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The Wisdom is in the Room
Wisdom is treasure! We begin our search for wisdom with the people already present. Pentecost means the Spirit has been shed abroad, free to speak wisdom to or through anyone. We embrace full participation on the part of the laity, who learn to expect the Spirit’s guidance on matters great and small. Scripture, history, facts, dreams, and intuitions all work together in our communal search for the practical wisdom we need to live well. |
All are Welcome
We actively invite all people to experience the love of Christ. With unconditional acceptance, we are intentional about engaging and partnering with the local community. We create spaces where both giftedness and brokenness are welcome. We joyfully affirm being a "community of misfits" where we foster honesty, authenticity, and vulnerability as the path to creating real connection and experiencing real transformation. We show up fully because we believe God loves us as we are. All means All. |
All Hands on Deck
We need everyone — everyone’s gifts, everyone’s heart, everyone’s prayers, everyone’s commitment to the mission of the church, each in his or her own way. We will never cease to invite people to be part of this great call because the mission of God’s church is urgent and encompasses everything. |
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Offensive Generosity
Our Lord gives generously and abundantly, so we choose to make our daily decisions from a place of gratitude. We gladly share ourselves and the resources God gives in ways that reflect our trust in God and our commitments to serve others, especially the underserved poor. We create opportunities for people to be healthy and whole. We break bread often and everywhere, seeking to nourish bodies, minds, and souls. We’ve learned we can’t out give God. |
The Sacred is in the Profane
God uses the ordinary. God transforms the common. God is everywhere, all the time. We reject the common heresy that the spiritual world is good and the material world is evil. We are inclined to look for evidence of God’s handiwork in even the messiest places of our lives. |
The Truth is in the Tension
We embrace difference. We reject tribalism as destructive to human flourishing. We reject either/or thinking on complex issues. We lean into the discomfort of difference in the room, trusting that the truth and justice we all seek are not easily grasped. No one has arrived. Seeking higher ground, we will agree to disagree, and together to accept the messiness of life as a given, allowing the personal paradoxes of Jesus to be our basis for staying in conversation. |