VISION
The spiritual life is an ever changing, ever walking, ever experiencing way of life. It is a life of questions, of pursuit, of growth, of rhythm, and a life lived in community with others. As we pursue God in the world, in each other, in the scriptures, and in ourselves, we offer these six targets as a guide for spiritual formation:
Liturgy, Listening, Learning, Community, Impact, and Pilgrimage.
Liturgy, Listening, Learning, Community, Impact, and Pilgrimage.
LITURGY
A practice of, and a commitment to, the gathered worship of the church & the sacred rhythm of our life together.
Liturgy is about the practices and rhythms of the church gathered together, including Sunday gatherings, baptism, communion, and the rhythm of the church calendar. These rhythms exist to draw us into a story that is far bigger than ourselves.
RELATED SERMON
LISTENING
The quiet internal work of the soul & heart to learn to hear, consider and act on the sound of God’s voice, and to discern the sound of my own voice and when it’s true or false.
Listening takes many forms, be it meditation, mindfulness, or listening prayer. Listening is a commitment to pausing amidst the business of life to hear, consider, and act on the sound of God's voice, wherever you may experience it. It means being intentional to discern God's voice, and our own, amidst the chorus of the world.
RELATED SERMON
LEARNING
A lifelong commitment to curiosity, growth and an understanding
of the lenses through which we have come to know ourselves, our neighbor, our world & God.
of the lenses through which we have come to know ourselves, our neighbor, our world & God.
The formation of the spiritual life is never complete. Learning is a commitment to curiosity and growth. It's a commitment to asking questions, to wrestling with the unknown, and to recognizing the unique beauty and the unique limitations of our own lens.
RELATED SERMON
COMMUNITY
In light of God’s relational essence and being created from it and for it: Because of and by our faith in Jesus we enter and pursue authentic relationships where we are truly known and know one another.
As image bearers of a relational God, we recognize that we were made to exist in community. We pursue authenticity in our relationships, and work to repair relationships that have been damaged. We commit to be an affirming community where all are welcome.
RELATED SERMON
IMPACT
In response to God’s invitation to be partners: we invest our time, talent and treasure for the sake of restoration, redemption and recreation in our world.
We believe God has invited the church to participate in the "mission of God" and that mission is all about redeeming, restoring and recreating all that God made and called good. We recognize this takes an intentional investment of our time, talent, and treasure. We say yes to this invitation.
RELATED SERMON
PILGRIMAGE
An intentional spiritual journey to a significant location where there is a sense of invitation, leaving, an encounter, and a returning.
Pilgrimage has been an important part of spiritual formation for thousands of years. There is power in the journey of walking (physically or metaphorically) out your faith. Whether it's the short pilgrimage to church on Sunday mornings, or traveling to a destination oversees, we seek to encounter God through the practice of pilgrimage.
RELATED SERMON
Listening
Groups
Listening prayer is rare today, yet so important if we want to know God. In our growing network of Spiritual Direction Groups we are learning to listen well to God and each other. In one of these groups, 4 people meet monthly for 2 ½ hours. They listen to each other’s stories, listen to God and share what was discerned. We experience the words of the Quaker Author, Douglas Steere “To listen another’s soul into a condition of disclosure and discovery may be almost the greatest service that any human being ever performs for another.”
Listening Groups are formed on an annual basis.
Listening Groups are formed on an annual basis.