Sound Familiar?

Jesus Christ.

SACRIFICE.
commitment.

accountability.
SERVICE.
unity.

worship.
SPIRITUAL GIFTS.

Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is the beginning. The first thought, the first word, the first action. Nothing starts without Him or before Him.

Jesus Christ has full ownership of my life, and everything in it. Everything is His to give, His to take away, His to use. I am a living sacrifice to His glory. I will freely give of my talents, time, and finances to the church without worry to my needs. I will not selfishly hold them to myself in an effort of self-preservation, or out of laziness. I will wholeheartedly give of myself . . . even if that opens myself up for hurt.

I am committed. I am consciously making the decision to be here, in body and spirit. God has put me here for a purpose, and I recognize that. I will not shy away from His calling, but drink of the water and grow where I am planted.

We are called to live blamelessly. I choose to hold myself accountable to the truths written in the Word, but also to allow others to be apart of that. I will not hide my weaknesses, my failures or my struggles - if you are able to bear the burden and if the Lord leads, I will openly share. I will not allow pride to rule. In the same way, I will hold you to the standard you claim to live by. I will not be silent in sight of blatant sin . . . I will approach you in love to remind you and to help you if at all possible. I will not condemn you - but I will be honest with you, because I love you and want to see your life bear fruit.

I set aside myself - all my desires, feelings, and preferences. I seek to serve the Lord in every little part of my day. If someone is hungry, we will feed them. If someone is hurting, we will listen to them. If someone is lost, we will speak the truth to them. if someone is happy, we will celebrate with them. if someone is sick, we will pray with them. I am not afraid of the forgotten, menial, difficult tasks . . . I will serve with humility and joy for I am serving the Lord. I am also not afraid of the big, overwhelming tasks . . . for I know it is Him in me who accomplishes all things.

We are a Body, working in unity together. If part of the body is sick, it affects us all. For this, we will strive for health in the body. We want to serve together, love together, worship together . . . we cannot escape our spiritual connection. Our personalities may be different, we may have different opinions, different ways of communicating . . . but our common ground is Christ, and He holds us together. I will use my words and actions to edify the body, not tear it apart.

I believe in one God over all - the maker of everything. I recognize Him as my Lord, Saviour, and Friend . . . He alone is worthy of my worship. I will not worship money, status, relationships, or possessions. Worship is an act between myself and God, but we as a body are blessed by it as well. I will not turn worship into a personal show - may our motivations be pure and wholly focussed on God. Worship is not just singing and music. Nor is it simply dance, art or reverent silence. These are the more obvious, public expressions of worship in which we partake of together. Our private worship is the choice we make every day to walk in obedience.

I believe the Lord when He says we are all given spiritual gifts. No matter what the gift is, or whether it is easily seen or not, it is necessary to the body. I will seek the Lord's wisdom in the use of my gift and will use it as He decides, for His glory. We will not allow spiritual gifts to sit and rot - we will utilize what the Lord has given us, for His glory.

Jesus Christ is the end. He has the last thought, the last word, the last action. Nothing finishes without Him or after Him.

He is the church, to which we have been called.