Vision for Mission

In 1998, we set out on a journey into the unknown, believing that as we followed God and joined Him in His work, He would lead, direct, empower, and transform us.   God has been faithful!  In the past 6 years, we have seen the birth of Sunrise Community, a bi-lingual congregation bringing together people of differing economic, racial, and spiritual backgrounds... (Complete Refocused Document)

 

Our History

• In 1998, Tulare Community Church had a vision to plant a new church. The idea would be to start a bilingual church to help reach the large Hispanic population in the Central Valley. Tulare Community Church contacted Pastor Russ Siders in 1998.

• After eight months of work, our first public worship celebration took place on March 28, 1999 (Palm Sunday). Nine months later, Sunrise was officially organized, on December 5th, 1999.

• Our congregation includes a wide variety of people from different cultural, economic, and religious backgrounds. In spite of our diversity, we share a common mission, vision, and faith. It is Jesus Christ who makes us one.

Core Values

1. We will be grounded in grace and dedicated to truth in all of our relationships. (Loving Relationships)

2. Spirit-filled prayer is our first ministry priority. (Passionate Spirituality)

3. Excellent and authentic worship honors God and inspires others. (Inspiring Worship)

4. Personal life change and authentic community occur best in small groups. (Healthy Small Groups)

5. We will go out of our way to reach lost people for Christ. (Need-Oriented Evangelism)

6. We will proclaim the enduring message of Christ in a culturally relevant way. (Functional Structures)

7. Full devotion to Christ is normal for every believer. (Passionate Spirituality)

8. The exercise of spiritual gifts in team ministry is essential to the health of the church. (Gift-Oriented Ministry)

9. We will spend our resources helping people to reach their full potential for God. (Empowering Leadership)

10. We will be a church that faithfully plants new churches. (Multiplication)

Our Refocused Mission:

Our 1998 Mission Statement:

To bring people to Jesus Christ and equip them to live extraordinary lives for God through inspiring worship, authentic community, spiritual growth, and loving service to our city and world.

Our Re-focused Mission: 

To bring Jesus Christ to people, equipping them to live extraordinary lives for God through inspiring worship, authentic community, spiritual growth, and loving service to our city and world.

Our Refocused Vision:

Our 1998 Vision Statement: 

Trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the author and perfecter of our faith, and the builder of his church, we envision a multi-cultural, gift-based, multiplying, mission-oriented, Spirit-filled community that will reach 5,000 families for Christ by the year 2020.

Our Re-focused Vision: 

Trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ, the author and perfecter of our faith, and the builder of his church, we envision a multicultural, multiplying, mission-oriented community that gives itself away in the power of the Spirit in order to transform 5,000 families for Jesus Christ by the year 2020. 

Three Cs:

The Re-focused Strategy

Creative Arts

-   A WAM! recording studio to produce musical albums, training CDs, puppet skits, sermons, live events, radio programs, etc. 

-   Expanding music classes to form a music school, giving ourselves away to children and adults as well as existing and new churches. 

-    Increased used of creative arts including dance, drama, visual arts, with the possibility of creating alternative worship experiences, outreach events, etc. 

Compassion Ministries

-    Active support of Lighthouse Rescue Mission, Habitat for Humanity, Healing Rooms and other citywide compassion ministries. 

-   Develop a financial counseling ministry to help people overcome the cycle of poverty. 

-   Develop a “Celebrate Recovery” 12 Step Ministry (perhaps in conjunction with Tulare and New Life Community Churches) to bring Christ-centered help to those recovering from addictions of all kinds. 

-   Develop after-care ministry for those coming out of prison. 

-   Other ministries (English as a Second Language, clothing, etc.) as leadership for these emerge.

-   Possible part-time staff person to oversee compassion ministries. 

Church Planting

-   Reproducing our next daughter church plant entirely out of our own financial and human resources. 

-   To be a flagship church with Tulare and New Life Community Churches in establishing a “South Valley” classis for the RCA. 

-   Becoming a church multiplication center, giving ourselves away to churches inside and outside of our denomination, so that we can see the growth of new Christians in our region outstrip the growth of the general population. 

-   Establishing coaching networks to provide pastors with support. 

-   Develop a biblical training center in conjunction with Miami International Theological Seminary (www.mints.edu) providing degree programs in both English and Spanish, in order to raise up leaders for existing and new churches. 

-   To plant and support churches internationally (e.g. in Mexico and Argentina). 

-   To train and send our own missionaries to work with these churches. 

Prayer Foundations

-   Growing our current prayer team to include more intentional and strategic prayer efforts. 

-    Working with churches in our city to raise up a 24/7 prayer and worship center known as an IHOP—an International House of Prayer. 

Next Steps:

1.  Calling the congregation to a 40 day “tag-team” prayer and fasting effort from September 26 to November 18.

The “wrong” question:  How do we plan for the future?

The “right” question:  How do we prepare for the future?

“Spiritual preparation has the goal of getting God’s people in partnership with him.”    Author Reggie McNeal

2.    Aggressively pursuing all leads to secure a facility that will allow us to pursue our refocused mission, vision, and strategy.    Location will follow vision.  We are looking for a mission center, not just a box where we can worship.  God is calling us to join Him in what He is doing.  Rather than trying to get God to join us in what we are doing, we need to learn to live “outside the box!”