About Us

WILDERNESS COMMUNITY CHURCH

A Global Methodist Fellowship

A Church Where God Transforms People

 

At Wilderness Community Church:

We see God gathering all people who are free to come as they are to experience a Biblically-based community that believes the Bible is the living, true, and enduring Word of God. (Proverbs 30:5; Isaiah 40:8; Luke 1:37, 11:28; Galatians 6:21; Peter 1:23, Malachi 3:6, Hebrews 12:28, 13:8)

• We see God raising up a community of 2,000 members committed to sharing the good news of Jesus Christ and His amazing love.

(Psalms 40:10; Isaiah 52:7; Matthew 4:23, 22:37; Luke 4:43; John 1:17, 8:42, 14:23; Acts 8:35; 2 Corinthians 9:13; Galatians 5:6; 1 John 3:16, 3:23, 5:1)

• We see God enabling each individual to grow toward spiritual maturity by helping them discover their God-given gifts.

(Numbers 18:29; Isaiah 48:7; Romans 12:6-8; 1 Peter 4:10)

• We see God sending believers to be His disciples into our local area and the world, transforming their homes & communities with the love of God as expressed in Jesus Christ.

(Isaiah 6:8; Matthew 4:19, 28:19, Mark 1:17; Romans 12:2)

• We see God growing each member to be more and more like Christ so they are encouraged and desire to participate in the ministries of the church for the benefit of God’s Kingdom.

(Ephesians 1:22, 4:15)

WILDERNESS COMMUNITY CHURCH 

A Global Methodist Fellowship

 A Church Where God Transforms People 

Our Core Values

 

The membership of Wilderness Community Church is diverse. We each have unique personalities and individual preferences that are gifts from God. However, we affirm that Jesus Christ has called us to a unity around certain central values which define who we are as a portion of the universal church. These core values determine how we represent Jesus Christ to our community and how we serve one another within our church family.

1. We are Christ-centered and purpose driven. We are followers of Jesus Christ. As believers, we are striving to make Jesus Christ central in our lives. He is Lord of the Church, and it is around Him that our vision, values, priorities, practices and goals revolve. Although Jesus commands us to be perfect (complete), none of us at Wilderness Community Church have arrived. We are in process, maturing only as we yield ourselves to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We are committed to having the purposes of God determine the direction of Wilderness Community Church. We will seek the Lord with all our heart and soul. Our actions will be marked by intentionality.

(Deuteronomy 12:5; Judges 20:27; 2 Kings 19:1; 1 Chronicles 16:11, 22:19, 28:9; 2 Chronicles 14:4, 15:2, 15:12-13, 20:4; Psalm 14:2, 22:26, 27:4, 105:4; Proverbs 3:5-6; Romans 15:5; Ephesians 1:1)

2. We value all people! God values people so much that He gave His only Son, Jesus Christ, to us. Jesus told of the rejoicing which occurs in heaven when one person comes to salvation. No one is beyond the grace offered to us in Jesus Christ. Because all people matter to God, they all should matter to us. At Wilderness Community Church, we are unwilling that any person should miss an opportunity to hear the good news of what God has done for each of us in Jesus Christ. Every human being is created in God's image, is intended to have a relationship with God and is to live for God's purposes in the world. We will orient our church and our individual lives so as to give every person an opportunity to encounter and respond to Jesus. We seek to build authentic relationships and friendships with those who don't know Jesus yet. Because we value people, the needs, concerns and issues which are important to people are important to us. We seek to provide ministries which will communicate the good news of Jesus Christ in contemporary, caring, creative and credible ways in a non-threatening environment of openness and unconditional love.

(Genesis 1:27; John 3:16-17; Acts 10:36; Romans 5:10; 1 Corinthians 11:17, 15:28; 2 Thessalonians 2:14; 1 Timothy 2:6; 2 Timothy 2:8; Galatians 1:4)

3. We value community and relationships! Like our God, we are social beings with a need for community. The Christian life is lived out with people. Trusting relationships allow us to know one another deeply and to be known. We only truly experience the reality of Jesus Christ as we are in community with others who are seeking to know Him. There are no lone ranger Christians. At Wilderness Community Church, we intentionally cultivate a sense of community-being a family - through both our public worship celebrations and our small group ministries, Loving relationships should be evident in every area of our church's life, Personal relationships are more important to us than organizational structure.

(Genesis 5:24; Psalm 55:14; Zephaniah 3:9; Acts 2:46; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Galatians 6:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:14; 1 John 2:25)

4. We value truth! The Apostle Paul, writing to his disciple Timothy, declared, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It is God's way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do." 2 Timothy 3:16-17. We affirm and stand fast on God's revealed truth - the Bible -- as our moral standard and guide for living. Our worship and ministries will emphasize personal, practical and positive application of God's Word to our unique life situations. We spread God's word with the absolute confidence that it will produce life.

(Matthew 5:18; Mark 4:26-29; Luke 12:8; Romans 1:18, 2:20; 1 Corinthians 2:14; 2 Corinthians 6:7, Galatians 5:22-23, Ephesians 6:14; Colossians 1:6, 23; 2 Timothy 1:9; 1 John 2:4, 5:6).

5. We value integrity and authenticity! Genuine faith is essential to the spiritual health of people and effectiveness in our mission. Spiritual authenticity means we are people who relate to God sincerely and openly. It means we strive to live with integrity as Jesus. would. We seek to pray, obey the teachings of Jesus, and love God completely. It means we respond to each other with love, openness, honesty and forgiveness.

(Psalm 130:4; Matthew 6:14-15, 18:21-22, 26:28; Mark 11:25, Luke 1:77, 23:34; Acts 13:38; 2 Corinthians 13:5, Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13; 1 Timothy 1:5, 1 Peter 1:7; 1 John 1:9, 4:17)

6. We value relevance! God has raised up Wilderness Community Church in a particular setting. The good news of Jesus Christ is timeless and universal in its appeal. Yet, the presentation of that good news always occurs in a vessel which understands the culture which is being impacted for Jesus Christ. In order for us to be true to the good news that has been entrusted to us, we must be flexible in the cultural presentation of that message. As the Apostle Paul declared to the Corinthian Church, "I have become a servant of everyone so that I can bring them to Christ. ... I try to find common ground with everyone so that I might bring them Christ. I do all this to spread the Good News...." 1 Corinthians 9:19, 22-23. Our objective is to build bridges of communication to the culture around us. We will reflect our commitment to being relevant through worship (music, drama and preaching) which is contemporary and popular in its style. Our goal is to develop an atmosphere of ease to speak, act, and dress in ways in which the culture in which we have been called to serve can readily respond positively. We will never compromise the integrity of the message we have been entrusted to deliver, but we will always regard the method of delivery as neg

(Genesis 24:26; Deuteronomy 12:4; 2 Chronicles 19:7; Job 8:20; Psalm 25:21, 26:1, 29:2, 111:8, 119:1; Proverbs 10:9, 11:20, 20:7; John 4:24; Romans 9:4, 12:1; Hebrews 12:28;)

7. We value innovation! We live in a constantly changing, complex world. Our culture is a mission field of opportunity. We expect every member of Wilderness Community Church to be constantly discovering new solutions to changing circumstances. We are willing to be risk-takers with the possibility of success or failure. We stand ready to make changes at any time in order to fulfill our purpose in the Kingdom of God.

(Matthew 6:33)

8. We value excellence! We set the highest standards for everything we do. We encourage open evaluation, support, encouragement and challenge. We believe excellence honors. God and inspires others.

(Philippians 4:8; 2 Peter 1:3-5)

9. We value compassion! The Church is much like a caring family that values community, informality, spontaneity, freedom of expression, humor, fun, commitment and loyalty. Wilderness Community Church is a place where you can be real, be accepted, find healing and wholeness, and enjoy life as God intended. We will gather up the wounded, help them to their feet, and walk with them.

(Acts 14:20).

10. We value celebration! The Church should be the most alive place people can be. After all Jesus said that He came to give life in all its fullness. We come together to worship - celebrating God's goodness and faithfulness in our lives. We need encouragement, teaching, the opportunity to give of our resources and a sense of God's dynamic presence in our midst as we come before Him.

(John 10:10)

11. We value commitment! At the heart of the Christian life is commitment. Full devotion to Christ and His cause is normal for every believer. Being a member of Wilderness Community Church is not a spectator sport. Members must complete membership training and be committed to grow to maturity in Christ. In a generation that avoids commitments, we encourage members to make and keep reasonable commitments to God, to His church and to people.

(Psalm 31:5; Joshua 24:14; Mark 8:35; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 1 Peter 4:19)

12. We value small groups! Small groups are the greatest avenue for transforming lives, building healthy relationships, and caring for one another. Jesus invested His life in the lives of a small group of people. Small group ministry, prayer and mentoring are means by which the Holy Spirit makes disciples. What we receive from God is always matured, tested, developed and applied in relationship with others.

(Psalm 133; Hebrews 10:24-25; Matthew 18:20; Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 14:26)

13. We value ministry and mission! God has a purpose - a calling -- for every believer. At Wilderness Community Church, every member is a minister. There are no volunteers in the church. As Jesus came to serve us, He calls us to serve one another and to serve those who as yet do not have a relationship with Him. We seek to help each follower of Christ to discern their God-given SHAPE (Spiritual Gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality and Experience) for ministry and to lead, equip, and mobilize our membership to be actively involved in ministry. We value the time people give serving in ministry and want their service to be meaningful and fulfilling of God's purposes in their lives. No one fills a slot at Wilderness Community Church. We are committed to ministry, not meetings.

(1 Chronicles 16:23; Psalm 96:3; Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 13:47; Mark 16:15)

14. We value growth! The very essence of a living organism is its ability to grow. When an organism ceases to grow, it is dead. Wilderness Community Church will encourage its members to grow - physically, emotionally and spiritually. Likewise, Wilderness Community Church will grow – numerically and in its vibrancy as a spiritual community.

(Isaiah 54:2-3; Psalm 92:12-14; 1 Corinthians 13:11; Hebrews 6:1; 1 Peter 2:2-3)