Three Values: Abiding, Fruitfulness, and Joy

Quick! Answer this question without taking too much time to reflect: What do you truly, deeply value? Once you have an answer in your mind, then ask yourself this next question – how does that value shape my life choices, behaviors, and attitudes? And still a third question: Can others see in your life – through where you spend your time, resources, energy and passion – what you say that you most treasure? 

Organizations, including churches and church networks – like GCA, have values as well. Sometimes the values we claim to have are not actual, operational values but rather are aspirations. They’re ideals we hold but which have little actual impact on the way we live, work or carry out our ministry. Other times, our lives reveal our true values and they may not be anywhere close to those that we proclaim!

GCA has THREE core values. These core values are intended to shape the behavior, culture, and decision making of our family of churches in substantive, tangible ways. Our three values are: Abiding, Fruitfulness, and Joy. Put another way, we want every ministry, partnership, effort and engagement of GCA to flow from or result in…

• ABIDING in Christ Daily (John 15:5)

• Bearing Lasting FRUIT (John 15:8)

• Living with Overflowing JOY (John 15:11)

Jesus has made it clear that He is inviting us to find our rest and our true “home” IN Him and in His love. (John 15:4, 9) He doesn’t want us to operate out of some disconnected, frenetic, anxious, overworked, people pleasing set of priorities. He wants us to live our daily lives in intimate, obedient communion with His Spirit (John 15:7, 10; Galatians 5:25) and to minister to others out of that profoundly dependent close relationship with Him (John 15:7, 16.) In fact, he warns us that we can’t do anything at all of eternal significance apart from Him (John 15:5.) This means that the most important ministry we can engage in daily is to be (re) connected to God – to listen to His voice, lay our burdens and desires at His fee, seek to hear His direction and carry out ministry in His power to His glory. 

When we live in that kind of intimate relationship with God, we begin to get His heart – to know His plan, direction and priorities (John 15:15.) We begin to realize, perhaps anew or for the first time, that He doesn’t want us to waste our lives but that He created and saved us for amazing, good works! (Ephesians 2:10) He wants our character and attitudes to be transformed to be like His – what Paul called “The fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23) and He will work in us to that end! No wonder the first outcome of this kind of intimacy is a God shaped love for others! (John 15:12) 

Through that love, He invites us to be on mission with Him (Acts 1:8) and to join Him in His work of calling, saving, and shaping His followers (Matthew 28:19-20, Ephesians 4:11-16.) This is a key part of the outward fruitfulness of our lives that Jesus is referring to when he says, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples… You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.” (John 15:8, 16 NIV) 

And when we live that kind of intimate, obedient, dependent life – walking in daily rhythm with the Spirit – our lives can not possibly be consistently characterized by complaint, depression, frustration, anger or bitterness. Rather, we will be filled with overflowing Joy! Jesus says that He wants His own joy to be in us and to characterize us! (John 15:11) No wonder the Apostle Paul constantly reminded New Testament believers that they were called to live and minister out of profound JOY! (Philippians 4:4)

Our GCA team knows that these three values of Abiding, Fruitfulness and Joy are still being made increasingly concrete and visible in our own lives. We’re still working out together how to daily implement these values into our team’s ministry and to help our member churches flourish in these Gospel born and formed realities. We invite you to join us in living them out together.