North side of the campus. Photo: 2015.
We want you to know a little bit about us when you visit. We are ordinary people who worship an extraordinary God. He has changed us, and we want others to know him too. Some of us have been Christians for a short time, and others have been on this journey for a while. Everyone is welcome.
Listed below are a few characteristics which describe our congregation:
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- We love Jesus Christ: Jesus Christ, God’s Son (John 1:1) willingly left his heavenly throne (Phil. 2:5) to become a man. He was tempted in every way that we are, but he never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). He was crucified by Roman soldiers on a cross to pay the penalty for our sins (Romans 4:25). He was buried in an unmarked tomb, and then after three days, he was raised from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:4). With Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples, we confess that even though we have not seen him, we love him” (1 Peter 1:8). He is the “love of our life,” and we want you to know him too.
- We trust the Bible: We believe the Bible to be God’s Word, and therefore trust it completely to be a reliable and authoritative guide for our walk in this world. From the children’s ministry to our senior adult classes, from Sunday school to worship, we listen for a message from God through his Word, and not from the wisdom of men. (Hebrews 4:12; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Psalm 119:105; Isaiah 40:8).
- Praise and prayer are important to us. We believe it is important each time we gather to express to the Lord how much he means to us – i.e., to worship. We use a variety of forms to do that, including a praise team (guitars, banjos, and drums), and various singing groups: adult, children’s, and youth choirs. We believe too that each member should express authentic praise to God, and not just on Sunday, but each day of the week. We are also a praying church. We pray for each other, and we know that God answers the prayers of His people.
- Come as you are. Long ago, we knew that not everyone had “suits and ties” to wear to church, and so many people didn’t come. From the beginning our church has wanted to be accessible to anyone and everyone who wants to discover Christ, and to grow in their faith. We want you to be comfortable, and we don’t want you to worry about what you do or don’t have to wear when you come, so just come whenever you can, and “just as you are.” You will be welcome here.
- People grow here. When you come to our church, our hope is that you won’t leave the same. Perhaps you won’t notice the difference right away, but over time, our prayer is that you will see that your Christian walk has deepened in beautiful and noticeable ways. You will start becoming more like Jesus, and that’s our heart, and our goal (2 Corinthians 3:18; Romans 8:29). Interested in different ways that you can grow spiritually? Let us know, and we’ll get you plugged in.
- We care about each other. The Bible describes the church as the “body of Christ” (Romans 12:5), so no one person in our church family is more or less important than anyone else. We are family, because when God becomes our father, we relate to each other as brothers and sisters. We care about each other, lifting each other’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). When one hurts, if affects us all, and when one rejoices, we all smile. This is our promise to each other as followers of Jesus Christ. For this reason, Grief Share, Celebrate Recovery, and weekly Bible studies are an important part of who we are.
- We don’t like to huddle. If a football team stayed in the huddle, it would never get into the game. Of course, our church family loves to be together. We laugh, love, and “live life” together in the good and difficult times. At the same time, we’ve determined never to be a closed, or exclusive, group, so that it is hard to get in. Each Sunday, you will hear us say that “you can only be a visitor once, and then the second time you come, you’re family.” We mean it!
- We are on the move. Our church is always on the move. Through the years, we’ve moved locations as we have grown, but we’re not talking about physical locations here. God is on the move, ever reaching out to people who don’t yet know him, so as His people, we “walk humbly” beside Him, following Him into the world, or wherever he sends us. (Micah 6:8). Another way to say this is that we are a “missions-minded” church, reaching out in a variety of ways to share God’s love with people in our city, and around the world.
- We belong to a larger family. Our church was started by the Lord more than 20 years ago through Mission Arlington®. We are one of 360 congregations started and sponsored by the Mission, and we are both humbled and proud to be a part of their network of congregations. We partner in many ways with their mission congregations, and with the Mission itself, and we support their important work in our city wherever we can.
We know that it is difficult to describe a group of people in just a series of points, but we hope this helps you get a sense of who we are. If you have questions, or if you just want to know more, don’t hesitate to contact us.
Or, just come and see for yourselves. We look forward to meeting you.