Beliefs

We believe in a God who is known in three persons – the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This understanding of the Trinity reveals a God who is, in essence, defined by relationship.

• Father: We believe that God the Father is the source of all that is, creator and sustainer of the universe – but that creative action has always been shared with the Son and Holy Spirit.
• Son: We believe that Jesus Christ, the son of God, became human for a specific period in the history of the world. Ultimately, the love of God was revealed in the most unlikely of ways, as Jesus suffered and died so that we might know that God’s love has no limits.
• Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit is God’s abiding presence in the world – joining us in prayer and worship, and empowering us to live as God’s people in love and service to God and to others. In other words, it is the Holy Spirit through which we have an enduring relationship with God.

• We believe that the Bible has the power to shape and transform our lives each and every day.
• We believe that God’s Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the Bible to reveal truth about God.
• We believe the importance of the scriptures is not in whether or not facts are reported accurately, but on what we can learn about our relationship with God and one another.
• We believe that in preaching and teaching, pastors and others help us to engage the Bible more fully, but no human being has absolute authority to determine a single meaning from scripture.
• We believe how a text interacts with the rest of scripture, and especially the teaching of Jesus, matters greatly in our understanding of God’s truth.

We believe that weekly worship is intended to express our honor and direct our praise to God, who alone is worthy of our devotion.

• We believe worshiping together makes us accountable to something beyond ourselves.
• We believe we are actively engaged in worship: singing, praying, reading texts responsively and sharing in Holy Communion.
• We believe there are many styles of worship – we offer both a traditional and contemporary style of worship.
• We believe that giving of tithes and offerings expresses our gratitude and trust, while fueling the work of the congregation.
• We believe worship follows an ancient 4-fold pattern.
  • Gather – We come together in prayer and praise.
  • Word – We read scriptures and hear a message from the pastor.
  • Meal – We share in the gift of Holy Communion.
  • Sending – We prepare to go out and serve others.

Jesus taught about God’s love by caring for others, teaching that he came not to be served but to serve. As people who strive to follow Jesus’ example, we believe that serving others is a primary means of living our faith.