Pastor Larry Sundin, Rock Springs Church
Values! Each of us has values that influence your choices in life. Your values shape how you interact with your neighbors. Your values affect how you spend your money. When you worked, your company had a set of values that determined how you did your work. Your company may have had values like excellence, efficiency, and hard work. When you got married, you brought values into that relationship. For example, in our marriage, we’ve always valued harmony. If we’ve ever had a disagreement, we’ve always tried to work out our conflict before we went to sleep. It wasn’t always easy, but we’ve done it. And when it comes to our church family, we also have a set of values. Our values are what guide our decisions as we seek to live out God’s vision for us. They answer the crucial questions: Who are we? What do we stand for? They are the unique fingerprint of our church, distinguishing us in the kingdom of God. We have six core values that we seek to flavor all we do together as God’s people. And they are:
1. Intentional Disciple Making: As Jesus changes us we will care about what He cares about. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. We have the same mission: to help people trust and follow Jesus, who will then help others trust and follow Jesus.
2. Unleashed Potential: Every person has been created to know, to glorify and bear much fruit for God. We want to help every person become all God wants them to be.
3. Mutual Interdependence: We need one another’s love, support, service, and prayers. That means each person has something to contribute to the well-being of God’s family. There are no lone rangers in God’s family.
4. Radical Inclusivity: There are no “ins” or “outs” with Jesus. We see everybody as somebody Jesus wants to include in His family.
5. Extravagant Generosity: God has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our relationship with Jesus. Therefore, we will give generously of ourselves, our talents, and our treasures as we follow Him together.
6. Kingdom Mindset: We are exiles in a broken and hostile world that is not our home, who wish to show this world a different way to live—the kingdom way: where mercy outshines judgment, where love conquers fear, where the needy find help, and the lost find Jesus.
Now, do we live out our values perfectly? By no means. That’s the beauty of God’s grace. We are a community of people who’ve been rescued by God’s grace and who are being transformed by that same grace to become a community of grace. So, if that sounds like something you’d ever want to be a part of, we’d love to have you join us for Back To Church Sunday on Oct. 20! Come and see what God is up to with the ordinary people of Rock Springs Church and discover what He has in store for you. Rock Springs gathers for worship every Sunday at 9 a.m. in the Hermosa Ballroom.