Our Purpose
We help people know Jesus Christ and live daily for Him as we:
1 . "Sow seeds of hope" in our community and beyond, expressing the love and grace of God in Jesus Christ
2. Invite those who are broken, marginalized, hurting, and lost into an eternal relationship with God and his family (the Church)
3. Create opportunities to grow and mature to know and reflect Jesus more and more, and...
4. Unleash God's people to serve him with our God given gifts and graces.
Meet Our Pastor
Matt Stoll
Pastor
Learn More about Our Ministries
What We Believe
1. WE BELIEVE in God as our CREATOR who has planned, designed, and created everything in existence, including each and every person in God’s own image with an eternal soul.
2. WE BELIEVE in JESUS CHRIST. Because of God’s love for us, God the Father sent God the Son to earth as Jesus, fully human and yet fully divine. Jesus lived just like us, experienced life as we do, and yet was without sin. Jesus taught about and lived God’s new in-breaking kingdom into this world (healing, casting out evil spirits, ). As Jesus foretold, he died on a cross to take the punishment for our sins, so that we can be forgiven, and enter into an eternal relationship with God. Three days later, Jesus arose from the dead with his eternally transformed body, and later ascended to God the Father in heaven, assuring us we have victory over sin and death through him.
3. WE BELIEVE in GRACE. Because of God’s love for us, God is pursuing us, seeking to bring us back to himself, even before we are aware of it. Even though we have sinned and fallen short of God’s glorious standards, God offers us the gift of forgiveness and reconciliation with himself through the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross (Romans 3:23; 5:8). We can do nothing to earn this gift of salvation. We can only receive this grace of God by believing in Jesus as God’s Son who took the consequences of our sin (Ephesians 2:8-9).
4. WE BELIEVE that all Christians, though forgiven and new creations in Christ, are in need of God’s continued grace to grow and mature to become more like Jesus and “be perfect…as your heavenly Father is perfect”. This includes growing in the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Hebrews 12:14, 2 Corinthians 7:1; Galatians 5:22-23)
5. WE BELIEVE the Bible, in its entirety, is the inspired Word of God, and therefore our guide and authority in all matters of faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
6. WE BELIEVE each Christian is gifted to engage in some form of ministry to serve Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 12:4-6)
7. WE BELIEVE in joint ministry with other Christians and churches because we are one in Christ. (John 17:20-23)
8. WE BELIEVE in creating a church community of Love, Kindness, Forgiveness, Peace and Accountability. (Colossians 3:12-17)
9. WE BELIEVE our mission is to reach out to an unbelieving world through serving, creating loving relationships, and inviting people to accept a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. (Matthew 28:18-20)
There are many other things we believe in, but these are distinctive. If you have more questions, please feel free to schedule a conversation with our Pastor.
We Are A United Methodist Church
Our denomination was founded by John Wesley, and became a fully American denomination in 1784. We have grown to have a GLOBAL presence with over 11 million members, including almost 8 million in the USA. Globally we have 46,600 churches, with 33,828 in the USA.
WE ARE KNOWN FOR:
EDUCATION. Approximately 10% of colleges in the US are United Methodist based, including Duke, Boston University, Syracuse, and Southern Methodist University. In Michigan, Albion and Adrian are both United Methodist colleges.
MEDICAL CARE. Worldwide we have over 300 hospitals and medical centers, including 55 in the United States. Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo is a United Methodist hospital.
SOCIAL WORK. There are literally thousands of social agencies and ministries funded and staffed by The United Methodist Church across the US and abroad.
MISSIONS. For the last 200 years, United Methodist missionaries have been active in every corner of the world, and we now see tremendous growth in Africa, Asia and other sites. Did you know that the population of Fiji is 30% United Methodist?
If you are interested in becoming a member or knowing more about our church, Pastor Matt hosts a Starting Point Orientation and Membership Exploration two to three times a year. Just contact the office.