Vision and Mission

(revised 3/12/2014)

Our vision, mission, and Core Values provide key guidelines for the development of our ministry here at Life Church.

Vision Statement

As believers in Jesus Christ, we are a new family, a visible body, and an active network nourished by God’s river of life:

• a family of believers¹ who
  • enjoy God without fear, inadequacy, guilt, or shame (FIGS), and love him with everything they’ve got²,
  • genuinely love one another³,
  • live by the resurrection life of Jesus⁴ within them,
• a body⁵ through which Jesus loves our community and our world⁶
• a network of churches, ministries, and businesses that lead people, communities, and cultures to follow Jesus⁷ and bring him glory⁸.

 

Vision Narrative

When we talk about God’s river of life nourishing us we’re referring to the “river of the water of life” referred to in the first two verses of chapter 22 of Revelation — the last book of the Bible:

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
Revelation 22:1-2 (NIV)

As we drink from the river of life our goal is to cooperate with God’s goal of putting Jesus in charge of everything:

And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment — to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
Ephesians 1:9-10 (NIV)

At Life Church you’ll find purposeful lives making a powerful difference, and we want you to have a stake in what God’s is doing through us. Ask yourself the following questions:

• Where does God want you to make a difference?
• Whose lives does God want to change through you?

God is eager to equip you to have a greater impact on your world than you can possibly imagine:

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

Mission Statement

To teach people

• to enjoy knowing Jesus without fear, inadequacy, guilt, or shame¹,
• to follow him together as his family²,
• to function together as his body³,
• and to work together to expand his kingdom⁴ and bring him glory⁵

Mission Details

Our mission is to teach people to enjoy knowing Jesus without fear, inadequacy, guilt, or shame, to follow him together as his family, to function together as his body, and to work together to expand his kingdom and bring him glory.

• We enjoy knowing Jesus because we
  • come to him even when we feel fear, inadequacy, guilt, or shame
  • overcome
    • Fear, Inadequacy, Guilt, and Shame
  • with
    • Faith, Intercession, Grace, and Sanctification.
• We follow Jesus together as his family by:
  • putting Jesus’ words into practice by adopting godly habits,
  • devoting ourselves to intimacy with Jesus,
  • devoting ourselves to fellowshipping with and serving one another in love,
• We function together as his body by
  • developing our godly habits into skills,
  • genuinely loving our neighbors and promoting justice,
  • welcoming people and introducing them to Jesus as they get to know us
• We work together to expand his kingdom by:
  • developing our godly skills into successful ministries and businesses,
  • reaching out to and serving the un-churched and de-churched,
  • planting thriving churches
• We bring him glory by:
  • maintaining unity with our brothers and sisters,
  • letting the world know how wonderful Jesus is through our words and actions

Leadership Perspective

As we carry out our mission we engage in some key processes:

• Developing Mature Believers
• Developing Effective Leaders
• Expanding God’s Kingdom

Leaders play a key role in these processes by:

• training believers to live as part of Jesus’ family, function in his body, and expand his kingdom
• training them to train themselves
• training them to train others
• planting them in new congregations

Another take:

• We evangelize the curious.
• We disciple the hungry.
• We promote the faithful.
• We recognize gifting and competence.

Core Values

Click here for our Core Values Page.