Christ Centered - Each element of our worship services work to point towards Christ and His saving work on the cross. We believe that all of the scriptures, Old Testament and New point to Christ and His saving work (Luke 24:27). Because of this we seek to proclaim Christ through each song, prayer, reading, and sermon.

Gospel Shaped - Each service proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ not only through the content, but also through the over all shape of the liturgy. We are called by God to worship Him. We recognize His holiness and as a result recognize our own un-holiness. God grants us grace and reminds us of the saving work of Christ. We respond with gratefulness and thanksgiving. We offer prayers for God to work in our lives and our faith community. We hear the Gospel preached and we are sent out into the world with God’s promise of blessing. We respond acknowledging our call to go and preach the good news in our daily lives.

Spirit Led - On Pentecost the Spirit was poured out on the disciples and empowered them to present the Gospel in such a way that everyone present understood it in their own tongue. We trust the Spirit to empower us as a Church to present the Gospel clearly. We believe that it is through His working in the hearts of congregants and visitors that they will be able to understand and accept the Gospel as their only hope for salvation.

Biblical - We believe that the Bible presents clearly how God wants us to worship Him. We emphasize Biblically shaped worship practices in our services. The Bible is clear that we are to give God praise, we are to confess our sins to Him, we are to raise our requests to Him, we are to listen to His word, we are to retell the saving work of Jesus, and we are to offer Him our entire lives as a sacrifice of worship.

Dialogical - “In worship God speaks and God listens. By the power of the Holy Spirit, God challenges us, comforts us, and awakens us. And by the prompting of the Holy Spirit we listen and then respond with praise, confession, petition, testimony and dedication. Scripture consistently depicts God as initiating and participating in ongoing relationships with people (Worship Sourcebook, 16).” This initiation and participation is reflected in our corporate worship.

Trinitarian - “In worship we address the triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—one God, three persons... In worship, then, we are drawn into relationship with God (the Father) through God (the Son) and by God (the Holy Spirit)(Worship Sourcebook, 16).”

Historically Grounded - We worship not only with the currently gathered body of Christ but with the Church Eternal, the Saints throughout the ages. We acknowledge that the Spirit has worked in the Church of the past and because of this we allow our worship to be shaped by historically grounded practices. We don’t use historical worship practices out of a vain love for tradition, rather we use them because of how beautifully Christ centered they are.

Pastoral - “Each part of the body of Christ worships in a particular time and place and has a unique set of needs. Each worshiping congregation needs both to identify with an already-familiar body of songs and to find new songs for worship that enrich its understanding of its particular place in Gods kingdom (Psalter Hymnal, 13).”

Confessional - “While part of the worldwide body of Christ, we stand in a particular tradition—that part of God’s people named Reformed (Psalter Hymnal, 13).” Because of this the content of our services should accurately reflect the creeds and confessions of our Reformed heritage.

Formational - Worship services are an opportunity for the believer to grow in their knowledge of the Triune God, His Word to us, and the Gospel of Grace. It’s because of this that we will pay extra attention to the lyrics, readings, and prayers that we use in our services; taking care to ensure their theological accuracy .

Expressive - Worship services are an opportunity for the believer to respond to the love God. It’s because of this that we pay extra attention to the songs, readings, and prayers that we use in our services; making sure that they are accessible to the believer.

Missional - Worship services are an opportunity for the unbeliever to come and hear the Word of God, the Gospel of Grace, which is the only means of salvation for the lost. It’s because of this that we take care to present the saving works of Christ clearly in every aspect of the service, relying on the Holy Spirit to work in the heart of the unbeliever causing them to hear and understand the Gospel. (Make note, our worship is missional, not attractional)

Culturally Informed and Appropriately Counter Cultural - When we gather in worship we recognize that Christ is at work in culture. We allow our worship to reflect culture through the accompaniment of modern instruments as well as the technology that helps us to participate in worship together as well as hear the Gospel preached more clearly. We also recognize that our culture is one shaped by consumerism, entertainment, and instant/surface level connectivity. In our worship we want to offer the believer an opportunity to contribute rather than consume, to participate rather than be entertained, and to experience long-term deep connection through face-to-face relationship and the unifying power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Intergenerational - We recognize that the Body of Christ is made up of multiple generations. Because of this we aim to show this diversity through those who lead worship. We want to encourage our youth to be involved in worship as well as continue to encourage the other generations to use their talents to lead worship. We do not aim our worship services at particular generations in our congregation; rather we aim to facilitate the sacrificial, preference denying actions necessary for all generations to worship together. We find unity in the blood of Jesus that is deeper and more profound than our preferences and generational experiences.