“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Philippians 2:5-8
Our heart at The Awakening is to emulate the attitude and example of Christ. Even though He was God in the flesh, He was willing to empty Himself of His glory, titles, résumé, and stuff and just serve. Lovingly serve, recklessly serve and humbly serve.
To put it into context… he was willing to become the doormat that others would walk all over as they enter into the Kingdom. That’s our desire at The Awakening. We are willing to become the doormats so a generation can find Jesus, discover their callings, and walk into their destiny.
Jesus had to get over himself. At The Awakening, we need to get over our pride, our selfish desires, our agendas and ourselves. We want for Jesus to be known and for people to be served into the kingdom. That’s the bottom line.
We strive to be more than just a team. We are a family. We love and care deeply for one another. That’s one of our main strengths. We willingly prefer and serve one another. To quote the English novelist, Charles Montague, "It's amazing how much can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit."
We try to flesh that out in a simple statement. At The Awakening, we will out-love, out-give, and out-serve every person or ministry with whom we come into contact. This is not out of a spirit of competition; it’s simply the manifestation of a heart yearning to be more like Christ and reach the least, the last and the lost.
Our love is audacious. We will show love to the people that least expect it, or those who others have already given up on. Our love is relentless. Jesus never gives up on us. Regardless of the outcome, he remains unwavering; we just follow suit. Our love is extravagant. We will go out of our way to make sure somebody knows how much Jesus and we love him or her. Our love is sincere. Jesus did something so meaningful in us that we cannot help but to love in return. Our love is radical. We believe that love can break down any walls or barriers, let’s give it a whirl!
Generosity is more than just an ideal. Generosity is a lifestyle. At The Awakening, we practice it, not just preach it. We will take any opportunity we have to be a blessing to somebody. We will spend ourselves and what we have to show people that the gospel is not just good news that they read about, but the good news is real, tangible and at hand. We resource, invest in and develop people. We put our money and our resources where our hearts are.
There is a difference between being repetitive and being intentional. We will “out-serve” is foundational to the culture of our ministry. Whether we are leading worship, playing games, leading a team, developing resources, investing in leaders or hanging out with interns, service is the trademark of our ministry.
Last but not least, Jesus meant for this life to be an incredible adventure alongside Him! Therefore, have fun! Laugh, play, dream, sing, dance and enjoy serving King Jesus every day of your life!