Core Values
I've gotten a few questions about our core values at NCC so I thought I'd post them. You can find our core beliefs at theaterchurch.com. We also have three core convictions I'll post at another time.
Honestly, we didn't have core values when we were getting started. The driving motivation was simple: try to create a church where unchurched people can find Christ. I know church planters are taught to identify their core values before launching and there is nothing wrong with that. It's a good exercise. But let me say something that might sound heretical at first earshot: I think your values should change!
It's counter-intuitive so let me explain. Its one thing to write down values and hang them on the wall. It's another thing to discover your values in the trenches of ministry! It is discovery by doing! You won't really know what you value until you do what you're doing for a while! So I have always viewed our core values as a rough draft. They are amendable. Our basic DNA or churchprint won't change dramatically, but I would like to think that we'll discover new values in five or ten years as we mature as a church.
Here are a dozen core values that guide us at NCC:
Honestly, we didn't have core values when we were getting started. The driving motivation was simple: try to create a church where unchurched people can find Christ. I know church planters are taught to identify their core values before launching and there is nothing wrong with that. It's a good exercise. But let me say something that might sound heretical at first earshot: I think your values should change!
It's counter-intuitive so let me explain. Its one thing to write down values and hang them on the wall. It's another thing to discover your values in the trenches of ministry! It is discovery by doing! You won't really know what you value until you do what you're doing for a while! So I have always viewed our core values as a rough draft. They are amendable. Our basic DNA or churchprint won't change dramatically, but I would like to think that we'll discover new values in five or ten years as we mature as a church.
Here are a dozen core values that guide us at NCC:
1. Expect the unexpected
2. Irrelevance is irreverence
3. Love people when they least expect it and least deserve it
4. Playing it safe is risky
5. Pray like it depends on God and work like it depends on you
6. Everyone is invaluable and irreplaceable
7. Everything is an experiment
8. You cannot out give God
9. Maturity does not equal conformity
10. Go the extra mile
11. It's never too late to be who you might have been
12. Do it right and do it big
11 Comments:
Recently I heard a speaker differentiate between core values (which can change) and core commitments (which never change). Funny timing that you should post on this so soon afterward. It's definitely something worth thinking about.
And thanks for reminding us all that we don't have to have everything figured out before we jump in!
i love this mark. getting ready to plant, one thing i know is that i DON'T know what our church's values will be forever! i now what they are now, but mostly i just know we're going to grow people in their love for christ and for each other.
www.baltimoremosaic.blogspot.com
Thanks for posting these. What's the difference between a core value and a core conviction?
Anon,
One one level it is just semantics :) BUt I think a conviction is even more deeply held. It's in your gut. It is a driving engine that motivates everything you do. We have three of them that I'll share in a post soon.
Mark
Between this list and the Lion Chaser's Manifesto - you should start publishing these in poster form! :)
I am so thankful that we don't have to have it all together before God can use us...! It is not always in the "waiting and praying" that we discover God's plan for our life. It is often discoverd once we begin journeying with Him in faith.
good stuff mark. love these thoughts. mike.
www.DeadlyViper.org
Thanks Mark,
We're in the process of developing our core values for our IMB team after 7 years on the field. This should be an exciting process as we define who we are and we do things.
www.camelcrossing.net
How should we resolve #9 "Maturity does not equal conformity" with Rom 8:29? I love the core value just need helping making the 2 meet.
Anon,
We're all called to conform to Christ. This is a reference to "cultural conformity" which is a legalistic substitute for spiritual maturity. I think this value also celebrates diversity.
Hope that helps. As I see it, we all have a dual-destiny. One if universal--be conformed to Christ. The other is unique--become who God has called us to be. One leads to conformity. The other leads toward originality.
Mark
Thanks! I want to be able to say I am conforming to the image of Christ while that doesn't have to mean I have to look exactly what my Christian brother or sister looks like. And even further, be able to love the differences!
Good ones!
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