The following PROCESS STATEMENT guides our ministry as a church:
Southland Christian Church …
equipping you to LIVE OUT your faith as you ENCOUNTER God,
CONNECT with others, GROW DEEP and BUILD UP one another.
One of the key words in that statement is the word “equipping.” We believe that God calls His Church to be a place where people grow in Christ so they are prepared to LIVE OUT faith (see Ephesians 4:11-16). Everything we do here as a church is ultimately designed to help people follow Jesus faithfully in their lives.
Here’s what each part of that PROCESS statement means:
STEP 1 … at Southland, you ENCOUNTER God.
When you come to Southland on a Sunday morning, you join us as part of a long heritage of God’s people who have regularly assembled to meet with Him. We gather together in His presence. We encounter Him as we sing songs of praise and adoration, celebrating His goodness to us. We encounter Him as we bow before Him in reverence and awe, recognizing His glorious majesty. It goes beyond that, though. We also encounter Him in the Lord’s Supper as we remember Jesus’ sacrificial death on our behalf. We encounter Him by giving back from the blessings He has given us. Even as we listen and respond to His Word being preached, we are encountering Him.
STEP 2 … at Southland, you CONNECT with others.
This is about community, the glue that helps a person feel a part of our church family. Southland doesn’t exist to be a social club. And yet, we don’t want to diminish our God-given need for one another. A person simply will not reach maturity in isolation. God has designed us to grow best as we are connected to other followers of Jesus. That’s why we want to be a place where you can connect with others – a place to build strong relationships, a place to both give and receive encouragement, a place to share life together in real Christian community, a place to belong.
STEP 3 … at Southland, you GROW DEEP.
Just as our bodies need proper nourishment, our spiritual growth cannot happen unless we are receiving the right nutrients. This is why Southland is committed to being a place where you can plant your roots more deeply in Christ (Colossians 2:6-7). We recognize one of our key roles is to equip people to better live out their faith. Through our teaching, we provide the kind of environment where someone can receive the life-transforming knowledge that Jesus offers in His Word. As these roots get planted deeper and deeper in Him, we are able to spiritually grow stronger and healthier.
STEP 4 … at Southland, you BUILD UP one another.
This again emphasizes our responsibility towards others in the church family. Here, though, the emphasis is on our service towards one another. So many pieces must fit together for Southland to accomplish the work Jesus has given us to do – just like many parts form one body. As we each do our part and invest in the lives of one another, the entire church Body is strengthened and built up (Ephesians 4:12). The Holy Spirit has uniquely gifted each of us so we can do just that (1 Peter 4:10). That means you too! Somehow, as we serve others, it also becomes a tremendous opportunity for our own growth as well. In the end, a choice to participate in ministry produces benefits for both others and ourselves.
The end result of the overall process … you LIVE OUT our faith.
Ironically, all that we do as a church is ultimately not about what happens within the walls of Southland … it is about what each of us does as a follower of Jesus in our everyday lives. We are to influence our community and our world for Christ. This is not just our collective job as a church, but the responsibility of each of us individually, including you. The church has the responsibility to aim for this greater goal. That’s why we are about equipping people to live out their faith as followers of Jesus with every part of their lives, every day of the week.
