The mission of every church should stem from The Great Commission, Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 1:8. The Great Commission is the command from Jesus to go into all areas of the world, preach the gospel, baptize, and disciple new believers. While that is the backbone of our mission, vision, and purpose, we need to define how that exists in our context.
Our mission, vision, and purpose plays out in 3 parts consisting of 7 words:
Love God, Love Others, Share His Story
These 3 phrases are simultaneously our Mission and Vision Statement, as well as the process by which we make disciples.
The end result of discipleship and church attendance is not how many people sit in the auditorium or in a Bible study class. The end result is men and women, teenagers, and boys and girls who look, talk, think, and act like Jesus Christ. In other words, we become those who love God, love others, and share His story.
First and foremost, we desire to be men and women, boys and girls who Love God with all our hearts, minds, souls, and strength. Each person’s personal relationship with God is the most important thing in life. Love God is on display and reinforced through our Sunday worship services. This is where each person is introduced to Jesus Christ and is challenged to love Him and live for Him.
The second step is Love Others. The Bible is clear that each person is to love other people no matter who they are or what their social status is or where they are from or what they look like. We are to love others because God loves us. Love Others is developed in Connect Groups. Connect Groups are our small group Bible studies that meet each week. During this weekly time, each person will begin to do life with others, learn to interact with them, and love them. Each one will also learn to dig into God’s Word, the Bible, for themselves and form accountability with others in the Connect Group.
Thirdly, we desire to Share His Story. Those who know the story share the story. As we learn to Love God and Love Others, our next step is to tell other people about Him. There are many ways to do that. It can be as simple as cleaning a house for someone who is not able, or being involved in one of our many community outreaches. It could be that traveling around the world to a different country, or singing in the choir. To Share His Story simply means that each person is involved in doing ministry through Spring Valley. The goal is to reach as many people as we can with the gospel of Jesus Christ, whether it’s in Springville or somewhere else in the world.
You must be logged in to post a comment.