Mission
The Greenhouse exists to help men, women, and children embrace the historic Christian faith, grow up in Christ, and live out the Christian faith in generative ways that provide a broken world glimpses of the kingdom of God as it will one day be in its fullness.
Vision
By calling ourselves a Mere Christian Community, we seek to emphasize those things that unite us as followers of Jesus, not those things that distinguish, separate, or divide us. We are not saying that denominationalism is always bad, only that there must also be a much more concentrated, intentional effort at ecumenism (i.e., aiming for unity among all Christian churches around the world). We are therefore not really non-denominational, but rather intentionally inter-denominational.
Goals
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Grow up into Christ.
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Live as a microcosm of the kingdom of God.
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Live generatively within our local community.
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Create a metaphorical estuary through our common life together.
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Provide a place for open dialogue of ideas between believers and unbelievers and between Christians of various denominational and faith backgrounds.
Why "The Greenhouse"?
Our first goal is to “grow up into Christ,” that is, into Christian maturity as we live our lives like Christ in new contexts. Like a plant in a greenhouse, we need the nurturing care of a context conducive to growth so that we can be planted in the harsher conditions of the world and still thrive and bear fruit. Moreover, not only is a greenhouse an apt metaphor, but our home, out of which we do this ministry, is literally filled with plants. After reading Andrew Peterson’s Adorning the Dark for the first time in 2019, I was struck by his challenge to name the place you live and watch how your relationship with it changes. It has taken more than three years in our new home before the realization struck me that the name should reflect what is already happening here: literal plant growth, but also very real and meaningful physical, spiritual, and emotional healing and growth. The Greenhouse makes perfect sense of everything we hope our home will be.