The Vision We Share
Our Vision: to become a transformative spiritual community that breaks down barriers, connects diverse individuals, and demonstrates God’s love through meaningful and nurturing relationships to those inside and outside the church’s walls.
Our Vision is Rooted in the Biblical Story
The Bible tells the ongoing story of God's love for creation and God's work to redeem and restore the whole cosmos (in John 3:16, the Greek word for world is cosmos!). As we study scripture, we find that it reflects diversity within early Jewish and Christians' journeys of faith. Within the Bible we find multiple voices and perspectives: The book of Ruth's affirmation of the foreigner sits alongside Ezra/Nehemiah's desire to maintain a clear Jewish identity (and is a little worried about foreigners as a result!). God is at work in the messiness of all these differences and disagreements, through times of political turmoil and relative peace, with a plan to bring the good news of God's love, peace and justice for all peoples through Jesus Christ. We seek to understand our lives as part of this larger narrative, remembering that God is with us on the journey, at work in the messiness of our own lives, and calling us to build a community that values our diversity and seeks God’s kingdom.*
Our vision expresses Faith in the Gospel as We Live Towards God's Kin(g)dom*
The good news of Jesus Christ is at the center of our faith. Jesus preached good news to the poor, liberation for the prisoner, healing for the sick, and justice for the oppressed. He assured us that God’s kingdom can be experienced now, among us, even as we wait for the justice and love of God’s kingdom to come in fullness. Jesus preached and lived in pursuit of that kingdom’s peace, love, and justice, even unto the cross. Jesus’ suffering and death demonstrated his courageous love for us. His resurrection shows us that in Christ, suffering and death do not have the last word, and nothing can separate us from the love of God. We are not only called to believe in Jesus, we are called to follow him. Our faith is demonstrated and strengthened by a commitment to follow Jesus' teachings: by hoping that God will bring about the good news Jesus preached, by trusting that life will always overcome death, and by learning to love one another the way Jesus loved us. Through Jesus' life, teachings, death, and resurrection, God has made a way for us to be reconciled to God and to one another. It has reminded us that God is always ready to forgive us, is working for our well-being, and has assured us that God’s love will ultimately prevail. That is good news indeed!
Our Vision Calls Us to Be a Little Outpost of God’s Kin(g)dom
Journey of Faith has been given a vision of a transformative spiritual community that breaks down barriers, connects diverse individuals, and demonstrates God’s love through meaningful and nurturing relationships to those inside and outside the church’s walls. Our church is interracial, intergenerational, and has a long history of working for justice in Washtenaw County, especially around areas of poverty and homelessness. We want to continue that work! We have a vision for a church that offers hospitality to families in need and builds intergenerational community that empowers youth and cares for the elderly. We are currently discerning how a new building might be help us grow our ministry. We hope you catch that vision and join us in this transformative, life-giving work!