Philosophy of Partnership
How we work together: Coming Alongside for Gospel Partnership
The ways that we interact together in relationship and mission as leaders, churches, and ministries is shaped by New Testament principles—particularly three significant words that form our “why”, “what”, and “how”: Euangelion, Koinonia, and Parakletos.
WHY: The Good News of Jesus Christ
It’s all about the amazing news that God’s Savior-King, Jesus Christ, has come! God has come in person, in his Son Jesus, and through Jesus is bringing redemption—bringing all things in heaven and earth together in Jesus. Jesus not only announces the good news of the Kingdom of God —he embodies it! In Jesus, all the fullness of God is revealed, and he expresses the culture of heaven. Jesus calls us to follow him, to do what he does, and to be changed to be like him. Leadership, in particular, needs to be Jesus-shaped—expressing the image of Christ in humility, love, and service. In this way, we actively pray and work to see “your kingdom come; your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
WHAT: Relational Partnership
The apostle Paul uses the Greek word koinonia to describe his relationship with the believers in Philippi: In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:4-5). Sometimes translated into English as “fellowship”, Paul is describing a relational partnership: sharing life together for the sake of the gospel. A gospel partnership is a relational connection. We are not simply collaborating on tasks and projects, we share a relational commitment. We’re sharing life through genuine relationship and mutual vulnerability and support. Gospel service is not meant to be lonely leadership, but rich in heartfelt fellowship with other servants of Christ.
HOW: Coming Alongside to Help
Jesus introduces the Holy Spirit to his disciples in John 14, using a word that doesn’t translate neatly into English. He says, “I will send you allon parakleton to be with you forever, the Spirit of truth.” He’s sending another One just like himself (allon), who is the Parakeltos—the comforter, the counselor, one who comes alongside to help. We understand the way of the Spirit of Christ to be coming alongside as a helper, rather than dominating or controlling from ‘above’. In our Gospel Partnership with one another, we position ourselves to be mutually helpful, to use our strengths to serve one another for the gospel, without using spiritual authority in a controlling manner. We maintain an atmosphere of mutual respect. We practice team leadership. We rely on the Spirit, not our own positions or personal perspectives. We serve Christ in a spirit of serving one another.
Intentional Practices: Gather, Give, Go
We invest together in relationship and mission through three main practices: Gathering, Giving, and Going.
Gather: We gather to invest in relationship, mutual encouragement, prayer and equipping. We host two national conferences each year: Lead Together (in May) and Pray Together (in October). Our format for these gatherings intentionally makes space for and promotes relational interactions. In addition, we encourage Connect FC churches and members to invest in relationship and being together beyond these conference gatherings.
Give: We give into one another’s missional activities. Instead, of each of us standing on our own in mission, we invest into the ways that each of us are reaching beyond ourselves with the good news. Jesus taught us, “Where your treasure is, your heart will be also,” and we believe it is important to link our hearts through shared investment in mission.
Go: We invest time and resources to go in person. We send gifted individuals to teach, equip, and serve our partners around the world. We send service teams to come alongside our brothers and sisters to help in one another’s mission fields.
