

essary to thank God for. We believe they are trivial and God wouldn’t mind if we

let them slide………..Brother Anthony Orimolade

Surprising Things That Can Damage Your Liver…………………..page 17

This is My Story, My Testimony …………………………………….page 20

“I had a praying grandmother, who would look up to heaven for the supply of all

her needs. My grandfather was the 'provider', he would bring food from the fields

and we would have plenty to eat (sometimes ……..” By Janice Ramkisson

21 Tips For A Healthy Relationship………………………………..pages 22

Healthy relationships allow both partners to feel supported and connected yet in-

dependent. Here are some tips for a healthy relationship…….Emike Oyemade

Books………………………………………………………………...page 24

Ekklesia Extra………………………..……………..…pages 25-29

Bible Sweethearts Match Games……………………….page 30

2 Ekklesia: July/August/Sept 2015

Feature Stories

3 Ekklesia: July/August/Sept 2015

Fight That Fear With Faith It was a windy-sunny morning and I thought it would be perfect to take a slow-long meditative

walk. I got my daughter into her stroller and set out. My mind was focused on God works behind

the scene to bring us to our miracle while we get so bothered and impatient waiting for Him to be

through. By Emike Oyemade………………………………………………….…...Page 18

In May I decided to celebrate my birthday a little different. Instead of going out to dinner with

friends, or dancing at some night club I decided that this year will be life changing. This year I

was turning Thirty Five. By Marva Karo Page 13

Women comprise approximately 61% of most Christian churches around the nation. Oth-

er polls suggest that at the very least 75 million youngsters, ages 3 – 12, suffer both physi-

cal and psychological abuse at the hands of their parents and other relatives on a daily

basis. By Muriel Gladney ………………………………………………………………………..page 21

C-Commerce: The modern day “Church” business

And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that

sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of

them that sold doves; Mrk 11:15 By Maxwell Ogaga…………….……………………..Page 19

My 35th Birthday 5K: A Mid Life Journey

Forgiveness Has Its Reward

CrossPoint Church: Pastor Robert Johnson Talks

About History, Challenges, And The Great

Commission By Ugera M. Yesuf and Emike Oyemade

Power Of Your Testimony By Ugera M. Yesuf

A testimony is our most precious possession because it is not acquired by logic or reason alone,

it cannot be purchased with our earthly possessions, and it cannot be given as a present or in-

herited from our ancestors……………………………….Page……………12

Editor’s Notes: Whose voice are you listening to?

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Send your testimonies and letters to contact@ekklesiapublications.com

W ords are very powerful and the bible testifies that words can destroy just as they

can build; kind words spoken in due season is like medicine to the soul and one ill

word spoken whether in and out of season is enough to ‘murder’. So who you lis-

ten to and allow their words have influence in your life is important. You don’t

need to keep hanging around someone who says nothing good about you and what you believe in

or who leads you astray with words. The voice you listen to is crucial to your happiness and the

fulfilment of your purpose in life.

In Gen 22:17-18. God told Abraham, that he would bless him and his generation because he heard

and obeyed His voice. It was an instruction to sacrifice his only son and could have listened to any

other contrary voice. This was not the case for Adam earlier-on in Genesis 3:17, To Adam he said,

“Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you,

‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat

food from it all the days of your life.”

God cursed Adam because he listened to his wife over God. Really, there’s nothing wrong in heeding the counsel of one’s spouse

but when it comes to such sensitive decisions one must also check with God if the spouse is speaking the mind of God. Remember

this same unfortunate thing almost happened to Job when his wife admonished him to “curse God and die”. Imagine if Job had truly

cursed God just to end his physical suffering, the eternal punishment is worse.

What voices are you listening and obeying? Are the voices of your unfortunate circumstance louder the voice of God? Whose report

would you believe? Is your health screaming, “This is a terminal disease you can’t be healed”? These voices may keep yelling but

you need to make the decision to shut them out, not believe them and not obey what they are saying. He died that you may have life

and enjoy that life.

Gen16:2 again, “so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a

family through her.” Abram agreed to what Sarai said.” Abraham listened to his wife Sarai, when she pressured him to sleep with

Haggai so they could have a child, it could have been interpreted as a noble move to ‘assist’ God but just like Adam, Abraham did

not check with God if that was a right move to make.

Whenever we become desperate in our waiting we are likely to hear many voices and not be able to discern which is His. At the end

of the day we are likely to opt for the one the seemed right without checking with God.

The voice you listened to is likely to influence your decisions and ultimately your life. I encourage you to listen to the Voice of

Truth, which is the voice of the Holy Spirit. He can never lead you astray no matter how ‘bumpy’ the road may be. Do not give

chance to the voices of your past, failure, mistakes, failing health, delays or any negative thing situation the enemy tries to shove in

your face. The voice of Truth says you are healed! You are blessed! You are free! You have been redeemed!

So in this edition Pastor Robert talks about his passion to be a tool in the hand so God and the journey so far on CrossPoint where he

currently serves. You are also going to be blessed and encouraged with articles on how our testimonies put the enemy in perpetual

defeat. Marva tells us how we can achieve anything we want if we set out heart to it and if we will just take one step at a time.

Would you do same? Take that step to what you have always wanted to become and I pray this edition will be a blessing to you.

Shalom!

Emike Oyemade

Deputy Editor-in-Chief, and

Author of three books

Do you want your church or ministry to feature in our next edition?

Do you have a testimony or experience that can bless the lives of others?

Do you want to be a columnist?

Send an email to: contact@ekklesiapublications.com

4 Ekklesia: July/August/Sept 2015

5 Ekklesia: July/August/Sept 2015

I would like to express my utmost gratitude to the staffs of Foothill

Presbyterian Hospital in Glendora in California for their exception-

al patient care. My sincere thanks to :

Emergency

Dr. Nana

Dr. Aditya S. Prasad

Dr. Hodikian

Mr. Chandra Reddy

RN Keith (Now l know why you are a champion)

Second Floor

Lenka, RN

Humberto

Ellen, RN

Celina, RN

Foothill Presbyterian Hospital in

Glendora where staffs hope and

pray that you get well

U. M. Yesuf

6 Ekklesia: July/August/Sept 2015

CO

VE

R S

TO

RY

AT CROSSPOINT CHURCH We BELIEVE

We believe the Bible is the Word of God, His

message of love to us

We believe in God as revealed in the Bible,

that He is Father, Son and Holy Spirit

We believe God is the creator of the world.

We believe Jesus is God in the flesh, and He

came to earth as a man, died on the cross to pay

the penalty for our sins, and then rose from the

dead. He gives us new life.

We believe the Holy Spirit is God and He lives

in believers. As He lives in us, He nurtures us

so that we continue to grow in our understand-

ing of ourselves and the Christian life.

We believe God continues to work in the world

today, changing lives and answering pray-

ers. We believe one of the main ways God

does His work is through His people, the

Church.

We believe we are given the gift of heaven in

response to faith, and God guarantees us eter-

nal life in heaven as we accept that Jesus died

on the cross for our sins.

OUR DENOMINATION

CrossPoint is part of a denomi-

nation called the Christian Re-

formed Church (CRC). The

CRC has been in existence

since the 1850’s and has its

roots in the Reformation. We

put a great emphasis on the

Word of God, the grace of God

and the Kingdom of God. We

believe the good news of Jesus

Christ is a message that needs

to be shared with the entire

world. CrossPoint exists to

share this message with our

community, and we join with

our denomination to share the

message of Jesus globally.

Bryan Vander Tuig, Associate Pastor

Robert Johnson, Executive Pastor

7 Ekklesia July/August/Sept 2015

T he proliferation of “mega

churches” has been described

as one of the most significant

social developments of the

decade of the eighties. That trend

shows no sign of subsiding; indeed it

seems to be accelerating. Lyle Schaller

in his book, The Multiple Staff and the

Larger Church, and elsewhere, has

made the point that large churches and

mega churches are different than small

churches in all ways. Not the least of

those differences is found in the style

or form of management. Someone told

me recently that Peter Drucker had said

that the management style and struc-

ture of any institution, including the

church, undergoes significant change

every time there is a forty-five to fifty

percent increase in size. Ekklesia Pub-

lications sat down with Robert John-

son, the executive Pastor of

CrossPoint Church in Chino, California

to talk about his position, the church,

and the future of CrossPoint,

Tell us about yourself

I have been at CrossPoint church for

about a year and half, where I serve as

the Executive Pastor. Pastor Bryan

Vander Tuig is our Associate Pastor.

He and I work together with the Elders

to provide leadership for the church.

On a day to day basis, my role is to

work with the staff as we seek to live

out the mission of CrossPoint which

comes directly from the Scriptures in 1

Peter 1:21: For to this you have been

called, because Christ also suffered for

you, leaving you an example, so that

you might follow in his steps.

Prior to entering full-time ministry, I

spent fifteen years in education as a

teacher and administrator. I served

schools in Iowa and Southern Califor-

nia, and even had the privilege of being

the principal at the school that I attend-

ed years ago in the Chicago area. I

entered full-time ministry in 1998, and

while serving that church I completed

my seminary training. I have served

two churches in Southern California and

one in Southeast Minnesota.

What is the history of CrossPoint

Church

CrossPoint Church has been ministering

to families in the Chino/Ontario/Inland

Empire since 1969 when more than 70

families gathered in the Ontario Christian

High School gym for the first service as

Calvary Christian Reformed Church.

The church purchased property in 1972

in the northern part of Chino and built a

campus there. The Lord blessed the min-

istry and by the late 90’s, the church had

outgrown their campus. After seeking

God’s preferred future in prayer, the

church took the step of faith to relocate.

Property was purchased and a new cam-

pus was built at the corner of Edison and

Euclid in Chino. During this transition,

the name of the church was changed to

CrossPoint. The church also opened a

Children’s Center which provides Christ-

centered preschool and kindergarten edu-

cation to children in the community. The

early years of the church, the congrega-

tion was made up of many people of

Dutch descent, and many were involved

in the dairy industry. Over four decades

of ministry, the Lord has increasingly

blessed CrossPoint toward becoming a

church of all nations. The church con-

tinues to seek to live out the call of Jesus

in the Great Commandment and the

Great Commission to be His witness in

Chino and to the ends of the earth.

What motivates you as the executive

pastor of CrossPoint?

God has given me a vision to lead people

toward maximizing their Holy Spirit-

given gifts; the make the Bride of Christ,

His church, radiant. The Lord wakes me

up in the morning to follow Him, make

disciples, build community and share

hope. To have the privilege to do this in

pastoral ministry is humbling and im-

mensely exciting. To see the body of

Christ coming together to use their Holy

Spirit given gifts to build the church and

be a light in the community is so reward-

ing. I am very motivated to see the

church do exactly what Christ designed

it to do and to be.

Who were your mentors?

The Lord has placed excellent mentors

in my life. As a teenager, a youth lead-

er named Fred was used by God to dis-

ciple me and show me what it meant to

be a godly husband and father. I was

very blessed when I entered the minis-

try, where the Lord placed Rev. Harold

Korver in my life. His wisdom was

deep and he would say things like, “My

son, find a need and heal it,” “you are

blessed to be a blessing.” “swim and

splash in the amazing grace of Jesus!”

He taught and modeled that the Gospel

is for all people and the church must

become a church of all nations. He

also valued the importance of a genera-

tional church, loving and serving and

blessing together, and he always pro-

moted “moving through tradition into

mission.” The church is called to have

a healing heart. His Christ-like mentor-

ing has profoundly shaped me in minis-

try.

It goes without saying that I have been

influenced by Christian leaders through

books and conferences. Mission driven

pastors like Bill Hybels and Rick War-

ren have had a great influence on me as

has the depth of worship of Jack Hay-

ford and the spiritual formation taught

by Brennan Manning, to name a few. I

continue to be inspired by Christian

leaders who are being used powerfully

by God to extend His kingdom through

the local church.

What are some of the challenges do

you have to face as the executive pas-

tor of CrossPoint?

Challenges I have found in all the

church contexts I have served is simply

keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus and

seeking His preferred future for His

church. Let’s face it; it is easy to be

inwardly focused when Jesus points us

outward. Seeking to become a church

CrossPoint Church: Pastor Robert Johnson Talks About

History, Challenges, And The Great Commission By Ugera M. Yesuf and Emike Oyemade

Continue on page 8

of extravagant love --- love that is

seen in our worship of an awesome

God and love that can be seen, felt,

and experienced as we love each oth-

er. This challenge to ‘take the love of

Jesus’ to our neighborhoods is very

real. The Lord left the splendor of

Heaven and pitched a tent in our

neighborhood. We are called to leave

the comfort of a church campus and

pitch tents in our neighborhoods to

share the love of Jesus.

In a church such as CrossPoint, how

do you deal with problems of a multi-

ethnic nature without offending one

group or the other?

You have to genuinely love people.

This is the message we teach to our

people---people are not simply seek-

ing a friendly church, they are seeking

friends. We all need friends. I can be

friendly with you on Sunday morning,

smile and shake hands with you, but it

has to go beyond that. We are called

to practice hospitality. My wife and

I seek to practice this by opening up

our home to many people so we can

grow in deeper community. As a

church, we are called to open up our

hearts and homes. When we do this

across cultural, generational and eco-

nomic lines we begin to see what

beauty that God has given us in com-

munity together.

We continually call people to move

out of comfort zones. With respect to

building deeper community relation-

ships that means seeking out people

who are different than we may be. Our

“Life Group” which meets in our

home ranges from 6 years old to 83.

They have different cultures and back-

grounds, but where the Spirit is pre-

sent, unity can be built. While it can

be messy at times, it becomes very

beautiful!

How is your message received

amongst the conservative, moderate

or liberal members of CrossPoint?

I don’t like using those terms because

they mean different things to different

people. The thing I am most committed

to is holding the word of God in high

regard. It is the absolute truth and our

church embraces the Scripture as the

very Words of God. People are looking

for truth. We get to be a grace filled

community teaching the truth and the

truth will set people free! When lives

are out of alignment with the Word of

God --- people can get offended because

their way of life is challenged. When

we are ‘missing the mark’ this is called

sin. Jesus calls us to an incredibly high

standard, and through the Holy Spirit,

we have all that is necessary to obey.

Living a righteous life matters. The

world around us appears to be increas-

ingly unrighteousness. Righteousness

matters. As we see in the Scriptures, so

we see today! When the teacher preach-

es the Word of God and some people

may not like it, and they go after the

messenger. Perhaps the first place they

need to go is to the prayer closet. After

all, shouldn’t it be our desire that our

heart beats in the same cadence as our

Lord?

How do you handle rumors, jealousy,

and gossip directed at you or members

of the congregation?

Gossip is one of the devil’s strategies to

distract the people of God from doing

the things of God. There have been far

too many casualties in churches due to

unhealthy talk. The Bible brings abso-

lute clarity as to how to handle these

things. The instructions are simple, but

not always easy to do. The book of

Ephesians makes it clear that the devil

has schemes that he works and that the

battle isn’t between flesh and blood

(people) but spiritual forces. Because

people are sinners, there is a tendency to

wage the war between people, and

things like gossip seem to be effective

weapons. Not so at all ---gossip de-

stroys! The church has high standards to

live up to relationally. If the people of

the church can’t get along or destroy

8 Ekklesia: July/August/Sept 2015

CrossPoint Church, Chino California

Fall Registration Begins June 21, 2015. Stop by even if it

is just to say hello

each other with sinful tactics --- why on

earth would the church be an attractive

place to the very people we seek to

reach in the community? If the Body of

Christ has bruises and blood all over it

because they can’t get along, how do we

invite people into the beauty of Christ’s

healing? As a church we must follow the

teachings of Jesus. If I have a problem

with you, I go to you; if you have a

problem with me, you come to me and

we talk about it. The most important

thing is to place the Bible in the middle

of the table because with the Bible and

the Holy Spirit we have all the tools

necessary to be the body we are called to

be.

Where would you like to see CrossPoint

5-10 years from now, and what would

be your message to members of

CrossPoint church and Christians all

over the world?

The Bible talks about the Kingdom of

God and this Kingdom has no borders.

While I am so grateful that we live in

this country called America that has

offered us tremendous opportunities and

freedoms, it is still the kingdom of God

we are called to advance. And God has

chosen the church as the means to ad-

vance it.

It is our desire at CrossPoint to be con-

tinually aware of the ever expanding

kingdom of God that goes way beyond

our borders. We have the opportunity

because of our rich resources to serve so

many. There are not only catastrophes

and natural disasters throughout the

world, but also the unprecedented per-

secution of Christians. In the midst of

all these there are still many who are

coming to accept Jesus Christ as their

personal Lord and Savior and that

should excite and inspire us to keep go-

ing and persevering until Christ’s sec-

ond coming. There’s nothing as exciting

for the church as seeking to be the radi-

ant Bride of Christ!