Words are very important! Words tell people who you really are. Words shape how you perceive and understand everything in life. Words are literally "vehicles of communication". As a church, we understand the importance of communicating everything in clear, precise terms, because, whether we like it or not, every part of our church communicates something, whether it is good, bad, or neutral. In this modern day, it is essential that we have a proper understanding of "our" words as a church. At SouthPointe, we are driven by seven key words that summarize who we are. Below is a brief overview of these words:

PASSION
The word "passion is certainly a very risky word. We have chosen to use this word because we believe it is the best way of emphasizing the intensity of the command of Jesus to, "Love the lord our God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind" (Matthew 22:37). It is also a way to come to grips with the words of Jesus that says, "So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth" (Revelation 3:16).

Passion is a very powerful thing, and if used properly, it has the power to enhance everything it touches. We serve a passionate God. He is passionate about everything. He is especially passionate about His relationship with us. God even desires to reciprocate that passion in and through us. While He certainly wants us to be passionate about Him, He also desires for us to be passionate about the gifts and talents He has given each on of us.

Passion defined: Passion can refer to many things as it relates to God. It can refer to "enthusiasm, love, commitment, being zealous, and jealousy. It has reference to devotion to a cause. An abandoned display of emotion. An intense, driving desire, feeling, or emotion".

In our relationship with God, this single word describes what that relationship should look like.

COMPASSION
The word compassion was chosen as a key word because it goes to the very heart of our entire ministry. In reality, it is impossible to have a "passion" for God and not have a burning desire to show a genuine "compassion" for people who need to know God and experience a personal relationship with Him.

Compassion defined: "A deep awareness of another, coupled with a desire to assist or help. A sympathetic conscienceness of other's distress or suffering together with a desire to alleviate it".

At SouthPointe, we deeply desire for our "compassion " for others to be second only to our "passion" for God. The best way to do that is to demonstrate it in everyday practical ways as individuals and as a church.

RELEVANCE
The word "relevant" is another risky word when it is applied to churches. For many, the word is the equivalent to compromise. They believe you can't be dedicated to the truth and be relevant at the same time. At SouthPointe, we simply do not believe that. Jesus taught that truth and relevance go hand in hand.

Relevance defined: To be relevant simply means, "to use what is cultural and timely to say what is timeless".

Churches Must Be Relevant: In today's culture, there is a tremendous need for churches to be truthful and relevant. It is our responsibility to:
   1. Build bridges - (John 14:8-11)
   2. Turn on the lights - (John 1:4-5)

Churches Must Stay Relevant: If we are to remain relevant, we must:
   1. Distinguish between what is cultural and what is timely.
   2. Never assume that what worked yesterday will work today.
   3. Make sure we communicate content and truth for the sake of application; not just for information.
   4. Never assume that everything that is old is bad and everything that is new is good.
   5. Never assume that everything that is old is good and everything that is new is bad.

People will always respond to what is relevant and understandable.

PRIORITY
We live in a world full of potential, but also challenged by our limitations. As a church and as Christians, we want to be successful in all we do. But there is a huge difference between wanting something and actually achieving something. To reach success, you need passion and priorities. Passion will drive you. Priorities will give you direction. Passion without priorities is chaos and priorities without passion is inefficient. At SouthPointe, our priorities are determined by God, His Word, prayer, and godly counsel.

ENVIRONMENTS
At SouthPointe, we believe in providing God-honoring environments in every part of our ministry. This means that we are dedicated to creating settings that remove artificial barriers to the sharing of the gospel. Environments are important because they control the way people perceive our church. We must remember that a person's environment always has a particular effect on a person's thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and actions.

Every environment, from the nursery to the adult worship service has been designed to encourage an atmosphere conducive to learning God's Word, worshipping Him, and developing a meaning, loving, and lasting relationship with Him.

Our example for using environments is from God Himself. In the beginning, God set the standard. He created the beautiful sky with brilliant color; He place sand on the sea shore for our wiggly toes; He made stripes zebra's, long-neck giraffe's, and gave us miles of sunflower seeds. Sunrises and sunsets, snow-capped mountains and the desert. It must have brought a smile as God watched people's faces light up with the smell of the morning air. Think about it! All of this was created so that all people on earth would be struck with a sense of awe and wonder of just how great and glorious God really is.

Just as God created the earth with all its beauty so we could connect with Him and be reminded on a daily basis of His goodness and greatness, we too desire to create irresistible environments in every ministry to encourage a desire for people to come inside, stay, learn, and come back again.

CONNECT
Another key word that we have chosen to describe our church is the word "connect". If someone were to ask us to describe what we want people to do at SouthPointe Church, the simple answer would be that we want people to "connect".

Connect defined: "To fasten, or to put together two or more pieces; to become joined; to plug in; to join for the purpose of communication".

The Apostle Paul's one goal in life was to "know God" (Philippians 3:7-11). His prayer for the church at Ephesus was that they might "know Him better" (Ephesians 1:15-17). As a church, we deeply desire for people to get closer to God and to experience His grace, goodness, and glory in an intimate and meaningful way. We believe the best way to do that is by:
    1. Connecting to God.
    2. Connecting to the church.
    3. Connecting to one another.
    4. Connecting to the community.

RELATIONAL
People today, more than ever crave real, authentic relationships. George Gallop in a recent poll said the, "Americans are among the loniest people in the world". That seems to be a strange statement in light of the fact that we live around a lot of people; we work with a lot of people; we do different things with a lot of people, and yet most people are still lonely.

The word "relational" is a word that really describes a balanced Christian life. Consider the following thoughts about the importance of this word:
    1. God invites us to have a relationship with Him through Jesus Christ to experience intimacy with Him on a daily basis.
    2. As Christians, we must seek relationships with "insiders" in a way that shows we value people more than we value anything else.
    3. Our "insiders" relationships will equip us to have real influence with those "outside" the church so we can "point them to Jesus Christ".

As a church, we want to do ministry in the context of relationships.