Vision Statement

I’ve been honing this for the last several weeks, but I believe I’ve gotten to a usable version, which I talked about to our group last night. Our vision of the new church is that we will be

a community of sinners, saints, and skeptics who are joining God in the renewal of all things.

For a while I was using the phrase “post-Christian,” but I found I was always having to explain what that meant. I would say that “post-Christian” meant anyone growing up in life after Christendom, people who either had no experience of church, who had burned by or turned off to church, or who were looking for a different expression of Christian community. “Sinners, saints, and skeptics,” I think, captures the diversity of the community we want to create, and acknowledges that we may not agree 100% on all points of Christian doctrine.

I also like the expansiveness of “joining God in the renewal of all things.” I first heard this reference to Matthew 19:28 used as part of a vision statement at Trinity Grace Church in New York. I think it helps convey the idea that “salvation” is more than what happens after we die. What Jesus offers is available to people now, in this world, and it’s exciting that he invites us to be part of it.