A vision for the future
We are a community committed to practicing the way of Jesus together for Michigan’s Lakeshore.
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​We do this by:
Being with Jesus,
Becoming like Jesus, and
Joining Jesus’ renewal of all things.
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We gather on Sundays and scatter throughout West Michigan in large and small communities, seeking renewal in our region.
As it is in Heaven
We believe that Jesus is our standard for life practice. Therefore, in the words of the apostle Peter, we strive to make every effort to curate the culture of Heaven in our daily lives.
Practicing the Way
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Be - The first and fundamental call Jesus extends to anyone willing to follow him is to be with him.
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Become - God’s love is lowly and longsuffering. He meets us where we are - alienated, strangers, enemies - and longsuffering, but does not leave us in our ignorance. Instead, he loves us into loving and - secure in his love - he calls us to be formed out of the pattern of the world and into the way of love, joy, and peace.
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Join - We are committed to joining with Jesus as active participants in our region's renewal.
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Cultural Values
Our values are both aspirational and incarnational; that is, we live toward and from these values.
Culture of Honor - We aim to be and become a people who cultivate honor to release and resist. Release the unique gifts and callings bound up within our community and resist our cultural moment eager to cancel our perceived enemies.
Kingdom Hospitality - Hospitality is more than offering refreshments (though it does include this); it literally means the love of the stranger (xenophilia). Therefore, it is our heart's desire to curate unique spaces to extend Jesus’ welcome beyond the confines of our comfort.
Generosity - Through the practice of radical generosity, Jesus' followers reflect the redemptive character of God into a world in need of his forgiveness and healing. Therefore, we desire to become the type of people who give cheerfully as an act of hopeful resistance in a time of fear.
Joyful Resistance - Jesus offered us his joy in full. May we become a community marked by Jesus’ joy in a culture characterized by apathy and spiritual complacency.
Deep Community - We believe that God’s way of life is marked by feasting and celebration, glory and grief, all of which flow into God’s new family. is the overflow of a life of gratitude.
Contending Prayer - Prayer is not peripheral but central to our discipleship to Jesus. If we are to faithfully follow our rabbi Jesus - who often withdrew to quiet places to pray - we must receive prayer as the core discipline to know his voice and respond in obedience.
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Our beliefs:
We hold to the historic teachings of Christian orthodoxy as articulated in the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed.
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In sum:
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We believe in the Triune God— God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
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God the Father is the creator of all things visible and invisible.
He is sovereign and loves all people.
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God the Son (Jesus Christ) is God incarnate, born of a virgin, who died on the cross for all sins, was buried, and was raised from the dead on the third day, according to the scriptures.
He ascended into Heaven and will return to earth to judge both the living and the dead.
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God the Holy Spirit is an active and operating part of the Trinity who dwells, fills, and empowers in every Christian to build up the body and compell the lost to trust Jesus.
We believe that the Bible is the inspired and infallible Word of God.
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We believe that salvation belongs to the Lord and is a gift of God, given by grace and received through faith.
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We believe baptism bears witness to our belief and declares our allegiance to Jesus as Lord.
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We believe in the Lord's communion.
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We believe in the Church.
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We believe Jesus is coming again to renew and restore all things.
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