Safe At Horizon
At Horizon Community, we have committed ourselves to Biblical principles of life and love, which we trust, will constantly appear in such a way as to ensure our church family and guests of the following:
- our freedom in worship will never surrender to fantacism
- We are forthright and expressive, but differentiate between the sound of praise and the noise of people. We worship as a choir in chorus, not as soloists in competition. We worship in spirit with liberty, but in concert under leadership. It's safe to praise aloud with us, for we will partner together to worship in the beauty of holiness, and we will preempt both prideful formalism and personal fanaticism.
- our openess will never allow the exploitation of anyone
- We foster communication and interaction, recognizing that true fellowship is impossible without the pursuit of transparent authentic sharing. What is shared in prayer is sacred with us, and what is shown from your heart is treasured. We hold this that all who minister the life of Jesus to one another always function in the love of Jesus. That love is unconditional and non-manipulative, and it always covers weakness and sin with strength and forgiveness.
- our welcome to spiritual gifts will never violate the word
- We ask the Holy Spirit to be present here and to distribute gifts among us according to His will. All the gifts are present in the Church, and every believer is urged to be free, yet responsible to minister gifts with sensitivity. We are covetous of their manifestation, but not gullible as to their demonstration. Graciousness in ministry, submissiveness in spirit, and order in operation of the gifts is scriptural and therefore, insisted upon in the assembly.
- our joyousness will never degenerate to mere excitability
- Childlike simplicity and faith should transcend patterns of pomp and pride which society dictates we accept. But childlike is not child-ish, and so we refuse to be bound to the idea that true simplicity is either glib or emotional. The joy and release in laughter, applause, shouting, or tears involve the emotions; but for understood reasons, not merely sensational ones. True freedom is as thoughtful as it is liberating, and we choose to live in that freeing truth.
in all, our prayer is to live and function even as the church at her birth.
"And day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people, and the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved." (Acts 2:46,47)