About | Gatherings | What We Believe | Leadership | Partnership

Everyone has expectations of “church.” Its only natural for our past experiences and hopeful ideals, positive and otherwise, to influence our anticipation around something new or unknown. This is especially true when it comes to our ideals and imaginations concerning this mysterious and common thing we call church.

So, whatever you might be expecting in your interaction with our faith family, we thought it would helpful to let you know a bit about what you’ll find, and what you might not.

Now, most of us think of church as a building or a Sunday service to attend. However, we like to think that God created the Church to be a people, not a place or event. But, because you are reading this, most likely your first experience of Christ City will be in a specific place at a specific time: a.k.a “a Gathering.” And, here is what you’ll discover.

We are a small church—which we more often call a “faith family”—in a large and growing city. While “small” is not a value of our faith family, the fact that we do value relationships, specifically maturing in our relationship with God, one another, and our neighbors, means that we are okay with small, for now. We really do believe that even a few people living by and out of a faith that is fruitful and effective will play a tremendous and transformative role in our particular time and place. And so, everything we do and do not do is designed to help us be individuals in community taking responsibility for the faith and family gifted us by Jesus through the Holy Spirit.

So, what can you expect with Christ City? Firstly, you can expect to find a group of people following Jesus together who encourage one another to participate in the unique life God has re-made for each of us, without a lot of frills. No programs, just relationships. No service projects, just shared life. No big visions, just faith in a big God.

Our values and our size both prioritize what we offer: simple friendship in Jesus…and a few organized get-togethers each month!

We “gather” on Sunday mornings in another church’s building (which is a little different!) to set our mind’s attention and hearts’ affections upon Jesus. We like sharing, and think sharing space is a good place to start.

We try not to take ourselves too seriously, but to take God very seriously. And what we see in Scripture, is that God places significance on the frequent gathering of his people. So we joyously and regularly meet together as a collection of Gospel Communities and spiritual companions to worship God and encourage one another to trust Him and His Story through preaching, prayer, songs, and sacraments. The usual stuff.

What might look or feel a little different, depending on your background or expectations, is that we make time for participation in these “Gatherings.” We believe the Word is given not only for information but for transformation, which requires that we help one another listen to it, process it, and let it through the Spirit give shape to our everyday life. And so, we regularly make space to be quiet and to chat.

What might look more familiar to you, depending on your background, is that for our littlest ones (birth – 5th grade) we have time for them to get some age-specific attention! You can check in your little ones in the sanctuary when you arrive. They’ll hang out with you for a while as we want our children to start out every Gathering with the adults to get a taste of what the grown-ups are doing. Not too long into things, they’ll head to their own space to spend some time talking about Jesus with (background-checked) members of our faith family. For those kids who remain with us throughout the Gathering, we have ways for them to participate as well, like reading scripture for us and guides to help them engage and reflect along with everyone else. We think this helps them see themselves as a part of the family even as they are growing up. If you’d like more info on Christ City Kids, please email us.

That’s it! At Christ City, you can expect to find a small faith family who believes in a big God, that happens to gather together in another church’s space, as we encourage one another to follow Jesus together in the normal, everyday ups and downs of life.

We hope to see you soon!

And, if this sketch hasn’t given you a vivid enough picture of our faith family, don’t hesitate to connect and we’ll be glad to draw in more of the details for you.

Our faith family holds to the authority of God's word and the Word whom it reveals. We joyously submit to the Lordship of Jesus, God's Son, and trust the work of the Holy Spirit for daily life. As members of Christ’s body, the Church, we humbly follow Jesus, striving to live in such a way as to share in word and deed the Good News of God with us and God for us.

We also believe that if you are reading this page, you are most likely looking for a church. Whether you are new to the area, searching for faith, wounded, wandering, or wanting something different from church (and more so, life with God), we know that looking for a faith family can be difficult and daunting. Know that we are praying for you and that if you are up for it, we’d love to connect and chat. Even if we aren’t the church the Lord leads you to settle into, we are glad to walk with you along the way.

We know we are not just one faith family, but are a part of and connected to God's greater Church, including all those in our own city, and expanding around the world.

One reminder of our inclusion in this global kingdom, is that we have members of our faith family making Jesus known all across the world, who we keep on our mind and in our prayers on a regular basis. Over the years we have worked alongside several different sending organizations to help our family members follow Jesus where he is leading them to go and share the good news.