Vision: To love the world in the same
way God loves us.
[Biblical Foundation: Jesus says, “’This is my commandment, that
you love one another as I have loved you.’” John 15:12]
Definition: AGAPE is the Greek word for
unconditional, sacrificial love.
Identity: We are a People of God defined by AGAPE.
[Biblical
Foundation: John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave his only
begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal
life.”
Values: We
express God’s AGAPE in the following ways:
Advancing God’s Kingdom
(Mission): We seek God’s
Kingdom first in our lives, church, community and world through partnership
strategies which result in individual and community transformation.
Biblical
Foundations:
o
Matthew
6:33 - But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things
will be given to you as well. (NIV)
o
Acts 1:8
- But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you
will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth. (NRSV)
- Micah 6:8 - He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what
does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love
kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (NRSV)
o
Luke
4:18-19 - “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
bring good news to the poor. He has sent
me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to
let the oppressed go free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (NRSV)
Growing Disciples
(Discipleship): We
passionately seek to be formed into the image of Jesus for the sake of the
world.
Biblical
Foundations:
- Matthew 22:37-39 - Jesus replied: ‘’‘Love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest
commandment. And the second is like
it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’(NIV)
- Mark 1:17 - And Jesus said to them, “Follow me
and I will make you fish for people.” (NRSV)
- Psalms 119:105 - Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a
light to my path. (NRSV)
All Inclusive, Intentional Worship
(Worship): We
value inclusive, intentional, creative worship that exalts God with awe and
wonder, celebrates Jesus with joy and thanksgiving, and submits to the Holy
Spirit in reverence and humility.
Biblical
Foundations:
o
Galatians 3:28 - There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no
longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are
one in Christ Jesus. (NRSV)
o
Psalm 150 - Praise the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his
mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of
power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise
him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise
him with the strings and flute, praise him
with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
Praise the LORD. (NIV)
o
Matthew 18:20 - For where two or three are gathered in my
name, I am there among them. (NRSV)
Praying, Spirit Led Family of Followers
(Community): We
seek first to be a people of prayer and spiritual discernment who live in unity
with God’s purposes.
Biblical
Foundations:
o
Philippians 4:6-7 - Do not worry about anything, but in
everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be
made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all
understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (NRSV)
o
Luke 11:1 - One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one
of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his
disciples.” (NIV)
o
John 16:13 - When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide
you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak
whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
(NRSV)
o
Galatians 5:25: If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the
Spirit.
Extending God’s Grace
(Worth): As
we are all called to be good stewards
of God’s incredible gift to us, we value the divine uniqueness and giftedness
of each individual from newest infant to the oldest adult, blessing both men
and women in positions of leadership and ministry.
Biblical
Foundations:
- 1 Peter 4:10 - As each one has received a special gift,
employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold
grace of God.
- Galatians 2:21 - I do not treat the grace of God as
meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then
there was no need for Christ to die. (NLT)
o
John 13:35 - By this everyone will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one another. (NRSV)
Future
Initiatives
Future Initiatives are the blueprint for God’s future for First Baptist
Cornelia. These initiatives will guide
the church over the coming years as we flesh out our vision and values in our
community and world.
Missional Outreach – Increase mission
opportunities across all generations in order to develop a holistic, evangelical
lifestyle within the church, risking ourselves for the sake of the Gospel of
Jesus in our community and around the world.
·
Establish a congregational, missional
organization which leads to the greatest kingdom Impact.
·
Create a Parents Night Out ministry to reach
children and families in our community.
·
Develop a MOSAIC Arts Academy that reaches our
community for Jesus through art, music, dance and other artistic mediums.
·
Develop a Recreation ministry that reaches out
to our community through ball leagues, physical/health opportunities, and
community programing.
·
Develop specific community partnerships to meet
the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs of the Habersham Community.
Facility Integration
- Develop a facility vision to most efficiently empower and integrate the
vision and values of First Baptist Cornelia.
•
Develop a clear Welcome Center and signage to
serve as a central hub of the facility for Sundays and other events.
•
Based on the facility vision – develop a technologically
advanced media center which can also serve as a fellowship hub for the church.
•
Develop a facility use plan which frees the
facility for ministry within our community.
•
Invest in technology to enhance our worship,
discipleship and ministries.
•
Make Gym available for leagues, fitness
classes/activities, or an after-school program
•
Create fellowship opportunities within the
church and in the community (fellowship hall and banquet)
•
Continue to utilize classroom and other space for
community purposes (ESOL, Counseling service, others)
Worship
Development - Create an environment, organization, and spirit of creativity
and excellence which invites our entire region to glorify Jesus with their whole
lives in worship.
- • Redesign and develop our sanctuary to be a technologically advanced creative worship space, including, but not limited to a new sound system and appropriate projection/screen system.
- • Develop an organizational structure of worship planners and leaders to support creative worship within the traditional environment of First Baptist Cornelia (e.g. a standing creative worship team which works on worship elements year round).
- • Explore/develop intentional, creative worship experiences both on Sunday mornings and at other times of the week.
- • Develop a strategy and implement with staffing and leadership an adult discipleship model which includes a variety of Bible studies, spiritual formative experiences, small groups, and “Needs-oriented” classes.
- • Expand our current “Sunday School” classes to include various curriculum approaches as well as various meeting times and locations including Sunday morning and Wednesday nights – on and off campus.
- • Develop a process to emphasize disciple-making across all aspects of FBC – including missional activities, worship, play, fellowships, etc.
- • Increase intergenerational activities creating communities of followers of Jesus.
- • Develop a comprehensive faith formation strategy for children and youth building on the work of the past several years.
Organizational
Restructuring - Restructure the leadership and organization of First
Baptist Cornelia around our vision and values.
- • Re-vision our deacon ministry and structure.
- • Realign and reorganize committees and ministry teams to support our vision, identity and values.
- Reorganize and expand ministerial staff model to meet the needs of these missional initiatives (ie Activities/Recreational position)
- Re-write Congregational bylaws to create a missional, flexible organizational structure to position the church to achieve the church’s vision and values.
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