1. We value Christ and allow him to be the centre of our world.
Jesus is central to everything we do. Through his death on the cross, he redeemed us to God. There is no other way to relationship with God the Father than through Jesus Christ (John 14:6). We’ve been set free from our slavery to sin and are now slaves of Christ (1 Cor 6:19-20, 7:22-23.) Our most fulfilling life is found when we live committed to him (Luke 9:23). Therefore, we value our relationship with him above all else and make spending time with him in prayer, devotion, worship and reflection our highest priority. From this also flows a commitment to selfless service in his name and for his kingdom.
The bible is God’s inspired word to us and is of utmost importance (Ps 138:2). We place a high priority on both the personal study and corporate teaching of the scriptures. The bible teaches and corrects us in both our beliefs and behaviours (2Tim 3:16). As we deepen our understanding of God’s word, we open ourselves to receive more of God’s blessing and favour in our world (James 1:23-25). We are transformed more and more into Christ’s image. Our attitudes and behaviours change and begin to reflect those of Christ (Rom 12:2).
3. WE VALUE The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the third person in the Godhead. He indwells Christians at the point of new birth and empowers them with access to supernatural gifts at the point of Baptism in the Holy Spirit. We seek to live in close relationship with him personally as believers and corporately as the Church. The Holy Spirit reveals Christ to us (John 14:26) and empowers us for effective Christian ministry through access to his supernatural gifts (1 Cor 12:4-11). As a Pentecostal church, we believe that these supernatural manifestations can take place in and through the church for the purpose of confirming the gospel message and reinforcing Christ’s victory over sin and death on the cross(Mark 16:20)
Faith is a central and necessary ingredient to experience a meaningful relationship with God or do anything significant for him with our lives (Heb 11:6). Faith takes us into the realm of the unknown and the impossible. That can be risky but it’s only when we get out of the boat that we discover the power to walk on water (Matt 14:27-31). With faith, we’re able to do more and be more than we could ever imagine (Eph 3:20). We’re confident in God that whatever we ask in accordance with his will shall be done for us (1 John 5:14-15, John 14:3, Matt 21:22). We dare to dream, believe and speak in faith to impossible circumstances, for in Christ all things are possible to those who believe (Mark 9:23).
5. WE VALUE PRAYER AND FASTING
Prayer, at its core is communicating with God. We believe that prayer has the power to alter the course on history and bring God’s kingdom to earth (Matt 6:10). Christians are called to pray and intercede for other believers, non-Christians and the world at large (Col 4:12, 1 Tim 2:1-2). We believe that prayer, when offered in faith is powerful and effective (James 5:16). We believe that it should be a vital and dynamic part of every person’s Christian walk, both personally and corporately. Likewise, fasting, when accompanied by prayer is a powerful tool for Christians, both in a corporate setting, such as a church community, and personally. It can be very effective in bringing about breakthrough in challenging situations (Matt 6:16, 2 Chron 20:3).
Jesus laid down his life for the church (Eph 5:25). It’s his body and as such represents him to the world. In most cases when the New Testament mentions the church it is referring to the local church. We acknowledge that every Christian is a part of the global family of God, the worldwide church. However, we also recognise the vital importance that the local church plays in the life of every Christian, and the important role that every Christian is supposed to play in the mission of the local church (Rom 12:4-8). Therefore, we are committed to our local church, its vision, mission and values. We serve the church’s vision with our time, talents and finances. We speak well of our church. We support all ministries and expressions of our vision, not just the ones that we’re directly involved with or benefit from.
7. WE VALUE THE SACREMENTS
Communion and Water Baptism are two essential sacraments of the Christian church. Although they may not seem culturally relevant to those outside or on the fringes of the church and can even seem weird, we remain committed to them because they are practices directly endorsed by Christ. We take time to explain the meaning, significance and power of these two activities. That way both those who participate in them and those outside the church can understand. We endeavour to practice them regularly and consistently within the life of the church (Luke 22:19-20, Matt 3:13-15).
8. We Value The IMportance of Music In Christian Life
Music is an essential and significant part of life for every Christian and as such we include music in most of our church services and many of our other activities. Humanity has always recognised music as an important art form to convey emotion and story. Throughout the bible, we see evidence of music and song used to convey praise, thanksgiving, faith, love, devotion and even pain to God. There are songs and poetic writing scattered throughout the pages of scripture (e.g. Ex 15:20-22, Duet 32:1-43, Rev 15:3-4). The book of Psalms is a recording of songs, many of them set to a musical tune on various instruments and essentially became regarded as the ‘hymnal’ or song lists used in structured Jewish worship as well as a prayer devotional. In today’s society music styles change regularly and are often regarded as a forerunner in reflecting cultural changes and patterns. We understand that music preference is a very personal matter and can extend even beyond age, cultural and demographic boundaries. In that regard, we recognise that finding a single music style that appeals to every person is impossible. To maintain our commitment to our vision we seek to keep the music style we use in church life as culturally relevant as possible (1 Cor 9:22). We believe that God is honoured in all singing and worship that is centred on him regardless of music genre. We encourage people to have an active worship lifestyle beyond church services. There is ample access to Christian worship music in many genres for use in personal devotional experience.
We believe that on the cross Christ died to make us whole - body, soul and spirit (1 Pet 2:24). Therefore, we’re committed to doing all we can to help each other fully experience that wholeness. We recognise that for our journey towards wholeness to begin we must first be willing to acknowledge the areas where we’re not whole. We aim to be a safe place for people to ‘drop the masks’ (Luke 18:9-14, 5:30-32). Only in an environment that lovingly encourages honesty, while challenging us to face our pain and appropriate healing, can we truly begin the journey towards wholeness. We highlight the importance of creating space for people to refresh and recharge emotionally and spiritually to avoid burnout (Luke 5:16). That said, we understand that our well-being is closely linked to God’s purpose for our lives. We’re not just set free from the effects of past and present sin so we can live comfortable lives. We’re set free so that we can live fully committed to Christ’s purpose for our lives (Matt 16:24-25). In many cases this purpose will involve us being Christ’s instrument of freedom to others in the very areas where we have most experienced his freedom ourselves.
10. We Value Love and Care
Love is at the central core of God’s being and nature, therefore we believe that as we are transformed into his image, love for those around us should be an ever-increasing trademark of our faith (1 John 4:7-21, John 13:34-35). We believe in the importance of pastoral care. This term has its roots in that of a shepherd caring for their sheep. Jesus is the chief shepherd and he cares for all sheep (John 10:11-15). Within the context of our church, we believe that he appoints under-shepherds who serve as his representatives to show love and care to the ‘flock’ (1 Pet 5:1-4). We recognise that due to physical limitations, no one shepherd could possibly provide adequate care to the number of people in our church. As such we understand that it’s not practically feasible for our Lead Pastors and Location Pastors to provide effective care for everyone and that we therefore have multiple under-shepherds within our pastoral structure to help people receive the best possible care. This includes such measures as the appointing of other pastors, pastoral workers, gathering / connect group leaders, department leaders etc. We also believe that some of the most effective care can be given when ‘sheep care for sheep’. The ‘one another’ commission occurs more than 50 times in the New Testament. There is great power in each person in our church showing love and concern to others. We encourage, train and have an expectation that everyone in our church will be committed to love and care for others and that this is not just the responsibility of the appointed pastoral team.
We believe that the equality of all people is a central tenet of the gospel and solely contingent upon the fact that all people are created equal and in God’s image (Gen 1:27). Those who are similar to us or believe the same as us are no ‘more equal’ than those who differ from us (Gal 3:26-28). As such we aim to treat all people equally and respectfully regardless of ethnicity, religion, gender, age, disability, socio-economic status or sexual orientation. Sadly however, many Christian churches have not done this well and it has often undermined their ability to reach those from different backgrounds to the majority of people in that church. We strive to be a church that makes people from all backgrounds feel welcome and accepted so that they can discover Christ’s love among us. We aim to listen and learn from those of different backgrounds. When we do this well, we are reflecting the heart of Christ who was a friend to many written off by others (Matt 9:10-13).
We celebrate difference. God is passionate about diversity and his creation reflects this. The earth and heavens are filled with so many different kinds of plants, animals, geographical features, weather patterns, stars, galaxies, nebulas etc. all working together in harmony. Humans too, are created diverse. We have different ethnicities, cultures, genders, abilities personalities etc. We embrace diversity when we allow for and celebrate those differences. Only when we do this do we truly reflect the fullness of God to the world. It is a defining mark of Christ’s people that we can exist in unity with those who are different from ourselves. The early church existed in an era where the Greco-Roman world sought a pseudo-unity by removing any kind of diversity. The Pax Romana, a single culture, language, currency, dress, national identity etc. was enforced upon the citizens of the Roman world in an effort to create peace. The apostle Paul urged Christians to live a different way. By embracing and celebrating diversity within the church, while maintaining unity and equality the Church was to reflect the manifold wisdom of God to the world around us and to the principalities and powers (Eph 3:10-11).
Many Western Christians treat the issue of justice as a ‘nice thing to do’ but fail to realise that it is actually inseparable from the gospel message. The New Testament has more to say about how salvation changes believers so they can bring positive change here on earth than about how Christians can escape this earth and go to heaven when we die. In the West we’ve tended to major on this second part, often at the expense of the first. We believe that justice is not an optional extra for some Christians who are passionate about it (Micah 6:8). God is just, (Is 61:8) and Christians are mandated to be instruments of that justice in the world. We can do this in two ways. Firstly, through restorative justice, by valuing human rights and caring for the poor, the marginalised and victims of injustice (Gal 2:10, James 1:27, Ex 22:21-24, Is 1:17, 51:6-12). Secondly, through retributive justice (punishment for wrongdoing). This is the more commonly understood form of justice and God has instituted governments, authorities and judicial systems to perform this kind of justice (Rom 13:1-7). It is not our role as Christians or churches to enforce retributive justice, however we do have a vital role to play in holding our judicial systems to account. Different nations around the world operate with varying degrees of fairness in this regard. Christians can be involved in retributive justice by lobbying for fairness in the system and in judicial legalisation, supporting and speaking up for victims of crime, calling on police and judicial authorities to do their job fairly and speaking up for those facing unjust or unfair punishment.
One of the central elements of our mission is reaching those outside the church, locally and globally, with the gospel of Jesus Christ (Luke 19:10). We are committed to creating avenues and opportunities for people to effectively demonstrate God’s love to their world. This involves serving others to improve the quality of their lives, spiritually, emotionally, financially, socially and relationally. We believe the church doesn’t just exist to meet our needs. We are the church, and one of the primary reasons the church exists is to demonstrate God’s love to the world. As we mature in Christ, we are determined to move more and more towards becoming contributors to our society, not just consumers (James 1:27)
15. We Value The Salvation Of Lost People
Leading people into a relationship with Christ lies at the heart of our purpose, both as individuals and as a church (Matt 28:19-20). We express this value by recognising that we are to always be on the lookout for opportunities to lead people in the direction of a relationship with Jesus (1 Pet 3:15). We prioritise inviting and bringing people to church services and other activities so they can hear the gospel. We understand all that Christ has done for us and so we are compelled to share that good news with others. We believe there is no other way for people to have a relationship with God, lasting joy or true purpose outside the gospel of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 5:14-20, John 14:6).
16. We Value Cultural Relevance
One of our primary missional purposes is to lead people to a relationship with Christ. We understand that we are living in an increasingly secular world where most people have little or no contact with the church. Many people view the Christian church in our country as outdated and irrelevant. The world today is changing so rapidly that it can be hard to keep up. To win people to Christ we’re prepared to shift our paradigms and not be precious about our personal preferences, fully aware that they are likely outdated anyway. Statistically, most people come to Christ when they are young, so as a church we seek to remain relevant to the younger generations. This affects our choices when it comes to music genre, service styles, use of language, décor, graphic media and social media etc. We recognise that the message of the gospel is timeless and must not change while the methods and structures that transmit that message may be constantly changing (1 Cor 9:20-23).
17. We Value INCLUSIVENESS
Everyone has a place in Jesus’ heart and therefore, everyone must have a place in our heart too. In practice this means that we’re always looking out for those on the ‘outside’ to invite and welcome them ‘inside’ (Eph 2:11-14). This includes those who don’t yet know Jesus as well as those in our midst who may not yet feel well connected. As Christ’s followers, we’re always on the lookout for lost sheep (Matt 18:12-13).
18. WE value the God Given Right oF Free Will
We believe that it’s not our place to force any person to believe or behave in a certain way. God chose to give Adam and Eve, and by implication every human being the power to make choices about what they believe and how they behave (Gen 2:16). Any attempt by one person to violate another’s freedom to choose, is in affect a form of control and in some cases, abusive. However, we recognise that a person’s right to choose does not mean that that they are not expected to operate within the boundaries of various authority structures in which they live. Negative, destructive, divisive or illegal actions will carry consequences. Here’s three contexts in which acknowledging free will of others plays out. Firstly, we do not have the right to judge, condemn or distance ourselves from those outside the church who choose to believe or behave in ways different to us. Indeed, our mission is to reach such people with the gospel (1 Cor 5:9-13). Secondly, with regard to other churches. We acknowledge that we will often have significant differences of opinion with other Christians and/or churches around doctrine, culture, liturgical practice, political persuasions etc. In actual fact there are only a few things that we regard as essential Christian beliefs, (largely summed up in the Nicene Creed). Wherever possible we strive to maintain the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace (Eph 4:4) so that we present a unified front to the world (John 13:35). A guide for how we should respond can be summed up by the 17th century quote, “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.” Thirdly, within the context of our local church we must be gracious towards others who have differing opinions to us on a wide range of matters. We aim to show grace towards those whose perspective may differ from ours. In the context of church settings and activities we will not allow discussions on non-essential matters to progress to the point where they become more focussed than the vision or mission of our church. Agreement to disagree is a perfectly suitable response and can be reached while maintaining unity.
19. We Value Grace Not Legalism
When Jesus, the sinless Son of God died upon the cross he made a way for every human who accepts his finished work of atonement to enter into a relationship with the Father and be forgiven of their sins. Every person is born with a sinful nature and therefore is incapable of earning a right standing with God through any act of their own. We are all wholly dependent on the death of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. That said, even Christians, who have accepted this work of grace will continue to struggle with legalistic tendencies. This will mean that at times we may fall back into trying to earn favour with God through partaking in or abstaining from certain actions and behaviours. We may deem certain things as ‘good works’ while perceiving certain others to be ‘bad works.’ Legalism is any practice or belief, added to the gospel that compromises the sufficiency of Christ as saviour. Two significant dangers exist when we fall into legalism. Firstly, we fail to live from the grace of God and can become bound with this sense that certain behaviours or beliefs on our part will dictate our acceptance or lack of acceptance by God. Secondly, legalistic people tend to be very judgmental of others whom they deem to be engaging in behaviours that they would not do. In reality there are very few behaviours that are ‘black and white’ and most behaviours fall into the ‘grey’ zone. The list of grey areas is very long and too extensive to list here. However, some examples that often arise in church life today include, alcohol, entertainment choices and practice of religious holidays. A particular behaviour may be acceptable and permissible to some people while it may compromise the faith of others. The apostle Paul addressed issues such as these in several places (1 Cor 8, Rom 14, Gal 2-4). His advice is that those who sense a freedom to partake in particular ‘grey’ behaviours should feel free to do so but must always act in love and not do anything that would cause another person to stumble in their faith. Secondly, he would urge that those who are not comfortable with certain behaviours should not judge those who are.
20. We Value Relationships
The most loving relationship model we have is that of the Trinity. The first scriptural reference to God saying something was ‘not good’ was when he referred to Adam’s loneliness (Gen 2:18). Relationship with others is a vital aspect of God’s purpose for our lives. We understand that relationships can be wonderfully enriching, where the best of humanity shines through, or deeply painful, where the worst of behaviours become evident. Every relationship comes with risk. The greater the opportunity for friendship, intimacy and love, the greater the chance for pain and rejection. But this doesn’t stop us from contending for strong relationships. Perhaps more than any other area, building and maintaining healthy relationships through the need for selflessness, can produce godly character in us. Healthy relational connections within the life of a local church are essential for our emotional health and spiritual growth. Therefore, we place a high priority upon connection (John 13:35). That said, we recognise that not every relationship is necessarily healthy for us. Sometimes, despite our best efforts to have a positive relationship, things won’t work out. If we’ve done all we can to make it work (Rom 12:18), or a particular relationship will be toxic to us we may need to end it (1 Cor 15:33, Prov 13:20), at least until the opportunity for positive reconciliation improves.
21. WE Value Both Genders
God created humanity in his image, male and female together reflect his image (Gen 1:27). We recognise the importance of both male and female within the life of our church. Both genders bring vital expressions of God’s nature and image to light in and through our church ministry. We believe that both men and women are equal in God’s sight and gender has no impact on their access to God or their effectiveness to perform certain roles within the church or the family. We believe that both men and women can be equally effective in any position in the church, including leadership. While upholding the traditional Christian view of both gender and sexuality, we recognise that many in our world do not agree with that view or may be personally struggling with their gender identity or sexuality. This in no way releases us from the responsibility to show Christ’s love and compassion to every person, regardless of whether their perspective differs from us on this matter (1 Cor 5:9-12). We endeavour to be a church that shows Christ’s love and compassion to lost people, not judgement and harshness.
Family is God’s idea. Father. Son and Spirit exist as a united family. We champion the cause of family (marriage, parenting, grand-parenting and extended family) believing the adage ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ to be true. The family unit is under attack in today’s world, from those who would seek to redefine its meaning and from a culture that wars against its success through such things as overworked parents, absent fathers, pressure of debt etc. We actively look for avenues that reinforce family values and equip people with tools to help their family succeed. The church is often referred to as a family (Eph 2:19-21). Therefore, we seek to reach out to one another with family love, especially to include those who for whatever reason have little or no access to other family connections (Ps 68:5-6). While holding to the value of biological families we also recognise that for many reasons some people do not or are not able to have a biological family. Singleness is a virtue that has often been overlooked among Christians (1 Cor 7:38, Matt 19:12). Some are called to singleness, and some have not yet found a marriage partner. We believe they are in no way inferior to those who are married. Other married couples are unable to have children or may have chosen not to for certain reasons. Likewise, we acknowledge, include and affirm them as a valuable part of our church family.
Generosity is at the core of God’s nature. Throughout scripture generosity is commended and stinginess in condemned (2 Cor 9:7, Deut 15:9). God gave his absolute best for us when he gave us his Son Jesus (John 3:16).As Christians, we are committed to being generous in all areas of our lives and understand that generosity reflects God’s heart, perhaps more than any other action we can perform. As such we’re committed to a generous life in the following areas…
- Our time - volunteering in the church and the community (Ps 110:3).
- Our talents - using our skills and abilities to benefit others (Rom 12:4-8).
- Our hospitality - opening our home and blessing others with food and fellowship (Rom 12:13, 1 Pet 4:9).
- Our money - through tithing 10% of our income to the church so that it can fulfil its mission. We also give to other needs, both within and outside the local church as we have the opportunity and means (Gen 28:20, Matt 23:23, Heb 7:1-10).
Serving others is not a sign of weakness. On the contrary Jesus marked servanthood as a sign of greatness in his kingdom by explaining that he came to serve others more than to be served (Matt 20:25-28). Our first service is to Christ (1 Cor 6:19-20), and then by implication we are to represent him to our community and the nations by serving the kingdom of God with our gifts and talents.
25. We Value Submission to Authority
We recognise that God’s blessing and favour is bestowed upon us within the framework of delegated authority. Authority is not a dirty word. It finds its origin within the Godhead. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are three persons of equal power and yet wonderfully coexist within the framework of authority. The Spirit submits to the will of the Son (John 16:7-14) and the Son submits to the will of the Father (John 12:49-50). It doesn’t make Jesus less powerful or less important than his Father, nor the Holy Spirit less so than him. Submission to God ordained authorities in the nation, in the workplace, in the family, in the church sets us up for blessing. It doesn’t make us inferior people or ‘less than’ those who lead us (Rom 13:1-7, Eph 5:21-6:9, 1 Pet 2:13-23).
26. WE value OUr Leaders and Serve Their Vision
The biblical model for godly leadership is not one that is imposed from the ‘top down’. Indeed, Jesus made it clear that godly leaders will serve, equip and empower those they lead for their good (Matt 20:25-28). But once it is established that a leader’s motive is pure then it’s incumbent upon the person being led to submit to that leader’s authority both for their own benefit and the fulfilment of the vision and mission of the church (Heb 13:17, 1 Thess 5:12-13).
27. We Value Wisdom In Selection Of Leaders
When choosing leaders in our church, we understand that character, loyalty, faithfulness and ability are all important. The scriptures clearly define the necessary character criteria for those being appointed to significant leadership roles within the church (Tit 1:5-9, 1 Tim 3:1-7, 1 Pet 5:1-4). When appointing new leaders, we’re looking for those who’ve already demonstrated an aptitude for leadership with evident fruitfulness. Function precedes position. Leadership positions and titles are intended to help enhance the leader’s effectiveness by enabling those they lead to recognise and serve the leadership gift that is already functioning in their life (1 Tim 5:22). Loyalty to a common vision is vital because only when all our leaders and teams are pulling in the direction of the vision given to our senior leaders can we hope to have true synergy and the most effective ministry (Luke 16:12).
Virtually every person in the bible who’s done anything significant for God went through a season of waiting, or feeling like they’d been ‘benched by the coach’ (Cf. Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David etc.) This is a necessary part of our character growth and helps us learn that our sense of significance does not come from what we do for him but what he has already done for us. Because we understand that we serve Christ and the vision of our church we’re not precious about our roles and functions within it. We are saved by grace alone for the purpose of doing good works for God (Eph 2:8-10). We understand that the structure and activities of our church are in constant flux to ensure that they remain as culturally relevant and missionally effective as possible. This will mean that there’s always the chance that a leader may ask us to surrender or change a role or position. We’re focussed on the overall vision and mission of our church, not our ‘personal ministry’ and so we hold our roles and responsibilities firmly enough to see the kingdom advance but loosely enough to surrender them when asked to do so. This may not always be pain free, even with a commitment to flexibility because we invest a great deal of ourselves into our roles and service. But we’re prepared to discuss any challenges we may be feeling with our leaders and seek God for his comfort and peace. We won’t allow bitterness or frustration to overtake us.
29. We Value INtegrity and Accountability
Our heart attitude is of great importance to the Lord. One can appear to be living for the Lord for a time while their heart is not in relationship with God (Is 29:13). God looks at our heart (1 Sam 16:7) and we understand that a pure heart will ultimately be the source of lasting fruit in our lives (Ps 24:3). Therefore, to help us keep pure hearts, both individually and corporately, we believe in the importance of accountability. We encourage people to openly welcome accountability relationships. Likewise, our church leadership and governance invite accountability through financial auditing and the input of pastoral oversight.
30. We Value Discipleship
The great commission commands us to make disciples, not just converts or believers. Discipleship is a commitment we make to allowing ourselves to be taught by others to obey the commands Christ has given us (Matt 28:19-20). In practice this means that we allow and indeed welcome the support, correction and direction of others more mature and experienced than us in the faith. This is in fact a sign of wisdom (Prov 1:5-7 15:14, 18:15).
31. We Value Training, Education and Equipping
We value the importance of creating opportunities for people to learn and grow so they can fulfill their God given protentional (Acts 2:42). We also encourage individuals to approach life with a ‘growth mind-set’. This means that people understand that their potential in God is great and lies beyond their current ability or skills. A growth mind-set says, “I can’t do that yet” or “I don’t have the skills for that yet” as opposed to “That’s impossible, I’ll never be able to do that.” (Eph 1:16-18). This encourages innovation, a commitment to lifelong learning and a willingness to stretch oneself in training and education. We also aim to provide as many tools and training opportunities as possible to assist and equip people to fulfil their ministry roles within the church. While remaining committed to growth we also acknowledge the ‘gift of limits’ and recognise that there will be some things that we are not called by God or gifted by him to be able to do.
We believe that rest and relaxation are an essential part of maintaining a healthy level of emotional health. Jesus regularly took time out for rest to refresh for further ministry. (Luke 5:16) Sleep is also a blessing from the Lord (Ps 127:2). We believe that overwork and forcing oneself to have inadequate sleep can be just as unhealthy and detrimental as laziness. We encourage Christians to have a healthy work / life / ministry balance that allows for adequate rest and relaxation. Although we believe that Sabbath keeping in the Old Testament way is no longer required in the New Covenant, we do value the importance of the principle of rest that it encourages and encourage people to avoid working in their regular job seven days per week.
It's not all about the destination. Doing the trip with family and friends is one of life’s greatest joys (Eccl 3:12-13). We endeavour to create opportunities for connection, friendship and inclusion of family members in the activities of the church, particularly among pastoral and leadership teams.
Joy is mentioned over 160 times in the scriptures. Jesus came to earth to bring fullness of life to his people (John 10:10). We believe that Christianity should be vibrant, colourful, energetic and lively. Therefore, we endeavour to make our church services and activities fun and enjoyable for everyone involved. We do not believe church should be boring. The gospel is wonderful, exciting news and salvation brings us joy (Ps 51:12). We endeavour to reflect that in the personality of our church.
God is the original Creator (Gen 1:1). We are created in his image and that means that every person has the potential to express creativity (Ex 25:30-35). We recognise this and encourage people to use their creative ability for the benefit of the church and its mission. Creativity can find its expression through many outlets. An extensive and yet not exhaustive list would include, visual art, photography, music, singing, drama, dance, choreography, graphic design, writing books, writing plays, writing courses, video production, computer programming, IT design, engineering, industrial design, architecture, inventions, etc.
Innovative thinking is an extension of our God given creativity. When faced with resource limitation innovative leaders can hear from God and be divinely inspired to achieve the seemingly impossible or improve the effectiveness of things they are already doing (James 1:5). We encourage innovative leadership and allow our leaders to take risks. We allow people permission to fail trying new things and would rather that than be leaders who always play it safe and have a ‘maintenance mode’ perspective.
