Who We Are
Journey of Faith was born from a “Vision Quest” of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Vestal. Several groups from the congregation met periodically to discern where Christ the King would be in a changed, and changing, post-pandemic world.
Questions started out very broad, such as: “How will Christianity continue to be God’s presence in people’s lives?”, “What has the pandemic showed us about our role in God’s mission in the World?”. Over the course of months, the several small groups worked their way toward more specific questions, such as: “What are the next steps for Christ the King?”. One of the outcomes was starting a new alternative worshipping community of faith that would be nested within Christ the King. This new community will be under their own leadership to determine their own direction in pursuit of the calling of the Holy Spirit. A small group enthusiastically stepped up for the new adventure and were commissioned by Christ the King on June 12, 2022. The group named this new community “Journey of Faith”.
The name Journey of Faith reflects our collective feeling that our faith in God is not static but is a continual movement.
Our faith has intention, but not a map-dot-destination.
Our faith has a plan, but not a check-box driven itinerary.
Our faith has direction but not a set pace.
Most importantly, our faith is our own,
but is worth less when we are alone.
Our faith in God comes from building relationships, discovering more about God’s mission in this world, and sauntering together for each other.
Mission Statement: we did not come up with a mission statement, nor do we plan to come up with a mission statement other than what is already provided in Jesus’ Great Commission:
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you." (Matthew 28:19-20).
Once that work is accomplished, we can talk about developing a new mission statement.
Journey of Faith sees three verbs as central to our small part of God’s mission:
Gather, Seek, Serve.
This vision frames what we do as a community from worship to business meetings.
Gather
We work hard to welcome all who are curious about life as a follower of Christ. We listen to the hurts that may have come from past experiences with the “church”. We share the love for community and see each person as an adored child of God. We invite those who feel alone, cast aside, marginalized, or ignored. Our Journey is incomplete without you.
Seek
We share in the wonderings and ponderings that we all have about Faith in God. We wrestle with long-standing traditions and delve into doubts. We explore the work and words of Jesus with the eyes and ears of His original audience. We bring all this into the context of our everyday lives and relationships.
Serve
Jesus came among us not to be served, but to serve others. Yes, service to others can make you feel good inside, but, that’s not the point. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus is there. He is walking along the seashore with His Disciples. He is seated at the table with those scorned by Society. He is in the boat during the storm. He is at the bedside of the dying. He is kneeling with the sick. He is comforting those with dis-ease. If we are to follow Him, where else would we be?