Core Values of First Baptist Church, McNeil, Arkansas

We measure our success by our ability to help people find and follow Jesus. We believe this is what Jesus commanded us to do when he said, “Go, and make disciples.” Full devotion to Jesus is normal for every believer. “Then He (Jesus) said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’” Luke 9:23

At First Baptist Church, McNeil, Arkansas we value discipleship that is life changing because in Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus told us to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.” It is our goal to help unbelievers, or the uncommitted, to find and follow Jesus so that they can help other unbelievers, or the uncommitted, to find and follow Jesus as Paul taught Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2 when he said, “And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” To accomplish this our six Core Values are Worship, Prayer, Bible Study, Fellowship, Outreach and Ministry.
To aid in memory of our core values we refer to them simply as worship, grow, serve and sometimes as just W-G-S.

WORSHIP GOD

I. WORSHIP - We value worship that is relevant, innovative, and glorifying to God.
          1. We seek to praise and honor God passionately as individuals, families, and as a local church.
          2. We seek to have the most vibrant worshipful experience using all types of songs and media and relevant biblical messages.

II. PRAYER - We value prayer as authentic communication with God that is both specific and consistent.
          1. We recognize our need to be in close relationship with our Creator God who hears and answers prayer.
          2. We value prayer because it strengthens our relationship with God and gives us access to God’s power and purpose.

GROW TO MATURITY

III. BIBLE STUDY - We value Bible study because the Bible is the inspired Word of God.
          1. We believe in the life changing value of God’s word.
          2. We recognize God uses Bible study to speak to us and provide direction, correction, and comfort.

IV. FELLOWSHIP – We value genuine fellowship which produces unity and harmony in the church family.

          1. We believe that to grow in Christ is best accomplished in relationships with other Christians.
          2. We recognize that small groups studying God’s word together allows us to know each other’s needs, joys, and sorrows so we can comfort and encourage one another.

SERVE LOCAL AND GLOBAL

V. OUTREACH - We value outreach because lost people matter to God and to us.
          1. We believe outreach is every believer’s responsibility to share God’s word with people that don’t know Him and His teachings.
          2. Since we believe we best serve others by telling them the gospel, we will keep outreach as a major priority through local and global evangelism and missions.

VI. MINISTRY - We value ministry that allows us to use our gifts to serve and care for others inside and outside the walls of our church.
          1. We value serving because we are called to care for and serve one another within our church family.
          2. We believe meeting the needs of others shows the love of God to the world.