What We Believe

God can be experienced in three distinct but equally important parts;

Referred to as the Trinity…

Father: creator and designer of all things, all knowing and powerful, is the beginning and end of all things

Son: Jesus Christ, the Messiah, our Savior and Lord who is God's son in the flesh, fully man and fully God, miraculously conceived, born of a virgin, taught faith, hope and love, exemplified servanthood, was crucified for our salvation, died and rose again as proof of God's love for us. He is now in heaven preparing a place for believers to spend eternity. He will come again.

Holy Spirit: God in us, alive in us, who convicts us of sin, draws us to the Father, teaches us truth, empowers us to serve with spiritual gifts and seals us until the day of His coming again.

God has a design and plan for all persons.
God's design and plan is that all persons would live in a love relationship with Him. Humans were created in God's image and God declared everything to be "very good." God gave people the freedom to choose and some of our choices have resulted in disobedience (sin) which damages our relationship with Him. All persons are in need of grace and God has a plan to mend this broken relationship. Reconciliation has come through the death of Jesus; the sacrifice of His body once for all people. All persons are invited to become reconciled with God through faith. Jesus is the only way to the Father, forgiveness, heaven and a life filled with God's joy.

All persons are loved and are important to God.
People are the highest form of God's creation and were created for a relationship with Him. Persons who choose not to be in a relationship with God or who have not had an opportunity to decide to follow are still very important to Him. As followers of Christ we see them as important also. As God is already drawing people to Himself, we understand that it's our calling and responsibility to lead others into this love relationship. The ultimate result is that we can all be one with the Father and enjoy an abundant life on earth and eternity in heaven.

Heaven is a real place.
Heaven is our Father's house! It is the place that all who have come into a relationship with Jesus will spend eternity.

God is a God of new beginnings.
We are not the same today as we were yesterday due to God continually drawing us to Himself. Christianity is not a cycle of convenience whereby one desires to be close to God one day and lives like the world the next. The faith journey is based upon a daily surrendering to Jesus as Lord. We come to God through repentance to accept forgiveness but true believers do not desire to try to manipulate God's grace to live as they wish. We worship a God of new beginnings.

The Bible is our guide for living.
The Bible was inspired of God to be the written unmistakable Word of God for the time in which it was written and for today. It has been preserved for us to learn and experience God's story and to apply its teachings in our everyday life. In all areas of life the Bible is the model for living the Christian life.

Through prayer believers communicate with God
and experience the presence of God. Through prayer believers develop their relationship with God and more fully experience Him. Prayer is powerful and an effective basis of this ministry. It is an act of praising, listening, waiting, confessing sin, thanksgiving and asking for things for self and other people.

Worship is a lifestyle.
We worship God out of our love for Him. This is done as an act of praise individually and as a group, daily and usually on Sunday mornings. But worship is more than music and praise; it is our lifestyle which brings glory to God. Special worship events include "sacraments" which are representations of God's grace. They do not make a person a Christian but are symbols of what Christ has done and continues to do. Communion is the act of remembering and celebrating the ultimate sacrifice Jesus gave of his life to pardon our sins. Believers who wish to participate are to prepare themselves for the celebration with prayers of repentance and acts of forgiveness. Baptism is the symbol of a new beginning in the family of God. The act of Baptism is performed publicly as a celebration. Baptism symbolizes the washing of sin, dying and rising with Christ and marking someone as a person entering into a new relationship with Him.

The Church is the bearer of God's love to the world
The Church is Christ's living body on earth today! The mission of the church is to be the non-judgmental bearer of God's message of redemption into all the world. A healthy, growing church consists of committed believers who worship, study, serve, have fellowship, and journey through life together. Bearing the message of faith, hope and love by word and deed, this living body grows by seeking those who are seeking the Lord and by loving others as Christ has loved us.

Christianity is a lifestyle of service.
A servant lifestyle is the normal way of living as a Christian. Believers serve and love God as they serve and love other people. They want to be in ministry by following examples in scripture such as giving food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothes to the naked, shelter to the homeless, company to the lonely and the message of release to those who are imprisoned by those things which bind them. Other areas of service might include looking each day to encourage and simply live out the faith in front of others. All believers have a place to serve and are empowered by the Holy Spirit with a spiritual gift in which to minister.

The Apostles Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting, Amen.

*"catholic" meaning "universal.” We are not "Roman Catholic;" we work with churches from many denominations.