We believe in God the creator of the universe,
and loving Abba Father who breathed life into us and gave the earth into our care.
We believe that Jesus is the incarnate word of God, messiah and man,
who lived and died for our sakes.
When Jesus was crucified, he spoke words of forgiveness just before his death.
God raised him from the dead as promised calling all
who follow to believe in the promise of eternal life in Jesus Christ.
Because Jesus first loved us, we carry him in our hearts, and his name is ever on our lips.
This loving savior promised we would not be left orphaned and alone.
We receive the Holy Spirit as the companion he promised, our counselor of truth and our advocate.
We believe that the Spirit speaks the language of redemption to our souls.
As the body of Christ, we gather spiritual strength from our unfettered worship
of the Abba Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Refreshed and renewed, we work out our salvation, side by side,
united in heart, body, and mind, ministering in Jesus’ name to all the world.
CONGREGATIONAL PRAYER
Glorious God, you have been guiding each of us along our individual paths from the moment of our birth and somehow you brought all of us together as a congregation to be a worshiping community. A dozen years ago we couldn’t have imagined who we would become, but we began to see your handiwork as we stepped up and took a risk with our hearts and spirits, making daring commitments to “feed your lambs,” “tend your sheep,” and “feed your sheep,” in the name of Jesus. We know the work of the church is never complete, and though we have accomplished much, there is no resting on our laurels. Give us courageous spirits ready and willing to grow and flourish as we welcome newcomers and mentor them as leaders for the sake and life of the body. All this we pray in the name of the one whose love is over all, Jesus Christ, our savior, friend, and Lord. Amen.
INVITATION TO THE OFFERING
Like our own alphabet there is a first and last letter in the Greek Alphabet: Alpha — Α α — is the first letter, its meaning recognized as the primary force. The Omega — Ω ω — is the last, its meaning recognized as the ultimate limit of a set. The small alpha and the capital Omega, which is transcribed “o” in the modern Greek alphabet, are closed letters, circular in appearance denoting, perhaps a continuity between endings and beginnings. Let the spirit that has united us be a circle unbroken, ever-widening to include all people continuous in our mission and commitment as we strive to live up to our role as disciples of Jesus Christ.
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