About Us

About us...our Core Values
Everybody is welcome, nobody is perfect, and anything is possible, these are the three main values that drive everything we do at Brookside UM Church. We are imperfect people who strive to embody the love, grace, and mercy of Jesus Christ in our daily lives. If you are imperfect like us then you will fit right in...everyone is welcome. We also think God can use even imperfect people like us to do some amazing things to change our community and ultimately transform the world...anything is possible. We believe life is better together and there is always room for one more. I hope you decide to check us out and join us as we try to be the change our world needs most.

Everybody's welcome
We live in a world that wants to divide us but God's vision is one that unites us. Whoever you are we just want to love you like God does...UNCONDITIONALLY. Your past does not dictate your future. We have a place for you no matter the mistakes you've made, religious preference or lack of one, the color of your skin, your economic status, or sexual preference. You have a home with us.

Nobody's perfect
Life is messy and so are we. If you are looking for the perfect church don't check us out because everyone in our church is under construction. We think God intended us to work together and support and encourage each other to become the best persons we can be. Our founder John Wesley talked about life being a journey and we are moving on to perfection but we ain't there yet. Isn't that a grammatical error? Oops.

Anything's possible
We believe God put us here to change ourselves, our community, and ultimately transform the world until each of us have reached our fullest potential in Christ Jesus. Life is hard...we do life together every day. Some things seem impossible until you find the hope, love, grace, faith, and courage to make the impossible happen. JOIN US!

Our Mission
Grand Ledge UM Church exist to love God. Love each other. So that, together we can change the world. We are blessed to be a blessing to others. We do this by encouraging people to focus on five things and start Their Journey. [LINK]

Our Purpose
We describe ourselves as a NEXT STEPS church, which means we want to help people take the next step in their spiritual journeys. We want to help people to grow and be blessed. Growing people change and so our weekly worship and small groups are designed to help people become the people they were created to be. Christ came that you might have life and have it abundantly.

Driving Principles: Our Core Values
We also have a set of ten core values that have shaped our culture from the very beginning of our journey together. Every major decision we make as a church is filtered through our mission, the five purposes, and these ten core values...

1. Jesus first! We trust his Word, follow his lead, and honor him above all.
   This is our first core value because it provides the foundation and framework for everything else we do and believe. The Bible says in Colossians 1:18, "He is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, the first to come back to life so that he would have first place in everything" (GW). We don't claim to have all the answers but we do believe Jesus' life and teachings are the foundation for the good life he promised.
2. Everybody belongs. We care about the heart, not the skin, the clothes, or the body art.
   We believe the church ought to be a home for people of every color, shape, personality, story, age, ethnicity, socio-economic background, and sexual orientation. We ought to be able to befriend and do life with people who are unique and different than we are. We embrace diversity in all its forms.
3. We are broken people discovering healing together. We embrace messy ministry.
   We highly value counseling, coaching, and recovery ministry knowing in advance that it's messy, requires time and involvement, and creates inconvenience. We love people who are hurting and want to do whatever we can to help. We're a community of broken people finding healing in Jesus together.
4. We keep it real and fight against fake. We live and lead with authenticity.
   It's exhausting to try to be religious enough for God. And it's pointless to try to impress people. So we, including our Pastors and staff, are open about our faults and imperfections. We don't have it all together. We don't have it all figured out. And we haven't yet arrived. We're only as sick as our secrets.
5. We discover our gifts and grow from consumers into contributors. We refuse to use people.
   When someone becomes part of the Brookside family, we're careful to never ask what we can get from them but instead to ask what we can get for them. How can we help them discover their God-given SHAPE and serve his purposes in the most fulfilling way. We want people to be blessed so they can bless others.
6. We grow larger and smaller at the same time. We gather together and scatter together.
   The earliest churches didn't have buildngs. They met together in large groups on the weekends and then broke apart and met in each others' homes throughout the week. We believe this is how people really get connected, stay in the loop, and grow – by attending the weekend worship gathering and then being part of a small group with a handful of close friends.
7. We keep it simple and stay fast, fluid, and flexible. We get creative to reach more people.
   We avoid adding programs and focus on living out our purposes instead. We try to stay un-busy and uncluttered. We provide clear "next steps" for every person to take. Check out The Journey Discipleship Plan. And we trust our Pastor to lead us forward without red tape, committees, and business meetings. We vote as a church once a year and on only a few things, like leadership, buying land, or building buildings.