Vision, Values, and Mission

WHO WE ARE: GOD’S FAMILY

  • Through Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, ascension, and sending of his Holy Spirit, we have been welcomed into a new community called the family of God. Regardless of our biological family backgrounds, God is our Father, and so as brothers and sisters, we belong to him and one another. As his family, we are counter-cultural in 3 ways:

    • We are interdependent, not independent

    • We are unified and diverse, not divided

    • We are authentic and known, not isolated and curated

    Gen. 12:2-3; Acts 2; 1 Cor. 12:4-7; Eph. 2:11-22; Titus 2:1-8; Gal. 6:9-10 1 John 1:5-10

WHERE WE ARE GOING: ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN

  • The story of God begins and ends with heaven coming to earth. In the middle, Jesus teaches us to pray that heaven on earth would become a reality in us and through us. This is God’s vision for his world—to bring all the beauty, wisdom, and wonder of his perfect rule to bear in every human endeavor and activity. We want in on that! We want God’s kingdom to come and his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven!

    In a broken and fallen world full of broken and fallen human beings, heaven coming to earth has to begin with God and then flow through us. God renews us and then we work as his agents of renewal among every person in every sphere of life: where we live, work, learn or play. Until every man, woman, and child in West Seattle, the Puget Sound region, and in the world is reached with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Until every person has a daily encounter with Jesus through someone who loves Jesus and loves them.

    Habakkuk 2:14, Matt. 6:9–10, Acts 1:8, Rev. 21:1-8

WHAT WE DO: LOVE JESUS, LOVE PEOPLE

  • Because he loved us first, we’re growing in love.

    We love Jesus.

    What do we mean when we say we love him? We mean whole-hearted devotion, worship, and total surrender of our being. We love him with the deepest part of who we are.

    We love people.

    What do we mean when we say we love people? We love every person. Every man, woman, and child. This includes those who we agree with and those who we disagree with. Those who share our beliefs and those who don’t. Those inside of the church and those outside of the church. Those who look like us and those who don’t look like us. Everyone.

    Deut. 6:4-6, 1 John 4:7–12, Matt. 22:37–40, Rom. 12:9-21

HOW WE DO IT: MULTIPLY & SEND DISCIPLES & LEADERS

  • The way we live as God’s family, see heaven come to earth, and love Jesus and people, is by multiplying disciples in the everyday stuff of life.

    In choosing to follow Jesus together (Luke 9:23), we have embarked on a journey. At Trinity, this journey occurs on our Discipleship Pathway. Discipleship is being with Jesus to become like Jesus, so we can live like Jesus. Therefore, our discipleship journey is described in 3 words: Relational. Formational. Holistic.

    Gen. 1:28; Prov. 4:23; Matt. 5:11-12, 11:28, 28:18–20; 2 Tim. 2:1-2; Acts 14:23; Col. 3:1-17; Titus 1:5; 2 Cor. 3:18, Gal. 5:16-26

  • Discipleship is first and foremost relational in nature. Jesus came to reconcile us to God, granting us rest for our souls. As St. Augustine said,

    “Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in you."

    ‘Being with Jesus’ is something we practice both alone and in community.

  • Disciples are in a process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others. The primary agent in our transformation is the Holy Spirit who uses four primary means to shape us: situations, spiritual practices, sharing life with one another, and suffering with Jesus. The more we become like Jesus, the more whole we become, and more Jesus-like behavior flows from our lives.

  • All situations we face are also spiritual opportunities where God is uniquely at work by his Holy Spirit’s presence. The twists and turns of ordinary life provide opportunities for us to become aware of how he is at work and cooperate with him, perhaps in the context of spiritual warfare or a season of seeking his guidance on a life choice.

    Spiritual practices are disciplines or habits that form a holistic life of worship. Jesus does not compartmentalize our lives into the sacred and the secular. But every sphere and relationship must be brought under his lordship. We have identified 10 Spiritual Practices for loving Jesus and people (in 5 pairs):

    • Prayer and Bible Reading

    • Work and Rest

    • Solitude and Fellowship

    • Fasting and Feasting

    • Giving and Receiving

    These are taught in a 7-week learning community called Disciple Equip and will be taught in a 10-week series called Liturgies for Life (Fall 2024).

    Sharing life with one another is as comprehensive as it sounds. Relationships can shape us to be more like Jesus—experiencing and expressing love. Through challenges to our relational unity and love, we are afforded new opportunities to change and grow so we live like Jesus with each other. The foundational contexts we as a church have for sharing life together are in regular rhythms of worship gatherings and groups.

    Suffering with Jesus is a natural result of living for his upside down kingdom. While we don’t pursue suffering as Christians, we are promised it will come. When it does, we seek to cooperate with God as he uses our suffering to make us more like Jesus.

  • While these are the basics of how we make disciples, a unique form of discipleship occurs in the context of leadership development. At Trinity, leadership development happens primarily through Leader Equip (all leaders), Elder Equip (aspiring elders), and the Lead Pastor Residency (2-year paid position) and through the shared life these means provide.

INVITATION

If you are beginning to explore who Jesus is or what Trinity is about, we hope you will join us on this journey of following him together! Take your next step.