WOW CORE VALUES

It's JESUS - front & center! It’s ALL about Jesus. He will always be the focus of everything Walk On Water Ministries, LLC does (Philippians 3:8-9, John 3:16-17, Colossians 1:17).

HONOR & GLORY: Everything we do should be for the honor and glory of God and God alone (1 Chronicles 29:11-13, 1 Timothy 1:17, Revelation 7:12).

SALVATION - it’s for everyone! 2 Peter 3:9 says that the Lord doesn’t want anyone to perish (Romans 10:8-13, Titus 2:11, Romans 1:16, Luke 19:10). If we’re not pointing the lost to Christ, what are we doing?

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus calls us to ‘...make disciples of all nations…’:

3A. The Greek word He used for ‘disciples’ is mathēteuō, which means ‘to teach’;
3B. The Greek word He used for ‘nations’ is ethnos, which means ‘all peoples’;
3C. So, Jesus literally said to: ‘go and teach everyone about Me’.

LOVE - we are called to love God (Deuteronomy 6:5) and love people (1 John 4:8, John 13:34-35). True love is the linchpin to what Jesus did - and does - for us, and what we should do for each other. Imagine a world where everybody loves like Jesus!

PEOPLE - We are called to love each other (John 13:34-35), to serve each other (Galatians 5:13, 1 Peter 4:10), to encourage each other (1 Thessalonians 5:11), and to admonish each other (Colossians 3:16). Imagine what a glorious day it will be when we enter heaven and rejoice with those whom God gave us divine opportunities to share our witness with! Oh My!!!

FAITH - James taught us in James 2:17 that “...faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” If our faith is strong - if our faith is real - it will show in how we live, how we love, and how we serve. Go ahead - swing big, and see what God can do (Romans 10:17, Hebrews 11:6, Ephesians 2:8-9).

“It is not the strength of your faith but the object of your faith that saves you.” -Timothy Keller

THANKFULNESS - Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 to “give thanks in all circumstances;…”. Should we be thankful for that flat tire? Not necessarily. But we should be thankful for life, the sunshine, the jack and spare in the trunk, and the unexpected time we get to spend alone with God. Don’t take Him for granted. We’re called to live in thankfulness and He gives us so much to be thankful for (1 Chronicles 16:34, Philippians 4:6-7, Colossians 3:17, Psalms 100:4-5, 2 Corinthians 4:15).

EXPECTANCE - we expect a miracle! We won’t always know what that miracle will look like, but look around: God is providing miracles everywhere, all of the time. We just need to look for them and expect them (Luke 1:37, Matthew 19:26, Jeremiah 32:27, Job 5:8-9).

CONFIDENCE - Far too often we shrink from the opportunities that He gives us. Why? Because someone might laugh at us? Because we don’t feel ‘qualified’? In 2 Corinthians 12:9, God told Paul “...my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness…”. We don’t have to be the strong one - if we take Him with us! (2 Timothy 1:7, Ephesians 3:12, Hebrews 4:16, Hebrews 13:6, Jeremiah 17:7).

WITNESS - we want to live in a manner that is pleasing to God. Live with purpose, integrity and passion. We have what the whole world needs: Jesus! Think of it like this: if we represent Him the right way, nothing else matters. If we don’t represent Him the right way, nothing else matters. Our witness MUST be worthy of Him! (1 Peter 3:15, 2 Timothy 1:7-10, Matthew 24:14, Philippians 1:27).

GENEROSITY - now, calm down - we’re not necessarily talking about money. We’re talking about our hearts. There are so many ways to be generous, but only one way to be selfish (1 John 3:17, Galatians 6:2, Hebrews 13:16, Luke 6:38, Psalm 112:5, 2 Corinthians 9:11-12, Malachi 3:10).

Generosity sort of encompasses all of the other Core Values in one place:

11a. JESUS: Jesus is the absolute epidemy of generosity. If He is our focus, how can we not be generous?

11b. HONOR & GLORY: Having a generous heart is one way to truly honor & glorify God for all that He has generously given us;

11c. SALVATION: Salvation is a gift of God. His grace is generosity - at the highest level. How can we expect Him to be generous with us if we’re not generous with each other?

11d. LOVE: We’re called to love one another as Jesus loves us (John 15:12-14). Nobody is more generous than Jesus. Come on: you can’t say you love someone and not be generous!

11e. PEOPLE: Your generosity can literally change someone else’s life. Sometimes it’s the gift that makes the difference, but often it’s simply the act of being generous.

11f. FAITH: Trusting that God will honor your generosity is one of the greatest acts of faith.

11g. THANKFULNESS: again, generosity is a great way to show God that you are truly thankful for all of the blessings in your life - and, maybe more to the point, for all of the blessings to come.

11h. EXPECTANCE: When we are truly generous - from the heart - we are also being truly expectant. We’re expecting God to do a miracle in someone else’s life. The really awesome part of that is the fact that when we’re generous, He’s also working a miracle in our lives. When we are obedient to Him, He will bless us “according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus.” -Philippians 4:19.

11i. CONFIDENCE: Confidence is like a muscle: the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Having confidence that God will use our generosity to bless someone else is like going to the faith gym. God wants to ‘pump you up!’

11j. WITNESS: We build our witness by showing others how Jesus has changed us and our lives. Trust this: the world is watching.  Being generous with our time, talent and treasure literally supercharges our witness.