These values project what our vision looks like when lived out in every day life.
We Imagine:
Another way to think of faith is imagination. Imagination is a way of looking at life in terms of what could be instead of simply what is. We believe faith fuels our imagination and flows out of our experience with the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Based on Christ inspired imagination we want to become a gathering place for people to experience the life and teachings of Jesus and make a difference in our community. Here are the ways we imagine this to be so.
Shaped by God’s Story - We believe our love for people, our ability to forgive those who hurt us, and our drive to meet the needs of those around us grows as we get to know God. Our understanding of God is formed as we begin to learn his story as revealed in the Scriptures. God’s story shapes us and motivate us to live out the teachings of Jesus. God’s story moves us to align ourselves with the true source of life–Jesus Christ.
Engaging with culture - Pop culture is our common language. We want to use movies, art, music, sports, and progressive culture in combination with the scriptures to help people discover the life-altering ways of Jesus. We envision an environment of open conversation and mutual respect for a diversity of opinions and beliefs about our world, life, and God. We believe the message of Jesus engages our deepest hopes, beliefs, and longings as we work out the relevant issues of our daily lives.
Reinvest / Repurpose - Our desire is to help people come to faith in Jesus and begin to pour themselves out to meet the spiritual and social needs of our day. We envision people gladly redirecting their resources (education, finances, time, passions) for the good of people in our community and world even though they may be very different from us. After all, we believe the church exists for the benefit of its non-members.
Public Space - We want to meet in ordinary places. The gulf between what is secular and what is sacred is a divide many religious and secular people are not likely to cross. The result is that God unintentionally becomes sealed off from the mundane ordinaries of life. Going to the movies, sharing a drink, a nice meal out, watching kids at a soccer game, or Monday mornings in the office should be just as spiritual as Sunday mornings in a church building. Meeting in public spaces can act as a metaphor for finding all of life motivated by Christ.
Community / Friendships - We believe the way of Jesus can only be fully experienced in relationship with others who are seeking to follow Christ. We see new Christians, mature Christians, and spiritual interested seekers weekly gathering to share their questions, struggles and concerns in a context that is, engaging, challenging, motivational, and fun. We see disconnected and isolated people finding belonging through the ordinaries of our life together: Game nights, drinks at a coffee shop, watching Monday night football, movie night, etc. We see diverse groups of people brought together crossing social barriers and forming friendships despite our differences. We see Republicans and Democrats, single and married, wealthy and poor, conservatives and liberals sharing meals and developing meaningful friendships together.
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