Value & Vision- Lifegroups

Lifegroups should be just as the name describes, groups that share life together, and such life being our life in Christ. Lifegroups are vital and should enable each individual that is a part of the core or larger body to connect with others in the Elevate family in a small, personal environment and be able to share what God is doing in their life, be encouraged, challenged, prayed for, and held accountable for the purpose of seeing Jesus coming more and more alive in them. Such an environment requires humility, trust, and in all things, love, for one another and Jesus.

This makes lifegroups relevant and pertinent to every person in the body of Christ, whether a newborn or an elder in the body.

Lifegroups are not about just getting together to hang out and socialize, but to be intentional in building up one another, interceding for one another and others in the body, and worshiping Jesus both through fellowship such as this and a direct upward focus on Him.

Furthermore, lifegroups should be careful not to get sidetracked on specific agenda's or goals, such as a lifegroup for "Bible study" and another for "Worship" and another for "outreach". These are certainly groups or elements of Elevate that should be accommodated under the vision of Elevate, but should not be the aim of lifegroups. These other groups will likely exist in a focussed season, whereas lifegroups should exist for life and be an element to our weekly fellowship regardless of what else may be taking place.

The leadership and structure for lifegroups only need exist to the extent the above demands. Such aspects that need to be facilitated as demanded above would be:

1. A place of meeting

2. A point(s) of contact for each group who can give information to anyone attending or interesting in attending a particular lifegroup.

3. Communication of the when and where the lifegroups are taking place, and regular reiteration of their purpose. This needs to be available for all to see, such as on a website and at our larger gatherings. This also needs to be intentionally communicated to all who are a part of the Elevate body, with a personal communication of those in lifegroups to those not, in the hopes of getting that person into a regular lifegroup

4. Ensuring that each lifegroup has at least one "matured" believer to shepherd and provide guidance to younger/maturing believers, but not in such a way they dominate and present themselves as the authority in the group.

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Value - Truth of God's Word

I believe that Truth is found in the Word of God and is understood through His Spirit working within us. Truth should be a vital core value in Elevate, as it establishes us on the foundation of the One who has established us and the truth itself. Without it we are left to our own postulations, and like a house built on sand, will be washed away with the changing tides and inevitable storms. Furthermore, it sets our vision apart from being just about our ideas, but rather being all about Jesus, our Father, and His Spirit that lives within us.

Such truth is first found by faith in it, which God then makes a reality in the life of the believer.

It should be both a value of the individual and the body as a whole.

As individuals, we should each seek an increased faith and understanding in God's Truth as to know Him more and be better equipped to share His story and Good News with those around us.

As a body, we should seek to encourage and better equip each other with this Truth through group study, teaching, and one on one conversation. The intent should not be just on increasing our knowledge, but the intimacy of our relationship we don't deserve with a God we could not otherwise know.

Knowing such Truth and the purveyor of such Truth is a privilege, and as such should be a zealous pursuit of the heart and mind, not a boring religious tradition!

Comments?

Core Values of Elevate

Let's spur some conversation on giving more definition and substance to the core values we discussed on Saturday and believe God wants at the heart of Elevate as a church as well as the individuals within it. Since our values will act as the foundational elements to the vision, it would be beneficial to have a mutual, truthful understanding of these values, and why we believe God wants them at the core of what we do...

Each general "value category" should be created as a "new post" as you cannot comment on comments themselves... thus to discuss each value, it needs to be its own post. To do so, just hit "new post" in the upper right hand corner, then put "Value - ______________ (fill in the blank with the value)" in the Title section, and then write about that value in the description according to what you believe. Then we can all comment on that specific value.

I'll start it out:-)

Continuing the conversation...

Hey guys!  We talked at the core meeting about having a blog to continue our discussion from our strategic planning together.  So here it is...  Just a simple blogspot, but I think it will do the trick.  Feel free to make posts, comment on other people's posts...to keep the ideas flowing and the conversation going.  If anyone has any suggestions for how to make this better, let me know.  Let's continue to talk and pray about where Jesus is leading us in this next season.