Our vision is that your child will be established in their faith on a transforming journey with Christ. In the end, that is what life is really all about. The grades will not be set in stone, the accolades of sports will fall away, but a thriving relationship with God through Jesus Christ will last forever.
The Mountain is guided by several principles that help us achieve our vision. They are the hallmarks of our program that will be evident no matter the age-stage of your child.
1. Parents are the primary spiritual voice in the lives of their children. Not our words, but God’s words. Scripture is full of commands for parents to train their children in the way they should go. Deuteronomy 6 is the clearest passage that not only illustrates the responsibility of the parent, but also gives practical teaching on how to transfer a Godly legacy. Parents, we seek to aid you in your Deuteronomy 6 mission by sending out weekly and monthly handouts to assist you in teaching, providing elementary (1st-6th) parents with a shared learning environment (On Belay) with their children, and keeping you in the loop through multimedia with upcoming connection events.
2. Widen the circle. Coming alongside of parents and helping them in their Deuteronomy 6 mission. We seek help for kids through tutors, coaches and teachers, and the spiritual realm is no different. Families can only gain from having additional, Godly voices in the lives of their children. From our nursery environment all the way up through 6th grade, we commit to providing regular, loving and safe volunteers in the lives of children. In fact, our vision from Base Camp (preschool) through the Mountain (1st – 6th Grade) is to have every-week trail guides who are in their lives every week, and move up with them every year.
3. Foster a longing for authentic Christian community. Our children do not live in isolation. They want to be known. They want to be connected. They want to belong. In all of our children’s environments, we commit to provide a small group experience where children, with a faithful leader, can connect, grow and learn to do life with their peers. It is our desire for our children to find and value deep relationships with their small groups that will only be strengthened as they continue their journey together. We believe that if children experience authentic Christian community now, they will never want to live without it.
4. Knowing God through His Word. The most foundational principal of all and the reason why the Mountain exists. We want our children to experience salvation through Christ, and for them to grow in their knowledge of God and His story through His word. We desire for them to be so equipped in the story that God is writing on their lives, that they feel confident in sharing it with their friends. To help us tell the Big God story, we use the TRU Curriculum from David C. Cook. It is a three year curriculum that specializes in walking children and families through God’s word and showing the themes and threads of Scripture that tie it all together. In addition to the curriculum, we have grade level learning objectives that we teach our Mountain students as well as a three track bible memorization plan to help hide God’s Word in our hearts.
In all, we want children, families, volunteers and our staff to advance the Kingdom of God by making disciples of Jesus Christ. These principles lay a foundation that we believe gives the Holy Spirit freedom to come and transform children and families as they pursue Christ to help us live out our mission.