We value Godly Families.
We recognize that Godly families produce strong people, churches and communities. Therefore, we value a parent’s responsibility for a child’s development. We value God’s pattern for the family expressed by a complementarian view of roles. Therefore, we value a man’s strong, loving spiritual leadership in the family and a woman’s loving support. We believe that sex is a gift, but it is to be expressed delightfully within the boundaries of marriage. We value permanent marriages but understand how divorce can occur in a fallen world. We value life and that life begins with conception and should be protected.
"The Nuclear Family"
by Gregory Standinger PE, PMP
This paper defends and supports the core value of “Raising Godly Families” in this way:
• We believe that strong families are foundational for the physical, social, emotional and
spiritual development of each individual; for healthy relational patterns within the church; and for stability in society. Strong families produce strong churches and strong
communities.
• Although ministry is important, we hold that one’s home life takes precedence over ministry outside the home.
• Our practice is to encourage families to be “on mission,” actively involved in evangelism, discipleship, and church planting.
"Roles Within the Family"
by Bob Hibbing
This paper defends and supports the core value of “Raising Godly Families” in this way:
• We value the husband and the wife following Christ’s example in loving and
honoring one another sacrificially. We also promote differing but complementary
roles in the family, with the husband as the head of the household,
wholeheartedly laying down his life for, sacrificially loving and leading his wife,
and his wife wholeheartedly laying down her life for him, honoring, supporting
and submitting to her husband.
• We place a high value on men being strong spiritual leaders in their marriages and with their children.
• For a two-parent Christian family, we focus on the father and mother working together as a team and on equipping the father to be the spiritual leader in training their children. For a parent who is single or who is not married to a Christan, we seek to provide that parent extra support and specialized ministry as a church community.
"On Sexual Expression"
by Chris Yiesla
This paper defends and supports the core value of “Raising Godly Families” in this way:
• We believe that human sexuality is a gift and is to be celebrated and practiced
exclusively within the marriage covenant between one man and one woman.
Therefore, in accordance with the Bible, we consider any sexual expression
outside of or apart from that covenant (including adultery, fornication,
homosexuality or viewing pornography) to be a sin.
"When Life Begins"
by Dan Barnard
This paper defends and supports the core value of “Raising Godly Families” in this way:
• We believe that life is a gift from God that begins at conception and should be
valued and protected at all stages of development and ability.
"A Noble Calling: The Importance of Parenting"
by Dan Wolf
This paper defends and supports the core value of “Raising Godly Families” in this way:
• We believe that parents are primarily responsible for their child’s spiritual, academic
and personal development. Church ministries, including youth ministries, are intended to
strengthen the parent-child relationship and to support parents in fulfilling their God-
given responsibilities.
• We put a great emphasis on equipping and supporting parents as a church community to win the hearts of their children so that they will love God and love people their entire lives. In parenting their children, church members are encouraged to grow in their humility before God, their faith in Christ, their love for and relationship with their children, their faithfulness in teaching God’s Word to their children and their diligence in providing godly correction and discipline.
• Parents are encouraged to take the lead in their child’s education, whether through homeschooling, Christian schooling, or secular schools. While all parents are supported in whatever educational choice they make, it has been a common practice among our leaders to homeschool their children, particularly in their early formative years.