Step One — "Our Church" THE CONNECTCHURCH STORY CONNECTCHURCH was birthed out of a simple idea to help people find a personal and meaningful relationship with Jesus. We wanted to welcome — people from different walks of life, people who know a lot about God, never been to a church or even had a bad experience with christians. With that desire in our hearts and with a small team of 25 people, we started praying and seeking God's guidance and provision for the new church in the Summer of 2015. After 9 months of praying, team building and preparing, CONNECTCHURCH was launched on March 6th, 2016. That Sunday with more than 300 people in attendance, our journey began. From the very beginning, we were determined to provide a place for people in different stages on their journey of faith to grow spiritually. Our worship style and messages are passionate and engaging, our atmosphere is friendly. We highly value relationships, we love people and believe that loving and serving people is the best way to demonstrate the love of Jesus. We try to do everything with excellence and place a big priority on raising the next generation to know and serve God. Jesus is our message, regardless of how big we grow or how good at doing church we become — we can't offer anything better than what God has for each person who comes to know him. We are excited about what God is doing in CONNECTCHURCH and invite you to become part of the family. There's room for you! Part 1 — Our Vision The vision of CONNECTCHURCH has been the same from the very beginning. Rather than asking you to come and join our mission as a church, we believe the church exists to help you discover God's individual purpose for your life, which is the same for every believer and found in Paul's letter to the Ephesians. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people Ephesians 1:17-18 NIV I ask — ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory — to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers. Ephesians 1:17-18 Message Our spiritual journey consists of 4 steps: Know God Find Freedom Discover Purpose Make a Difference. 1 — Know God I pray that you would know him better.. Everything in life starts with a personal relationship with God. Your spiritual journey doesn't start until we have a personal relationship with God. The New Testament was written in Greek originally and the word “know” from Ephesians 1:17 is: Genosko = To know personally and intimately We are always called to grow, but never to question our in Christ Our identity does not come from how well we perform, but from who our father is. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.' Matt. 7:22-23 ESV Jesus did not come to start a religion, he came to start a relationship with every single one of us. We want you to serve out of love for God and love for other people. We want everything we do as a team to be built on this first step: Know God. The primary focus of our Sunday services is to help people Know God. 2 — Find Freedom "I pray that the eyes of your heart would be focused and clear.." We see the world through the eyes of our . Our physical eyes see the physical reality around us, but our spiritual eyes see the spiritual reality. We cannot see things clearly if the eyes of our heart are muddied up by past experiences. Even though we are forgiven and made right with God at salvation, we still need freedom from past experiences. We can be forgiven, but we still need healing. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. James 5:16 NLT Knowing God will clear your focus, Knowing the people of God will nourish you back to . We believe freedom is best found in relationships. The best person to help you through a difficult is someone who has already been through that same thing. We help people find freedom through . 3 — Discover Purpose "..That you may know the hope to which he has called you.." Life does not make sense until you know WHY you are here. The 2 greatest days in your life are the day you were born and they day you find out WHY you were born. A life without purpose has no joy and no hope. Time + Purpose = . Your purpose is found in your . God has also given each of us different gifts to use. Romans 12:6a CEV Charis means Grace Together you are the body of Christ. Each one of you is part of his body. 1 Corinthians 12:27 CEV We all possess gifts that others don't have and we are placed in our current position and location to bring our gifts to the body to serve others. We help people begin to discover their purpose through Growth Track. 4 — Make A Difference "..That you may grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life that he has for his people.." Many talented and well intended people go through life without every truly making a difference. We desire to help people make a difference by joining the Connect Serve Team. God created each of us with a purpose, once we know that purpose we are able to start making a difference in other people's life. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. John 15:11 ESV True joy comes from using your life to make a difference in the lives of for the glory of God. Each of you has been blessed with one of God's many wonderful gifts to be used in the service of others. So use your gift well. 1 Peter 4:10 CEV Part 2 — Salvation The genuine question you must ask yourself is: Do you know God personally? How to become a follower of Jesus: Realize God has not been in your life and ask him to forgive your sins. Sin is what separates us from God. God has already done his part. But if we confess our sins to God, he can always be trusted to forgive us and take our sins away. 1 John 1:9 CEV Believe Jesus died to pay for your and is alive today. because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9 ESV Accept God's free gift of salvation, don't try to it. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV Our relationship with God is not restored by anything we do, but on the basis of what Jesus already did for us. Jesus Christ to come into your life and become Lord of your life. But to all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God. All they needed to do was to trust him to save them. All those who believe this are reborn! — not a physical rebirth resulting from human passion or plan—but from the will of God. John 1:12-13 TLB It is God's will to offer salvation to you. Click this box if you just dedicated or rededicated your life to Jesus. Part 3 — Water Baptism We practice Water Baptism by in water. Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit Matthew 28:19 CEV Baptism is the of Christianity. If you tell others you belong to me, I will tell my Father in heaven you are my followers. 33 But if you reject me, I will tell my Father in heaven you don't belong to me. Matthew 10:32-33 CEV Baptism expresses our commitment to Christ. If you haven't been baptized in water you are living in disobedience. Being baptized: Follows the example of Jesus. Demonstrates your changed life. Declares your commitment to follow Jesus . Click this box if you haven't been baptized but would like to hear about the next opportunity to do so. Send notes to my email
