The question I would like to address as we introduce ourselves to you is, "What makes The Abilene Christian Center different?" What makes us different from the average church? Actually we are different in many ways and I would like to point out 10 differences that cause The Abilene Christian Center to stand out…
(1) Our Vision is clear and progressive:
Clear — our vision is visible and measurable. We see the harvest field of West Central Texas as well as the World. We intend by all means to impact the unsaved community through outreach and evangelism.
Progressive — we uphold a "whatever it takes to get it done" mentality. We constantly look for more effective ways to fulfill our purpose and see our vision become a reality. We do not fear change, but welcome it. Our vision is big because we have a big God who has given us a big command and a big commission to 'go into all the world'.
(2) Our people are equipped and empowered:
Equipped — we make a concentrated effort to equip all who attend our church to live for Christ by addressing their needs from a biblical perspective and developing within our congregation a Christian Worldview. Our discipleship program is tailor-made to address the specific needs of believers, visitors and unbelievers.
Empowered — all christians are called to minister; therefore, they are free to minister how God has shaped and blessed them. We seek by all means to develop, counsel, and lead each member to find how God has uniquely gifted their lives and abilities—capitalize on those abilities and reach others from that perspective.
(3) Our accountability is real and affirming:
Real — At The Abilene Christian Center, we assist each individual in building a foundation of faith that is relevant in their life; and that will transcend the struggles and turmoils of life!
Affirming — Our Pastor and Ministry leaders will serve as examples and navigators to affirm, mentor, and assist each believer in their spiritual development. We desire to substantially encourage and increase the number of church congregants who will become a committed part of our church and become involved in active ministry.
(4) Our Purpose is complete and practical:
Complete — we focus on five major tasks of the church as modeled by the early church of Acts. We do not seek to do one task better than the other. We seek to fulfill all tasks with excellence. Five Tasks of the Church: (see Acts 2:42-47)
- Discipleship v. 42
- Fellowship v. 42
- Worship, v. 42, 47
- Ministry v. 44-45
- Outreach v. 47
Practical — we want people to understand that authentic Christianity is practical and to be lived out in their daily lives. We want to move the church beyond the theoretical Christianity to the practical Christianity.
(5) Our Outreach is local and global:
Local — we desire to use whatever means, media, or mode necessary to reach out to the unsaved in the Big Country area. There is no cost too great to pay in bringing people to Jesus Christ when considering the cost that Jesus paid for each of us to come to salvation.
Global — we give opportunity to involve our members in world evangelism from the local church and world evangelism endeavors where they can accompany the Pastor on overseas missions. We envision multitudes of volunteer missionaries, short-term missionaries and career missionaries to be commissioned from our church. We will bring missionaries into our church to share their vision for the lost world—so that we can make it our own. We will be involved in intensive mission partnering, training and education.
(6) Our Structure is concise and friendly:
Concise — we have a simple structure in order to maximize the believers time in development of hands-on ministries. We disciple men and couples to rise up and tackle the needs of our generation in 'real-time' terms, so that they can have maximum impact with low maintenance.
Friendly — we desire to create an atmosphere where we can minister to your needs. We realize our congregants want their lives to count; therefore, every moment they spend in the church or related activities should count significantly to the fulfillment of our purpose. Each persons responsibility is to reach out and minister to ever visitor and unbeliever God places in their path.
(7) Our Message is relevant and Biblical:
Relevant — every message is prepared to touch and challenge each listener's life up close and personal. We want each message to address and show the people that the Word of God is relevant today to address and guide them through the issues of life.
Biblical — we see the Bible as the final source of truth and it will not be compromised or diluted in its original intent and message. We believe every word of the Scriptures is given by God without error and believe that the Bible's authority should supersede any historic or modern-day beliefs.
(8) Our Strategy is focused and flexible:
Focused — our strategy is how we intend to fulfill our purpose. Everything we do is focused on evangelism, discipleship and church planting.
Flexible — though we have an unchanging focus on the tasks at hand, we are flexible on the methods we employ to accomplish the tasks. We are always willing to try a different method to achieve our determined end.
(9) Our Services are centered and impactive:
Centered — we are first and foremost a gospel-preaching church. Although we love music and take time to maximize our worship potential and spend great energy on making our praise and worship most effective, our services are centered on the preaching of the Word of God.
Impactive — our services are energetic, moving and developed to bring maximum impact and challenge to our lives. We preach the uncut gospel with a convicting edge and always challenge every person with an altar call at the close of service where we can meet with God and let him minister to our lives.
(10) Our Giving is Sacrificial and Strategic:
Sacrificial — we believe that when Jesus changes your life, He also changes our priorities concerning giving. A convert of Christ will always have a 'generous' or 'cheerful' disposition concerning giving! The Bible thoroughly and clearly teaches that the tithe, or commonly known as the 'tenth'; plus offerings besides, is mandated in Gods Word towards the believer. This is not some outdated or old 'law' doctrine, but rather a quite aggressively spoken challenge from both Jesus and Paul!
Strategic — we strategically manage our budget according to the purpose and tasks of the church. All weekly and special offerings are closely monitored and managed by multiple layers of accountability before being reinvested into ministry. We invest our giving according to our vision.
With this in mind, we can clearly invest our lives in a ministry that centers on the salvation of the lost, building disciples and ultimately; duplicating the process through church planting.
It is my prayer and intent that The Abilene Christian Center challenges your heart to seek to grow and mature and meet
God's mandate for our shared and individual destinies'. Our further prayer is that you will ask God to show you where you can fit in—
then roll up your sleeves—join us and let's go to work!
Top of Page
