I have been working on a new “Mission Statement” for the Edge that will not only provide a simple way to remember and understand WHAT we do, but will also provide a clear explanation of HOW we intend to do it.
Here it is:
Love God, Love People, Serve the King, Tell the World.
OUR MISSION:
LOVE GOD:
This is the greatest commandment. We exist to love God with everything we are. As a church, and as individuals, we must strive to live holy, righteous, faithful, devoted lives of sacrifice.
LOVE PEOPLE:
This is the second greatest commandment. The mission of the Edge is to love people. As a church, and as individuals, we must endeavor to treat people with kindness, gentleness, forgiveness, patience and truth.
SERVE THE KING:
Our King was and is a servant. He came to serve. The mission of the Edge is to serve people. As a church, and as individuals, we will work to advance the kingdom through the use of our hands, feet, eyes and ears.
TELL THE WORLD:
In Matthew 28 Jesus gave his disciples The Great Commission, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.” As a church, and as individuals, we will strive to spread the message of Christ and make disciples for Him.
OUR PROCESS FOR MAKING DISCIPLES:
LOVE GOD:
Our Sunday morning service is the “Love God” step of our discipleship process. Most people will start their relationship with Jesus in the sanctuary on Sunday mornings, worshiping God and learning His word. Sunday morning is a great place to start, but not at all where we want people to end.
LOVE PEOPLE:
The “Love People” aspect of our discipleship process takes place when a “Sunday only” person takes the next step and begins attending a small group. Wednesday night meals, the women’s group, weeknight home groups (etc.) all exist to connect believers and deepen their walk with Jesus.
SERVE THE KING:
Once a person is involved in some sort of small group, they will then be encouraged to join a ministry team and “Serve the King.” Service within the Body of Christ is a key element in discipleship and is essential in creating mature “others-centered” Christians.
TELL THE WORLD:
The final step in our discipleship process is “Tell the World.” It is our desire for people to see “The Great Commission” as their commission. Our desire is for the members of The Edge to take part in duplicating themselves by inviting others to love God, love people, serve the King and tell the world.
This is a VERY brief synopsis of the vision for simplicity and clarity that the Lord has been pouring into my heart. I have written these things down for two purposes:
1) To give you a “heads up” of what going on in my heart and head.
2) To get some discussion going. What do you think? Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
Great start!
ReplyDeleteIs there some way we could flesh out the idea of fellowship a little more in it?
1 Thes 2:8 We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.
It seems like there was definite intentionality by Paul to share his life with the Thessalonians.
Things like small groups and Bible studies seem like great places for a more complete view of the Gospel to be shared. How do we promote and encourage people (and ourselves!) to share lives as well?
Excellent point. I think we will have to make sure that sharing lives/hearts is a MAIN portion of the small groups. The woman's group seems to be doing a great job of this. Yes, it is a study, but they share their hearts A LOT on Monday nights. We could learn a lot from what the ladies are doing.
ReplyDeleteYou Wrote."How do we promote and encourage people (and ourselves!) to share lives as well?"
We promote it by making it one of the main points of emphasis at The Edge. We invite and encourage until we are blue in the face!
Do you think that will be enough? Do you have other suggestions?