-by Rev. Jeff Gannon
The 10 Things We Must Do to Realize our Redemptive Potential….
- The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing…the Biblical vision is the main thing. Matthew 28:16-20. Make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world! Nothing more…nothing less.
- Chapel Hill has a strong mission of welcoming all people to experience and share the extraordinary grace and love of Jesus Christ! The missions is the means of fulfilling the vision. The mission is unique to Chapel Hill. When we started the church in 1995 we knew we had to be clear about what God was calling us to be and do. At our beginning, there were 972 churches in Wichita. I said to our leadership, we must ask God the question, “Why 973?” When we are clear about that answer, we are clear about our mission. I am convinced when congregations forget their mission, they forget their purpose, and they begin to die. Our mission is God-given and God-sustained. The two greatest days in a person’s or congregation’s life is the day they were born and the day they discover why.
- The values cannot be forgotten. Values are important because they determine how we behave. When we find ourselves in a difficult situation, we rely on our values to determine how we respond.
- Christ-Centered
- Jesus is our Lord, Savior, teacher and friend. -John 3:14-16
- Bible-Based
- We take Scripture seriously and believe it contains all things necessary for life, death and life after death. II Timothy 3:16-17
- Grace-Focused
- Jesus accepts all people without judgment or condemnation and so do we. There is nothing we can do to make God love us more, or love us less. -Luke 15:11-32
- Relevant to Everyday Life
- We believe we are called to take the ancient text of Scripture and make it real and alive for contemporary life. John 10:10
- Intentional about Our Faith Formation
- In response to God’s love, we strive to help one another strengthen and deepen our relationships with God and others. -Galatians 2:20
- Striving to Live a “with-God” Life
- The God we know and love through Jesus is not a distant God but is with us, for us, and active in our lives every day. Acknowledging this reality, we strive to change our behaviors and live our lives as Jesus would if He were in our place. -John 1:14
Next week….#4…(it is a big one!)
Chapel Hill must become more “Methodist” and Wesleyan without becoming more denominational. This is really important….