​The overarching vision is

Each letter of this English word can be used to show tangible actions that move us towards achieve this vision.  Below are 6 "Actions of Beauty" we have identified and rooted in Scripture. Consider asking God to help you adopt one, two, or all of them. 

Believe that unity is possible​

Our current divisions are rooted deep in history, and the pain, exclusion and mistrust caused by these divisions can make unity seem impossible or even undesirable. However, Jesus prayed that his followers would be one.  We believe that anything Jesus asks of the Father is possible. Believing that unity is possible can energize our prayers and pursuit of reconciliation. 
​
Mark | 9:23

Experience God in deeper ways

The extent to which we experience the love of God will be the measure of how deeply we can love our brothers. In order to see the beauty of the Church, we must focus on the beauty of Jesus and learn to recognize the Holy Spirit in one another. Practical ways to experience the love of God include:​

+ Go deeper in the knowledge of the love of Christ for you;
+ Go deeper in relationship with God, with your own soul, with your family, and with others outside your own family;
+ Go deeper in understanding based upon study, especially of other traditions in the body of Christ;
+ Go deeper in awareness of being one of God’s stewards of the earth;
+ Go deeper in your commitment to bearing the image and likeness of God in our world;
​+ Go deeper in your commitment to spend time with Jesus, to learn from Jesus how to live like Jesus.  

​Ephesians| 3:14-21

Act in such a way as to remove hostility
​and bring healing

Do not be easily offended.
Honor other traditions in the Body of Christ.
Pray for the well-being of those hostile to you.
Go to the offended (or offending) party.
Listen.  
Lament.  
Repent.  
Ask, "What can I do to make it right?"
Celebrate the restoration of relationship. 

​Matthew| 5:24-26

Honor the unique role of
​Messianic Jewish believers

Each of the historic traditions in the body of Christ hearkens back to the beginning of the Church.  For example, Roman Catholics stress an unbroken chain of apostolic authority. Lutherans emphasize the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans. Pentecostals base their practice of church on the accounts in Acts. Emergent churches cite the simplicity of churches that met in houses.  

But we are all appropriately humbled when we recognize that the earliest followers of Jesus were, in fact, practicing Jews who believed Yeshua (Jesus) was the Messiah long-promised to the nation of Israel.  A surprising, sovereign act of God in the last century has been to the re-emergence of the Messianic Jewish stream of the body of Christ.  It is both challenging and exciting to recognize that we suddenly have an "older brother" in the room.  The Messianic Jews are a new reality that breaks into and changes relationships that have been relatively static for generations.

​Romans | 11:15​

Thank our Father for the
​diversity of His children

Diversity expresses God’s unlimited creativity. "God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as He Himself chose ... as it is, there are many members, yet one body."  It fosters unity and opens our eyes to the beauty of the Church when we:
+ Thank God for this diversity
+ Recognize strengths in Christian traditions outside of our own
+ Enjoy and learn from different cultures 

​Romans | 11:15​

Say "Yes" to  contemplating the
​unity of the Trinity

The Trinity lives in relational Oneness.  The communion between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit shows that deep unity and plurality are not antithetical. Amazingly, the God Who is Three in One has extended an invitation to join in the life of the Trinity.  This is beautifully depicted by the famous Rublev icon of the Three Visitors, where there is a place for humanity at the table. 

In the person of Jesus Christ, God has invited humans to sit at table with Him. But God gives us the dignity to say Yes or No to taking the place set for us.  May each of us say Yes to this amazing invitation, entering deeply into the unity of the Trinity.

​When we do say Yes, it will affect our relationships with one another.  Jesus prayed to the Father that the unity of His followers would follow this example: "as You are in me and I am in You." Entering more deeply into the unity of the Trinity means striving to love my brother or sister from a different stream, to the same extent that God loves him or her. ​

​John | 17:20-24​

A young Messianic Jew contemplates the Rublev icon of the Trinity, Trento 2014.

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