Crossroads Church Pastor Duke Marshall said he's looking to make Los Ba&#241;os' newest church an 'R' rated congregation.</p><p>'R' stands for relationships.</p><p>"That's our goal," Marshall said, "improve our relationship with the Lord and have positive relationships with each other."</p><p>One way Marshall and his wife Miriam are fostering a strong bond between congregation members is by hosting a "Pot Blessing."</p><p>Their first event was Dec. 13.</p><p>The pair use the event title as a way of showing that as believers, they don't believe in 'luck,' thus a 'potluck' isn't appropriate for the occasion.</p><p>"We believe God has a plan for everything," Marshall said.</p><p>Celebrating His 'blessing' is more of what the church is doing in their event, one they hope to host once a quarter.</p><p>Marshall said he's hoping the church's future 'pot blessing' events will grow in popularity for the congregation. He said he was happy with how the first event turned out.</p><p>"Since we don't have a facility, we want to open our home to our congregation," Marshall said. "We want the people of the church to get to know each other better. This allows us to do that."</p><p>At the Marshall's open house, Crossroads members, and anyone interested in becoming part of the church, enjoys the wide variety of foods brought, door prizes and the camaraderie of community members who share the same passion of loving the Lord.</p><p>Marshall said developing the congregation's relationship with the Lord and each other is important to him. It's not about being a pastor who needs the praise for his work, he said.</p><p>"It's not about me," Marshall said. "This ministry is about the Lord and advancing His message. And the best way to do that is love, encourage, be their friend and sometimes not saying anything; just listening."</p><p>Marshall said in his first month of services he's been pleased with the commitment many members have made to Crossroads, and the positive feedback he's receiving from everyone is encouraging for Marshall, his wife and the Crossroads worship team.</p><p>"In our third week, we made our budget for November. In the fourth week of services, we made our budget for December," he said. "Everything is going well. We've been having 25-35 people come every Saturday night."</p><p>Crossroads' Saturday evening services seem to be a hit for Los Ba&#241;os, Marshall said.</p><p>"Seeing people every week, that's confirmation things are going well," he said.</p><p><i>Enterprise reporter Samantha Salas can be reached by phone at (209)388-6562 or by e-mail at ssalas@losbanosenterprise.com</i>