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As I look back upon our 35 years together at Cypress Creek, it seems important that we leave future generations some record of what we believed and how we conducted the mission of the church during our tenure here. They may decide to do things differently—and that’s both appropriate and to be expected. After all, the structures of the church must change in order to accommodate the changing needs and expectations of people in the social milieu in which the church will find itself in years to come. While our message—concerning the Good News of God’s unconditional love revealed through Jesus Christ—is eternal and non-negotiable, the delivery system must remain flexible in order for that message to remain fresh and relevant.

 

Future leaders and members of Cypress Creek will likely want to know: What were the driving forces that held us together as a worshipping, fellowshipping, serving community of faith? What were the center-points of our mission? What sort of theology compelled us to believe and act as we did? What organizational structures did we employ in helping us translate our faith into action?

 

My personal opinion is that what we have at present, in terms of how we “go about doing church,” serves us very well. However, it’s important that we always engage in a process of selfevaluation—trying as best we can to be the church that God would have us to be at that particular time and place in our sacred journey. Further, when people do contemplate change, it will be good to have a template against which to compare those changes.

 

The following “mission statement” and four “concept papers” describe my understanding of the primary drivers regarding “who we are” and “what we believe” at Cypress Creek Christian Church:

 

I. Our Mission Statement

 

II. The Licensed Ministry Program

 

III. “The Church and Community Center” Concept

 

IV. Lay Ownership of the Church

 

V. The Church as an Enabler of Community

 

While these papers are not a finished product by any means, they will hopefully serve as a current statement of “The Mission and Culture of Cypress Creek Christian Church.”

 

Glenn Wilkerson

September 1, 2008

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To read the full document, click on the following link. You may right-click to save the document to your computer for reading and/or printing.

 

  The Mission and Culture of Cypress Creek Christian Church