MAYWOOD FREE CHURCH
CORE VALUES
Preamble: The following core values identify the DNA of Maywood Free Church. They are the foundation of all our ministries, drive our mission and motivate our vision. They are the heart and soul of who we are and strive to become as a body of Christ followers!
+We are Bible-centered, focused on Christ (Isaiah 9:6; 55:10-11; 2 Timothy 2:15; 3:16-17; 1 Corinthians 2:2; Philippians 1:18; Colossians 1:28)
We value the Word of God as the instrument God uses to instruct, train, correct and direct every dimension of ministry in our church. From our mid-week pre-school, elementary, student and adult ministry, to the teaching and preaching of the Word of God on Sunday mornings, “Where stands it written” is our foundational calling. Our pursuit of Christ is relentless and the goal of all our teaching and preaching is Christ-centeredness.
+We are mission directed, discipleship driven (Acts 2:42; 2 Timothy 2:2; Matthew 28:18-20; 1 Thessalonians 2:8)
Existing to glorify God; we purpose to exalt the living God, explain the Word of God, encourage the family of God and extend the love of God. We are committed to personal discipleship and ministry multiplication. These are processes which never end and are developed intentionally through worship, Bible study, service and evangelism. Discipleship is all about relationship…falling more and more in love with Christ while at the same time recruiting, nurturing and investing in the lives of others who in turn will repeat the process in their sphere of influence.
+We are evangelism focused, globally connected (Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 10:27; 2 Corinthians 5:18-20; Acts 1:8)
Evangelism is the life-blood of our church. The mission field is at our doorstep. 4th world people are those in our circle of influence who still do not know who Jesus Christ is and understand the dynamics of the gospel. Building relationships with those yet to believe is a life-style we encourage and foster. We value seriously the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20 and the Great Commandment (Luke 10:27). Our desire is to be a sending church with a focus that is local, regional, national and global.
+We are pursuers of worship, praise focused (John 4:23-24; Psalm 27:4; Psalm 34:1-3; Psalm 66:1-2)
We value passionate and celebrative worship from the heart. Worship is not about us. It’s all about Him! True worship is a life-style and attitude of the heart that is cultivated each day through Bible Study and prayer. We appreciate a wide variety of worship expressions and/or venues, from traditional to contemporary, seeking only to please God, an audience of One. He alone is worthy of our adoration and praise!
+We are called to excel, empowered by prayer (1 Peter 2:9-10; John 15:5; Matthew 7:9-12; 2 Corinthians 4:7)
Excellence is God’s nature. We have been called to proclaim His excellent nature in every dimension of our ministry. This means we are never content with mediocrity, but always seek to represent Christ well by the services we provide, the financial integrity and accountability we display, the relationships we cultivate and the buildings we build. Prayer is having confidence in God’s ability to do what we can’t do. Prayer is the focus that moves us to personally and corporately tap God’s limitless resources. It permeates every aspect of our church.
+We are culturally aware, doctrinally anchored (1 John 2:15-17; Colossians 2:8; Jude 1:3)
We want to influence and penetrate our culture with eternal truth that is unchanging and transformational. We desire to be a church for all generations, challenging people to think, to listen and to engage with the Scriptures in their everyday life experiences. Articulating God’s story, listening to the stories of changed lives, and interacting with those who are at various levels in their spiritual journey encourages us to be authentic and real in our walk with the Lord. We will use relevant technology to complement, but not supplement the Word of God.
+We are family friendly, individually valued (Genesis 2:21-25; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Ephesians 5-6; 1 Corinthians 7:7; Romans 12:5, 10, 15-16)
We believe that God created and instituted the family (husband and wife united in marriage) as the basic unit of society. Our desire is to equip families of all ages to know their roles, optimize their responsibilities and honor Christ in their homes. With equal resolve, we also endeavor to minister to those who are single, widowed, divorced and orphaned. We strive to create and implement ministries that strengthen the family and at the same time develop strategic ministries for individuals.
+We are relationally connected, service motivated (Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 12:12-26; Hebrews 10:24-25; Philippians 2:5-7; 1 Timothy 1:7-8)
God has called us into community and fellowship with one another. Small groups foster a sense of belonging and build spiritual vitality. God gifts every believer with a spiritual capacity for ministry that needs to be discovered, developed and deployed in meaningful service. We desire to “fan the flame” in people’s hearts by helping them discover their ministry passion; equipping them to do it by providing venues whereby individual spiritual gifts and capacities can be maximized. We are committed to raising up godly leaders who will put the needs of others before their own and care for the flock as an example of Jesus Christ.
+We are vision minded, kingdom oriented (Proverbs 29:18; Matthew 22:37-39; Acts 1:11; 2 Timothy 2:2)
Our vision is to become a community of committed Christ-followers, accepting people as they are, leading them to the foot of the cross and empowering them to become fully devoted followers of Christ. We are committed to recruiting, teaching, training and releasing “next generation” leaders into the harvest by developing intentional pastoral internships, cultivating mentoring relationships and building strategic ministering partnerships educationally, missionally and globally until Jesus comes!
