God’s plans are not our plans. I see that more in being a Pastor than anywhere else in my life. For example, I came to Crossroads Assembly of God in September of 2007. Actually it was Cordova Assembly of God. I came to support a brother who had just taken over Pastor of the church. When he took on the Pastorship, there were 5 members that refused to let the doors close. However, the building was on the verge of falling in, so it was tore down. The church moved into an 800sqft house on Warrior Ave in Cordova.

It was in the house that the Pastor, at the direction of the district leadership lead in a vote to close Cordova Assembly of God and begin a new work called Crossroads Assembly of God. The idea was that closing the doors of the oldest church in the district and reopening a new work would garner support from the state level of the Assemblies to help build a new church where the old one was tore down. The idea failed at the state level but years later it would serve the church well when it was forced to relocate to Jasper following the 2011 tornadoes. (Can’t really have Cordova Assembly in Jasper!)

Over the next couple of years the church worked for the community out of the house. No person was rejected, everyone was accepted (just as they are today) it didn’t matter your past, how you dressed or the social status. During this time I was evaluated and accepted by the congregation for an Associate Pastor position. We made Thanksgiving for the needy in the town and fed 264 people, we did a yearly Crosswalk on Good Friday, and we did outreach services in the apartments across from Dollar General.

In late 2009-early 2010, the Pastor found a store front on Main Street that we began renting that required many hours of renovation. We worked when we had the money for supplies, after being shut down by the city for not having proper permits (we were noobs). After paying for the permits, we restarted work. We rewired the entire building, built an altar, made new bathrooms, built walls. On April 26, 2011 we hung sheet rock for the first time. The next day, the building was hit in the first tornado an EF-3, in the early morning, and received even more damage by the massive EF-4 that completely changed the face of the city forever.

After hanging sheet rock the first day we believed we were finally about a month away from moving into the huge 18,000sqft building, but the tornadoes caused the building to be condemned. In 2013 it was tore down. We were at a point in the renovation that we couldn’t have insurance so every dollar, every minute of hard work, the entire vision for the future in the building was a complete loss. We lost thousands. We worked with the state Assemblies disaster relief department, but since we didn’t own the building they could not help.

We stayed in the small house until the lease ran out, and we were told that it would not be renewed. Amazing testimony though, immediately following that news a store front in Jasper opened up for us. Without a place in Cordova we moved into Jasper. Remember the name change?

The building has sustained us even though we are in the wrong city. We run van services to Cordova every week, Sunday and Wednesday. The church was founded in a tent revival during the mid-1930s, but since February 2013 we are in Jasper. Not where anyone thought we would be.

In late July the Pastor I originally followed to Crossroads called me and told me that his time was up, and that he felt I should be the next Pastor. I was like “forget that” but then as my wife and I began to pray it we felt more and more that we were called. So in August, I became Pastor, something I never saw coming.

We have found a building closer to Cordova that would serve us well, but need to raise funds for the down payment. One of the things we want to do is raise funds in a way that allows the people who donate to get a meaningful reward in return. On top of sowing into the Kingdom work through Crossroads, the donor will also have a personalized brick placed on one of the walls of the future Prayer Room. Crossroads is a church committed to prayer, and this wall will be in the heart of the room dedicated to prayer for many years to come.

This may have not been the way we planned it, but God has guided us each step of the way. I believe that this fundraiser is a great way to allow you to join in God’s plan for Crossroads. Thank you for your consideration, and all prayers for us is always appreciated.

God Bless,

Adam Stacks

Pastor of Crossroads Assembly of God