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The Process

In December of 2008 the consistory gathered together for a consistory retreat and look at the issues facing the church. During that meeting it became evident we as a church were lacking a unifying vision compelling us into God’s preferred future as a congregation. The consistory began to clarify and revise our current mission statement in its meetings in hopes of making the statement more compelling. Early into this task we realized this was not the best process. We commissioned a group of people to become the vision team. This team consisted of congregational members and the Ridder Leadership Initiative participants.

In early September of 2009 Nate went on a spiritual retreat to listen and discern God’s leading in the process of redefining our mission and vision. The process that came out of that retreat is listed below, and went before the consistory for approval.

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Once the process was approved the vision team began by looking at the current mission statement and discerning if this is what God was calling us to, or if we needed to change the statement. It was decided to change the statement as it was not memorable, nor did it define us or the direction it seems God is moving us in any longer. In order to discern God’s call on the church the vision team did a study on the mission of the church as outlined in the scriptures. That study is attached so you may do your own study and see how what we came up with connects to the mission statement before you.

Upon completion of the mission statement, the vision team began discerning the values necessary for individuals and for the congregation in order to fulfill the mission. The values came from congregational input (described below), input from pastors Nate is in relationship with, and the mental model of discipleship the Ridder team is learning about. The values emphasized by other pastors can be described as the following: Bible, Justice, Community, and Spirit. The mental model of discipleship from the Ridder Initiative is diagramed below.

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On January 5th of 2008 the congregation gathered together to discuss their core values and aspiring values. This document was used during the pastor search process. The vision team used these values, along with the values and principles listed above, as the basis of the final four core values.

The use of the congregational values involved another process. Rather than making a distinction between “core values” and “aspiring values”, as done in the document, we thought is appropriate to just have core values. We also thought there were too many core values from the congregational meeting that overlapped. For example, outreach and serving are related as are community and hospitality. Seeing this we began to combine the core values into categories. Below is a table outlining how the values from the January meeting are encompassed by the four core values we feel God leading us to pursue.

|Core Value |Values from January 2008 congregational Mtg |

|Truth |Biblical Authority |

| |Worship |

| |Teaching |

| |Leadership |

|Authentic Community |Community |

| |Hospitality |

| |Leadership |

|Christian Spirituality |Prayer |

| |Worship |

|Missional Living |Serving |

| |Outreach |

| |Leadership |

These four core values will become the driving force behind what we do as a congregation. Our vision is to see each individual, as well as the congregation as a whole, living out Truth, Authentic Community, Christian Spirituality, and Missional Living. The programs of the church will be in effort to assist congregational members to live one or more of the values out. The success of the church will be measured against how the church and individuals are moving into these values. And what we do in the future, the goals we set for ourselves, will be held against these values we believe God has called us to embody. The relationship between the mission statement, vision statement, and the implementation of these two statements (visionpath) is outlined in the chart below.

| |Mission |Vision |Visionpath |

|Definition |General description of God’s purpose for the |Clear, shared, and compelling |More detailed description of how |

| |church |picture of what God is calling the|the church will achieve the vision|

| | |congregation to | |

|Key Question |For what purpose did God establish the church? |What is God’s specific call for |How will our congregation achieve |

| | |our congregation? |God’s vision? |

|Length |1-2 sentences |Several paragraphs |A page or more |

|Time frame |Unstated |Unstated |1-2 years |

On the following pages you will find the mission statement, an explanation of the four core values, and the Bible study the vision team did leading to the mission statement. Please look these over carefully, pray over them, search the scriptures and engage in dialogue in order to help discern God’s leading. This is an exciting time for our church. God is moving and doing something in our midst. This is our effort to follow him deeper into the kingdom.

Scripture Study

As we consider the mission statement for Christ’s Community Church it is important to remember that we are simply putting words to something that already exists. God has given his church a mission. It is a mission that is not hard to discern. It is not a big secret. Nor is the mission different for each church. However, how the mission is expressed and fulfilled can be different.

Therefore it is important for us to take time and study the scriptures paying attention to the mission of Christ and the mission he gave his disciples and the church. Before our next meeting please take some time to read through these passages and reflect on the questions. This will help guide our discussion and give us a Biblical framework as we move forward.

Luke 4:14-21

➢ What was the mission of Jesus?

➢ What aspects of Jesus mission is the church called to participate in?

o What would it look like for the church to preach good news to the poor?

o What would it look like for the church to proclaim freedom for prisoners?

o To give sight to the blind?

o To release the oppressed?

Matthew 28:16-20

➢ What does Jesus command us to do?

➢ What is your definition of a disciple?

➢ What is it we are teaching others?

o What then is the implication for our lives?

o What comfort is afforded here?

John 21:15-19

➢ What mission did Jesus give Peter?

➢ Why would Peter do what Jesus asked him to do?

➢ How was Peter going to accomplish his mission?

Luke 10:25-37

➢ What is the summary of the law?

➢ At the end of the passage Jesus says, “Go and do likewise.” What does this mean? What are we to do?

➢ What does it mean to love someone as yourself?

➢ Who are our neighbors?

Mission Statement:

Christ’s Community Church exists to further the Kingdom of God by developing disciples of Jesus Christ who impact the world.

Core Values

Jesus gave us the command to go into the world and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). Everything we do is in effort to accomplish this mission. We believe the core values listed below are values that are imperative to the life of the disciple. For this reason we take time to explain the rationale for them, and point out their expression in the life of the church. These values inform our decisions and how we will pursue the mission God has called us to as a church.

Value:

Truth

Explanation:

The term “truth” brings with it a whole set of ideas and problems. In our post-modern culture the question “What is truth?” rings loud. That is an extremely daunting question. To capture truth in a sentence is a daunting task because of the evasive nature of something so simple and complex, static and dynamic. And the good news is we don’t have to, because truth has come in the form of a person. The Triune God of the universe has revealed himself through his Son by the Holy Spirit. The opening of the gospel of John says it like this, “The word became flesh and made its dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14) The Word made flesh John speaks of is Jesus Christ. Truth is found in him. Jesus himself said, “I am the way, the truth and life.”

It is through the sacred texts of the Bible that we learn of God’s son Jesus Christ. For this reason we study the Bible to understand it and to live by it. We believe all scripture, Old and New Testament, is God breathed (2 Timothy 3:16) and useful for teaching us, guiding us, and challenging us to live in and extend the grace of God. However, it is not enough to simply know what the Bible says. Jesus himself says this when he says that we must live into his teachings, obey, and then we will be set free (John 8:31-32). Obedience to the scriptures is essential in order to be transformed more and more into the likeness of Christ.

Expression:

Study of the self-disclosure of God in the Bible. Teaching and preaching, small groups, Sunday school classes, TNT, Sonshine, Youth Groups

Value:

Authentic Community

Explanation:

Throughout the New Testament the church is described as people who meet together (Acts 2). They met in the synagogues, they met in temple courts and they met in each other’s homes. Meeting together is a critical component of the disciple’s life. In fact, there are at least 16 different “one another” commands in the New Testament explaining what it means to be a community. These commands range from “be devoted to one another” (Romans 12:10), “accept one another” (Romans 15:7), to “serve one another” (Galations 5:130) and “submit to one another” (Ephesians 5:21). In living these commands out we learn how to be the body of Christ. But the reality is we can’t live into these ideals by just meeting on Sunday mornings. You can’t “bear with one another” or be “devoted to one another” in just an hour a week sitting silently beside somebody listening to someone else talk. That isn’t what is meant by living life together. To live into the Biblical design of community, we must value authentic community.

We desire to move beyond “friendly strangers” who say ‘hello’ once a week. We want to live life together. For this reason relationships are central to everything we do here at Christ’s Community Church. Programs do not exist unto themselves, but exist to facilitate relationships where authentic community can take place.

Expression:

Bibles studies, community brunches, community events, Coffee Break, small groups

Value:

Missional Living

Explanation:

When God created the world he did so with intention and purpose. This includes us. Created in the image of God, our lives have intention and purpose. Ephesians 2:10 says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

We desire that each one of us live with intention and purpose. Acts 17 reveals that God has “determined the times set” for us and the “exact places where they should live.” This means where we find ourselves; in coffee shops, jobs, neighborhoods, schools, gyms and anywhere else is a place where God has pre-ordained us to be so we may live out his purposes. Where ever we are, we want to live intentionally proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ through our words and actions. We love, we serve, we act, and we speak in such a way that portrays the love of Jesus in order that others may be drawn to him.

This causes us to think different about missions. Missions are not reserved for missionaries in some far off location but occur at our jobs, in our neighborhoods, at our schools, in our gyms and wherever else we are.

Expression:

Support of missionaries and mission organizations, relationships with local mission organizations, VBS outreach, food pantry, and individual efforts by believers, prayer chains

Value:

Christian Spirituality

Explanation:

Jesus described his relationship with the disciples using the metaphor of a vine. He said, “I am the vine, you are the branches” (John 15). During this conversation Jesus told his disciples 8 times that they must “abide” in him. If we are to be branches that bear fruit we must abide, stay connected, to the vine.

This truth is true for us. If we are going to be fruitful we must stay connected to Jesus. This is the purpose of the spiritual disciplines. The disciplines are not an end of themselves, but rather they are the means by which we abide in Christ. Through worship, Bible study, prayer, silence, solitude, fasting and the many other disciplines Christians have used for centuries we can abide in Christ. Ultimately, this time we spend with Jesus will have a positive impact on our ability to reflect Christ in the world.

We want to be clear though. The disciplines are a means to an end, which is an intimate relationship with Christ. Christianity is not a checklist of tasks that if you complete them then you are “in”. Christianity is a relationship that must be nurtured and cultivated and the disciplines are a means to this end.

Expression:

Worship, prayer, fasting, silence, writing, art, music, Bible reading, prayer chains

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