MEASURES
Here at The Bridge, we believe that the Bible should be the standard and source of what we believe and strive for. Our specific measures are derived from Mark 12:29-31:
Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Here we see Jesus saying quite frankly what the two most important things to live for are: loving God and loving our neighbor (anyone God has put in our lives). He specifically tells us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.
GOD
NEIGHBOR
HEART
Worshipping Deeply
-daily expressing gratitude toward God for all He’s done -aligning our hearts with God’s desires -growing in our awe and fear of the Lord which guides us into humility and obedience
John 4:23-24 “worship in spirit and in truth” Romans 12:1 “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice…spiritual act of worship” Hebrews 10:26-33 “fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God”
Caring Deeply
-captizalizing on the God-given relationships around us -spending intentional time with our neighbors, co-workers, friends, and family -developing a genuine concern for others because of the love God has shown for us
John 17:18 “as you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” John 13:34-35 “new command…love one another”
Jonah 4:10-11 “you pity the plant…should not I pity Ninevah?”
SOUL
Finding Freedom
-living in the freedom from sin that God has purchased for us -desiring in every way to be blameless before God (not even a HINT of sin) -seeking and seeing God break addictions and harmful patterns in our lives
Galatians 5:1 “it was for freedom that Christ set us free” Romans 12:2 “do not be conformed…but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”
Ephesians 5:3 “not even a hint of sexual immorality among you”
Sharing Freedom
-seeing brokenness and running TO, not away from, people -choosing to forgive, and seeking forgiveness from, others -working through conflict with others according to Scripture -using “on-the-spot praying” to go before God with others
Romans 1:27 “pure, undefiled religion is…(care for)…widows,orphans” John 8:1-8 “neither do I condemn you. Go and from now on, sin no more”
Matthew 18:15-20 “if your brother sins against you…”
MIND
Seeking Truth
-daily searching the scriptures to hear God’s heart, both to affirm and to correct us -listening for the Holy Spirit’s voice in the midst of our daily lives -seeking Jesus (the TRUTH) in the context of community
Matthew 7:7 “ask, seek, knock…” 2 Timothy 3:16 “all scripture is god-breathed and is useful for…” John 8:31-32 “if you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples”
Deuteronomy 6:4-8 “on your hand, as frontlets, on your doorposts and your gates”
Revealing Truth
-revealing Jesus by both actions AND words -being accountable to other believers to live like Jesus -helping others discover their unique design -life-on-life discipleship
Matthew 5:14-16 “let your light so shine before others…”
Romans 10:14-15 “blessed are the feet of those that bring good news”
STRENGTH
Trusting Faithfully
-gut-level faith and perseverance in God’s sovereignty, especially when things get tough! -taking care of our bodies & minds so that we might be able to do all that he calls us to -striving to give faithfully to the Lord through the church according to scripture
Job 13:15 “though he slay me, I will hope in him” James 1:12 “steadfast under trial” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit” Colossians 3:16 “whatever you do…work for the Lord” Malachi 3:10 “bring the full tithe…[and I will] pour down for you a blessing”
2 Corinthians 9:6-12 “whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully…God loves a cheerful giver”
Serving Faithfully
-discovering our God-given gifts and finding ways to bless others through them -putting others before ourselves by sharing freely of our time, energy, and finances -uniting with other disciples to accomplish God’s work
Exodus 35:10, 30-31 “[the Lord] has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with all craftmanship” Philippians 2:1-4 “in humility count others as more significant”
Romans 12:4-8 ” one body, many parts”
