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Our Vision

Mission

To bring glory to God and many to Jesus by raising up disciples who are so passionate about being new creations in Christ and ambassadors for Him that they joyfully and sacrificially dedicate their lives to representing Jesus well in all they say and in all they do, and to teaching and encouraging others to do the same, wherever God has planted them.

Mission Driving Text - 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. [18] All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; [19] that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. [20] Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. [21] For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.


Core Values


God Pursuing – Difference-making starts with our relationship with God. In order for us to make a difference in the lives of others, we must first allow God to make a difference in our lives. Therefore, we will be a church that makes the pursuit of God and an ever-deepening relationship with Him our highest priority. (Jn 17:3, Mt 22:37-38, Rom 12:1-2, Jer 29:11-13, Eph 2:8-10)

Prayerful – Jesus said that without Him we can do nothing. Therefore, in order to make a difference, we must be humbly and constantly asking for and depending on Jesus’ strength, wisdom, and guidance in everything we do. We must become a house of prayer where praying is not merely one of the many things we do but the foundation and power source of everything we do. (John 15:5, Col 1:29, Jam 1:5, Mt 21:13)

Ministry Minded – If we want to make a difference we must embrace the fact that we have been placed on this earth to serve, not to be served. We must truly believe that it is indeed better to give than to receive. We must develop a ministry mindset in which we see life as ministry, ministry as life, and every opportunity as a ministry opportunity. (Mark 10:43-45, Acts 20:35, 2 Cor 5:17-21)

Relational – We believe that the biggest differences will be made in the context of relationships. Therefore we will strive to be relational with everyone God brings our way and to build strong, redemptive, relationships with both believers and unbelievers alike. (Acts 2:42-47, Eph 4:11-16, Mt 9:9-13)

Community Impacting – We desire not only to make a difference in the lives of individuals but in the life of the community as well. Therefore, we will seek to carefully identify real community needs and to prayerfully, creatively, and sacrificially do all we can to meet the needs God has called us to. (Mt 5:13-16, Gal 6:6-10, Mt 4:23-24)

Gospel Sharing – The only way a person can be saved is through hearing, believing, and trusting in the good news of the Gospel. Therefore, if we want to make the ultimate difference in a person’s life, we must learn to share the Gospel in a humble, thorough, and God-centered way and be constantly praying and looking for opportunities to do so. (Rom 10:13-17, Rom 3:19-28, 1 Cor 15:1-11, 2 Tim 2:24-26, Col 4:2-6)

Reproducing – The more people we have who have been changed by Jesus and are dedicated to making a difference for Him, the more effective we will be. Therefore, we will be constantly striving to reproduce healthy disciples, leaders, and churches, who will then, in turn, go on to reproduce themselves. (Mt 28:18-20, 2 Tim 2:2, Acts 13:1-3)

Who do we hope to minister to?

The people God has sovereignly placed in the lives of our people, whether they be family members, friends, co-workers, neighbors, acquaintances, or people they meet as they serve out in the community.

Ministry Plan (general)

1) Stay centered on, driven by, and dependent upon God and His Word.

    • God-Centered
    • Truth-Driven
    • Gospel-Understanding-Loving-Living-and Sharing
    • Biblically-Balanced
    • Biblical Worldview
    • Doers of the Word
    • Prayerful
    • Spirit-Led

2) Dedicate ourselves to reaching out to unbelievers in a variety of incarnational ways.

    • Build bridges to the world through relationships and creative, real-needs-meeting service
    • Live holy, humble, joy-filled Christian lives
    • Develop genuine, attractive, Biblical community
    • Learn and practice the art of 3-story evangelism
    • Be a church that invites and is inviting
    • We will labor not only to reach Duluth but the nations, especially the unreached people groups of the world

3) Take an approach to discipleship that is ministry-minded, team-oriented, and hands-on, and that emphasizes personal responsibility for spiritual growth.

    • Teach our people to see that “life is ministry” and that every opportunity, whether at home, at church, at work, or at play is a “ministry opportunity”
    • In order for our church to be successful, we must help each other to recognize and embrace our critical, God-given role, and play it to the hilt
    • Discipleship is best done “on the job”
    • Though the church does play a vital role, spiritual growth is primarily the responsibility of individuals and families

4) Mobilize all our people to do our mission by inspiring them, freeing them up, empowering them, and equipping them.

    • Motivational preaching, teaching, living, and referencing by leadership
    • Developing and maintaining as lean an organizational structure as possible
    • Giving members much say in the life and ministry of the church
    • Helping people to identify, develop, and put to Kingdom-building use the unique gifts, talents, abilities, and passions God has given them

5) Work to develop a community that is positive, proactive, and far more than “Minnesota nice”.

    • When we see a problem, rather than grumbling and complaining, we will stay positive and actively seek to be a part of the solution
    • We will boldly and lovingly hold one another accountable by speaking the truth in love and by inviting others to do the same
    • When relationships are broken we will seek to reconcile them quickly using Biblical peacemaking principles

Ministry Plan (specific)

Sunday Mornings - Extended, inviting, joyous, compelling, all-church gatherings, for believers and unbelievers alike, filled with opportunities for worship, prayer, and fellowship. THE EVENT OF THE WEEK!

Ministry Groups - Jesus came not to be served but to serve.  He calls us to follow Him.  Ministering to others is essential if we want to: honor God, advance His kingdom (by growing in Christ ourselves and helping others to do the same), and experience the fullness of joy that God intends for us.  Therefore our ministry groups are designed to encourage and equip you to serve your family, your church, and your community by God’s grace and to the best of your ability.  

Leadership Development and Oversight - We will seek to identify, encourage, and equip dedicated lay-leaders to pastor a portion of the flock, coordinate and cooperate with other leaders, and reproduce themselves. We will eventually institute a plural elder / plural deacon form of church government.

High Expectations for Members

Conversion – evidenced by a solid understanding of the Gospel, a conversion testimony, evidence of a changed mind, life, and affections, examples of recent fruit of true saving faith, and believers baptism in obedience to the Biblical pattern

Commitment – to live out our mission, to be a part of a ministry group, to tithe (give 10% or more of your income) to the ministry of the church, to attend regularly, to be a blessing to and willingly submit to the leadership of the church, and to both give and receive admonition, including church discipline

Core Values – agree with who we are

Creed - agree with what we believe

Church Planting

We will seek to plant churches and be a part of a church planting movement in this area.