Values reveal what is important to our individual congregation. They undergird the vision and help us see what target we are trying to hit, and whether or not we’re hitting it.
Transformation Over Religious Activity
We want to see people made new for the first time and for a life time. Spiritual growth is not measured by church attendance but by steadily becoming like Jesus from the inside out. How can you continually make transformation into Christlikeness, and not religious activity the primary goal of your life?
Belonging Before Believing
We want visitors, and specifically, people who don’t yet believe in Jesus to feel at home. Sunday mornings will be warm and personal. We will remember people’s names. The sermons and songs will be geared toward attracting new people and will be relevant to our cultural context. How can you help outsiders belong before they believe?
Serving Before Saving
The posture of Jesus’ life was that of a servant. The cross was the climax of a life given over to servanthood. We want to be a church that believes this and models it so that the outside community will be served by us long before we have the opportunity to tell them about new life in Jesus. How can you serve the outside community in order to provide an opportunity to share new life with them?
Affection Over Obligation
The best kind of service is done from the heart. This happens when people do what they want to do, not what they have to do. If someone loves serving children, we will train and release them to serve our children. If someone loves quilting, we will release them to quilt in service of others. We will not do programs because we are “supposed to” or because “we have always done it that way”. Following our gifts and passions is part of cultivating our new life in Jesus. What things do you love doing, and how could you prayerfully do them to lead others to new life?
Limits are to be Embraced
Limits are a God-given gift to be embraced for churches and individuals in our new life. We will assess the passions, funds, and promptings of our leaders and the church body to see whether or not God is providing for something new at ACC. We will err on the side of simplicity. Our ministries will be governed by our vision and our values. What things are primary, enabling us to say “yes” to the things that are central, and “no” to the things that are not?