GRACE ALONE, FAITH ALONE, GOD'S WORD ALONE
Yeah, that pretty much sums it up for us!

It really is that simple. We believe that men, women, and children are rescued from the effects of sin purely by the undeserved mercy of God. Period. Through faith, a relationship of dependence upon Jesus that God Himself gives us, forgiveness and more become ours. Lastly, God's Word stands over us as ultimate. In it He gives us the rule and norm for all belief and through it makes us aware of sin, fills us with faith in Jesus, and guides us in faith-filled living.

WE CONFESS THIS!

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
On the third day He rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.

The words of the Apostles' Creed, along with the Nicene and Athanasian Creeds, have served as a summary of Spirit-filled and scriptural belief since the earliest days of Christianity. They summarize what Christians have always confessed when gathered around God's Word in the name of God's Son--and they are the truths that we believe, teach, and confess at GRACE.

WE ARE PROUDLY THIS

Lutheran. That's us. Specifically we are associated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. To be Lutheran simply means that we accept the scriptural truths that inspired the reformation of the Christian Church in the 16th century and led to a renewed focus on the Gospel.

As a result we uphold an extravagant and mysterious view of God's love: that man is saved purely by God's grace through faith alone, apart from works. We believe that God is so loving and powerful that he is actively working through His Word as well as saving and sustaining sinful men, women and children through his mysterious gifts of baptism and the Lord's Supper.

For an overview of all our beliefs as well as our take on current cultural issues such as marriage, life, and more please see lcms.org.

BAPTISM

At Grace we have learned that following Jesus is all about relationship. Living in relationship with a person that you cannot see is not always easy. But the compelling thing about Jesus is how consistently he takes the initiative with us. A pastor during the first century once wrote that Jesus loved us before we were able to love him. That is how we understand baptism, Jesus taking the initiative: loving us before we are able to love him. Using water we baptize people of all ages in God’s name just as he told us realizing that it is always Jesus who takes the initiative to establish relationship.

For more information on what we believe regarding Baptism; see THIS and THIS

COMMUNION
Jesus was a radical. He spent his life invigorating Israelite customs and reinterpreting their laws. At the final meal before his death he did it again.

At a traditional Passover, Jesus told his followers that the wine was his blood and the bread his body. It sounds crazy on the surface, but they believed it because they knew him. His followers have continued the practice of that meal up to today. Following Jesus is not easy, it never has been, but when we share that meal we call communion we are mystically tied to Jesus and one another in a way unlike any other. Through his body and blood we receive forgiveness and strength to persevere. It may be a lot to swallow that simple bread and wine could do all that, but we believe it because we know him.

For more information on what we believe regarding Communion; see THIS and THIS

PRAYER
For us prayer is not empty empathy.

It is not wishful thinking or happy thoughts sent out to the universe. Prayer is conversation with God. Because of the sacrifice of Jesus we have become the daughters and sons of God. God not only loves us, God listens to us. God acts on our behalf. So we pray a lot, for everything, and we look for answers.