Welcome to Church Center!

Church Center is a great place to connect with others at CrossWinds and see what’s happening at church.  It’s also where you manage your contact information, giving, groups, registrations, and even your schedule serving on Sundays.

Church Center is a website and an app.

You can access the same information in both places.  Bookmark the following website: https://crosswindsefca.churchcenter.com/  If you want the added advantage of push notifications on your phone, download the app: https://churchcenter.com/setup

Just getting started?  Follow the tutorials below.

If you have questions along the way, send us an email: spiritlake@crosswinds.tv

Installing the Church Center App (app instructions)

Logging In (instructions for both app and web)

If you have a text-enabled phone, type in your phone number.  If not, select “Use email” at the bottom of the screen.  Click “Next” when your information has been entered.  Church Center will send a six-digit code to the phone number or email address.  When you receive it, return to Church Center, type in the six-digit verification code, and select “Next”.  (There is no password to remember.)

1. If you’re already a known CrossWinds attender, you can simply select the button with your name.
2. If it suggests a spouse or other family member, select “Not you?” and continue to enter your own information.
3. If you’re new to CrossWinds, you’ll be prompted for more information.

(If you’re in the app on your phone, your phone may offer you the option of additional security when you open the app.  This is an extra layer of security to protect sensitive information such as giving history.)

Viewing Your Profile (app and web)

Now that you’re logged in, let’s learn how to get to your Profile. Your Profile is the main place to go if you’d like to check on your Church Center Giving history, see which Groups you’re in, and update any Registrations you may have signed up for in the past.  Plus, if you're on a Sunday serving team, you may also see a link to your Services. (Services Tip: Going on vacation? Let us know when we should not schedule you by adding your blockout dates!)

• If you’re on the web, start by clicking on the circle in the top right corner that has your initials shown.  Then click on “Profile.”
• If you’re in the app, tap on the little person icon in the top right corner.

Editing Your Profile (app and web)

You can also edit some of your own Contact Information. 

• If you’re on the web, your Contact Information is shown at the bottom of the screen.  Click the “Edit” button to the right of that.
• If you’re in the app, click the top section where your name is shown.

Select the green “+” buttons (app) or the “+ Add…” buttons (web) to add more information, such as an alternate email address or an additional phone number.  If you have more than one email or phone number, be sure you select which one is “primary” so we know the best way to contact you if needed.

If you have more than one address, please list your mailing address first (like a P.O. Box).

Select the red “-” buttons (app) or the “X Delete” buttons (web) to remove inaccurate or out-of-date information.

Don’t forget to save when you’re done!  On the web, click “Save Changes” at the bottom.  In the app, tap “Update” in the top right corner.

Add A Full Facial Photo To Your Profile And To The Profiles Of Your Family.

One of the best ways to be a church that loves and cares for people is to help others know our name. To help us be a welcoming church, we ask that you add a clear photo of yourself to your profile.

• Make sure the photo is close enough that people can see your face!
• We also ask that you do not put multiple people in the same photo. Everyone has an individual account. See the example below.
• Use a photo of yourself, not your favorite car, boat, or a picture of a pickle.

Updating Your Household or other "locked" information

If some of your personal or household information is incorrect or incomplete and you're unable to change it in your Profile, navigate to your primary campus's page and at the bottom of the page you will find contact information. Choose the 'Email' option and submit your request to our office. 

Navigation

The Home Page, Campuses, Groups, and Giving are in the main navigation (across the bottom of the page in the app or across the top of the page on a computer) of Church Center.

To see information that applies to all campuses of CrossWinds, navigate to "CrossWinds" (bottom left of app, top left of web).  On this page, be sure to notice which campus is associated with an event, especially on the all-church calendar.  On some pages, you'll be able to filter what you see by campus.

To see information about a specific campus, choose that campus in the main navigation.

For managing information about yourself, navigate to your Profile in the top right corner of your screen.

(Speaking of your Profile — if you haven’t uploaded a picture yet, be sure to snap a quick selfie! We request the picture is of your smiling face 😁 and the photo was taken close enough to see your face. Please do not have multiple people in the same photo. Everyone in your family can have a picture in their profile. We also request that you do not use a picture of your favorite boat, car, or the logo of your favorite sports team for a profile picture. We want to help people put a name and face together. A good profile picture is a great way to accomplish that goal.)

Customizing your app notifications.

Church Center is a great place to chat with the other members of your groups.  You will receive a notification in Church Center for each communication.  Tap the bell icon in the top right corner of Church Center (web and app) to see what’s new — this is called the Notifications Inbox.

If you only use the Church Center website, you will need to check your Notifications Inbox periodically.  If you use the Church Center app, your phone will alert you for each notification. 

If you wish to receive fewer alerts on your phone, you can customize your Notification Preferences on a group-by-group basis at a very granular level.  See this page to learn how.  

As you change your notification preferences for each group, the app will summarize your settings in plain language.  Be sure to read the summary to ensure you will receive the alerts you are expecting.

If you deactivate certain notifications, they will still appear in your Notifications Inbox, but the notification bell will not show the dot, and your phone will not alert you.

Is there a Directory?

Just as you can customize your group notifications at a granular level, you can also customize how much of your personal information is shared on a group-by-group basis.  (By default, your information is shown only to your group leaders.)

For example, if you want to share your contact info with your Life Group, navigate to your Life Group, go to the “Members” tab, and select “Edit visible info” to update your settings.

Tip: If you know that you want certain information to be shown in all of your groups (for example, your profile photo), select only those items and click “Apply to all groups”.

Check-Ins and Name Tags

We encourage everyone to wear a name tag as a way to be welcoming and loving towards one another. If you are viewing this document, it's safe to assume that your information is in our system - therefore a name tag will be printed automatically when you check in on Sunday mornings. There are several kiosks around the foyer that allow you to either enter your name or the last 4 digits of your phone number. If a name tag does not print out when you check in, our Welcome Team can get one printed on-the-spot. 

Giving

Church Center is our new donation platform. As we transition from Realm to Church Center, if you have any automatic donations that are being processed by Realm, you will need to complete a two-step process.

1. Add a new recurring donation in Church Center through the main "Give" navigation item.
2. Cancel your scheduled giving in Realm.

If you need assistance during this transition, bring your laptop or phone to the Church office during business hours and we'll be happy to walk you through it.

Church Center vs. Planning Center

Church Center is the public-facing side of our administrative software, which is called Planning Center.  If you’re involved in a position of leadership or as a key volunteer, you will use one or more of the Planning Center apps in addition to Church Center.  Find a list of the apps here.