Purpose | Mission | The 5 G's | Vision | Values | Core Beliefs

Purpose

To Glorify God.

Mission

To transform lives with the Good News of Jesus Christ: reaching the lost and building the found into fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.

The 5 G’s

We are a people who...

• Understand the saving GRACE of God through the life and death of Jesus Christ.
• Engage in a life committed to spiritual GROWTH by choosing to follow Christ daily.
• Commit to "doing life together" with others through small GROUPS.
• Passionately pursue our God-given GIFTS , using them to glorify God and serve others.
• Exercise GOOD STEWARDSHIP , recognizing that all our resources come from God.

Vision

Imagine...

• A people who are focused on ministry not management, mission not maintenance.
• A people who seek to witness to the world by reaching the lost, restoring the fallen, reclaiming the wayward, rejuvenating the stagnate.
  
• A people to whom worship is not just a tired tradition or effortless entertainment, but an experience with the Living God.
• A people who understand the Bible not primarily as God’s Word for a people in the past, but God’s fresh voice relevant to daily life in the present.
• A people who experience prayer not as a frigid formality, but as a conversation with a faithful father.
• A people produced with purpose who are empowered to use their spirit given gifts for the kingdom of God.
• A people whose relationships are real, community is authentic, and masks are removed.
• A people who love and accept every person regardless of age, gender, history, or race.
• A people providing a place where sinners receive forgiveness, believers experience growth, the lost are found, the hungry are fed, hurts are healed, lives are transformed, all by the love of Jesus.
• Prairie Ridge Church, where our dreams are greater than our memories.

Values

Lost people matter to God, and therefore, ought to matter to the church.
Living out the value:
1. Seeker sensitive worship.
2. Relational evangelism.
3. Evaluate all ministries according to their impact on the lost.

The Christian faith is a growing relationship with a risen savior, not a formal tradition or routine ritual.
Living out the value:
1. Encourage all members to be personally involved in prayer.
2. Encourage all members to be personally involved in study of the Bible.
3. Encourage all members to share Jesus’ story with the world.

Each person is uniquely gifted by the Holy Spirit for serving the Kingdom of God and fulfilling the mission of the church.
Living out the value:
1. Discover, develop, and use the gifts of each person.
2. Service in the church and beyond established on gift-based ministry.

Worship is not a spectator sport, but the regular activity of God’s people experiencing God together.
Living out the value:
1. Encourage and provide vibrant & relevant weekly worship.
2. The people are the participants in worship and God is the audience; We come to give, not to get, because we already got.
3. Uphold the principles of worship in spirit, truth, and culture.

The Bible is God’s Word and only standard for us today.
Living out the value:
1. Biblically based preaching and teaching.
2. Encourage all members to be involved in a personal study of the Bible.

Authentic relationships and community develop best in small groups.
Living out the value:
1. To be a church of small groups, not a church with small groups.
2. Encourage every member to be a participant in a small group.

Simple, purpose driven structure based on team based ministry which encourages flexibility, creative ministry, and change.
Living out the value:
Any member of the church can (and is encouraged to) begin new ministries according to ministry guidelines:
a) The staff is not expected to run the ministry.
b) The ministry is compatible with the philosophy of the church.
c) If the ministry doesn't work or has run its course, let it die.
d) All new leaders go through leadership training at The Ridge.

God calls his people to seek out service opportunities by reaching beyond class, race, age, & gender barriers in our community and world.
Living out the value:
1. Each small group engaged in a periodic service projects.
2. Encourage members to be involved in the community in a variety of ways consistent with our Christian values.

The church is called to be culturally relevant, while remaining doctrinally pure.
Living out the value:
1. Preaching & teaching that applies to daily life.
2. Indigenous worship.
3. Commitment to the Reformed Church in America (RCA).

Core Beliefs

About God the Father
· He is the Creator and Ruler of the Universe
· He is the Father of Jesus Christ
· He is our Father and will provide for all the needs of our bodies and souls
· He is all-present, all-powerful, all-knowing, and without sin

About Jesus Christ
· He is the only begotten Son of God and has been with the Father throughout eternity
· He came to earth and gave His life as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world
· He arose from the dead and is alive forevermore
· He is King of Kings, Lord of Lords and victorious over evil
· He is the only means of salvation

About the Holy Spirit
· The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son, three person in the triune God
· He is “the other comforter”, God with us and God in us to lead, teach, and guide
· He is the power of the Church to be witnesses of the Kingdom

About Us
· We are by nature sinful and cannot make ourselves right with God
· We can only be brought into a right relationship with God by receiving God’s forgiveness through Jesus’ Sacrifice on the cross
· We can be given new life through our relationship with Jesus
· We are designed for everlasting life

About the Bible
· The Bible is the inspired word of God
· It is our only guide to show us what we should believe and how we should live
· It is for all to read so we may know and understand God’s will for us

About the Church
· The church is not a building, but a people who believe in Jesus Christ
· Jesus is the Head of the Church and the members are His body
· The task of the Church is to make Jesus known throughout the world

About the Sacraments
· Sacraments are visible signs of God’s invisible grace
· We affirm the sacraments of baptism and communion as instituted by Jesus