Opening hearts, minds, and hands to the work of Jesus.

Jesus Christ is at the center of the church. Thus, Christ is the endpoint of our mission statement, toward whom all things point (Colossians 1:15-20). We are disciples of Jesus foremost, seeking to make disciples, deepen our faith in the good news of his Kingdom, and work to participate in his loving reign. The Work of Jesus in our mission refers to:

1) His work on the cross to defeat sin and death, and the good news of his resurrection.

2) His transformation of our lives through baptism, the Spirit (Philippians 1:6), and fellowship.

3) Service for the good of the world and to equip one another to be Christ’s body in the world (Ephesians 4:11-13).

We seek for hearts to be open to the Spirit (Galatians 4:6-7) and for Christ to dwell in our hearts through faith (Ephesians 3:16-18). This means we embrace each other in honest relationships and invite others into fellowship. We seek to open hearts to the gospel—locally through a posture of love and service and abroad by actively partnering with specific global mission teams (Matthew 28:19-20).

We seek transformation by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2), so that we might embody the same mind that was in Jesus Christ (Philippians 2:5-8). This means we strive to let Jesus open our minds to the scriptures (Luke 24:44-49), and we pursue knowledge honestly and humbly with a spirit of openness and a hunger for truth. We seek to open minds to Christ by representing him with grace and wisdom (Colossians 4:5-7).

We seek to represent God’s love to the world by building up the body of Christ at Laurel to equip believers for works of service (Ephesians 4:11-13) in our communities and the world beyond (Ephesians 2:10). This means we value a spirit of volunteerism, believing the church must be a place where all are able to use their gifts to advance the Kingdom of God.