Formation

Jesus is renewing us—healing and transforming us to live his new life. As we are being renewed, we join God in the renewal of the world. For us to flourish in renewal, we need to be a unified, Spirit-filled, King Jesus family that journeys together.

At AJC, we pursue this by committing together to our Shared Life.

Shared Life

at A Jesus Church

How to participate in the King Jesus family—and to belong at AJC

To have a foundation that helps us follow Jesus, there are three qualities that should mark our life. We should be people who encounter God, belong in his family, and are becoming like Jesus. These qualities build a foundation from which we can explore spiritual practices that help us respond to Jesus and grow deeper.

If you call AJC home, we invite you to step into our shared life with us…

ENCOUNTER

To encounter God means being in God's presence, hearing his voice, and being formed by his power. God wants us to live with him. He wants us to experience his love—it changes us. As we trust him he fills us with the Spirit, speaks to us and leads us, so we can follow and flourish.

BELONG

To belong means being with God's family, listening to one another, and being formed by life together. God adopts us into a new spiritual family. In this King Jesus family, we experience God’s love, and Jesus works through it to bless and form us. This family is the hands and feet of Jesus, showing the world God’s love.

BECOME

To become means being formed in God's image, reflecting God's heart, and living God’s mission. God makes us new by healing our old life, forming us to become like Jesus. The Spirit transforms our life to reflect the life of Jesus, and the heart of the Father. We follow Jesus by loving God and others, joining his Kingdom mission to restore the world.

Encounter, belong, and become each matter together. Like a three-legged stool, we can fall if one of these legs is weak.

These practices, like a trellis, are the tangible commitments of AJC Shared Life that build a foundation from which we can respond to Jesus and grow deeper.

These aren’t rules or mechanisms that automate our formation. Formation only happens in relationship. We need to be with God, hearing what he’s saying, paying attention to what he’s showing us, responding to how he’s leading us.

Spiritual practices are ways that we make space for these things to happen. They build rhythms and habits through which we keep our attention on Jesus, so he can do more of his good work in, and through, our lives.

Explore the Practices of AJC Shared Life

  • Prayer:

    We talk to God and hear his voice

    Basic Commitment:

    Pray regularly

  • Sabbath:

    We have a weekly rhythm of work and rest

    Basic Commitment:

    Get some Jesus time, and rest time, every Sunday

  • Community:

    We follow Jesus together with others

    Basic Commitment:

    Come to the AJC Table Gathering

  • Service:

    We serve those around us, being the hands and feet of Jesus

    Basic Commitment:

    Join a team at AJC

  • Witness:

    We are growing new life so others can see Jesus

    Basic Commitment:

    Get to know your neighbors

  • Bible:

    We are learning who God is and what he’s done

    Basic Commitment:

    Read the Bible regularly

  • Generosity:

    We respond to God’s generosity by being generous

    Basic Commitment:

    Give regularly at AJC

  • Respond:

    We pay attention to how God is leading us and respond

    Basic Commitment:

    Receive prayer ministry on Sundays

  • Worship:

    We experience wonder in
    God’s presence

    Basic Commitment:

    Participate in worship weekly at an AJC gathering

How to use the Practices

Think of AJC’s nine practices like a toolbox. As Jesus is speaking, there will be times when you know you need to pick up the hammer. It’s the right tool for what Jesus wants to do. It’s good to know about all the tools, but we probably shouldn’t pick them all up at the same time. There are a lot of practices, and many creative ways of exploring each of them. To try and grow in all of them at once would be overwhelming!

Learn about the practices, then explore growing them in your life as the Spirit leads you.

Over time, some practices may become deep rhythms in your life, keels that keep you pointing at Jesus. But it’s likely that there will be only a few that are in the foreground at one time, things you are diving deeper into because of what God is doing in that season.