WHAT TO EXPECT
Walking into a new church setting can be intimidating, but if you are considering attending one of Trailhead's worship services, we trust that you will find the following things...
Expect to be warmly welcomed when you arrive. We won't get in your face, ask you twenty questions or make you stand out. We want you to be comfortable. But, we will welcome you and let you know that we're glad you've come.
Expect a casual atmosphere. People will be dressed comfortably and the services will include God-honoring songs...some of which you may have heard on the radio or in another church. The message will be based on the Bible and will be practical...addressing real life issues.
Expect that your children (infants through 5th grade) will have activities and age appropriate lessons while adults are in the main service. (Youth who are in 6th through 12th grades worship with the adults and have their own group meeting on Sunday evening.)
Expect to hang out with us for about an hour. Then, at the end of the service, we'll challenge you to come back at least two more weeks. It's hard to really get a full picture of Trailhead in one week, so we hope you'll take the 3 week challenge. At that point, if Trailhead is not right for you, we'll gladly recommend other churches if you desire.
To learn more about some of the specific practices of Traihead, please click on the following four links.
To learn more about specific doctrinal beliefs, please keep reading below.
GOD: We believe in God, the Creator, and Ruler of all things who exists eternally in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes, and holiness, and worthy of precisely the same homage, confidence, and obedience.
Genesis 1:1, 26-27, 3:22; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14: 1 Peter 1:2
JESUS: We believe that Jesus Christ is co-equal with the Father. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary and was therefore fully man and fully God. Jesus lived a sinless life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all mankind by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:22, 23; John 1:1-5; 14:10-30; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 1:3,4; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4; 1 Timothy 6:14,15; Titus 2:13: Hebrews 4:14,15
THE HOLY SPIRIT: We believe that the Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and Son. He is present in the world to make humanity aware of their need for Jesus. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved.
Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Ephesians 1:13, 5:18; Galatians 5:25
THE BIBLE: The Bible is the self-revelation of God to humanity. It was written by human authors under the supernatural inspiration of the Holy Spirit. All Scripture is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. We believe that the Bible is inerrant and is the perfect rule for faith and practice.
2 Timothy 1: 13; 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20,21; Psalm 12:6, 119:105, 119:160; Proverbs 30:5
HUMAN BEINGS: We believe that man was created in the image of God, as the supreme objects of His creation, to have fellowship with Him. Though originally innocent, the first humans were tempted by Satan and freely chose to break faith with God and disobey the clear command of God. Their sin resulted in the fall of humanity which marred the nature of humanity such that our first moral inclination is to sin and as a result, all humans are by nature sinners and stand guilty before God and are in need of a Savior.
Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6a, 59:1, 2; Romans 3:23
SALVATION: We believe that Jesus Christ died according to the scriptures. We believe that the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross provides the sole basis for the forgiveness of sins. Therefore, salvation only occurs when a person places his faith in the death and resurrection of Christ as the sufficient sacrifice for his sin. Salvation is God’s free gift to humanity and cannot be earned by self improvement or good works. All who receive the Lord Jesus by faith are born again by the Holy Spirit and become children of God. Our salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian.
John 1:12, 10:29, 14:6; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 1:12; Titus 3:5
THE CHURCH: We believe that the church (universal and local) is the body of Christ of which Jesus Christ is the Head. The members are those who have trusted by faith the finished work of Christ. The objective of the church is to glorify God by loving Him, by loving our neighbors as ourselves and by making Him known to a lost world.
Matthew 16:15-19; Acts 2:41-42,47; 13:1-3; 15:1- 30; 1 Peter 5:1-4; Revelation 2-3, 21:2-3
GOD'S KINGDOM: We believe God’s kingdom is God’s reign and it will being carried out daily on earth and is an important part of every believer’s life. Although His kingdom is not yet fully realized on the earth, it is available to all who obey Him and listen to His voice. The kingdom, which was central to all of Jesus’s teachings, is critical to our experience of God today and will be constituted fully once God brings all things under His control and comes to make His dwelling on the New Earth with His people.
Exodus 15:18; Psalm 47:2, 6-8; Zechariah 14:9; Matthew 6:10, 33; Romans 14:17; Revelation 11:15; Revelation 21:1-4