Simon Cayzer
I can remember when, as a student, I caught the conviction that every person has value and dignity in God’s heart—and so in mine. This transformed how I related to people, especially those on the fringes of groups.
This conviction is expressed in Navigator value #6: ‘The dignity and value of every person’.
The nine Core Values describe who we are as people as we pursue what God has called us to do. Who God calls us to be is just as important as what God calls us to do. Our doing flows out of our being. The Bible has much to say about each value, and our conviction in each is rightly based on what the Scriptures say.
The first Core Value is The passion to know, love and become like Jesus Christ. This is our primary value and the other eight values flow from the first, expressed by Paul in Philippians 3:8: “I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord”.
Values 2–5 describe our inner life—our vertical relationship with God. They capture the ways we engage with God and how we draw strength, energy, and grace from him to become more like Jesus.
2. The truth and sufficiency of the Scriptures for the whole of life.
3. The transforming power of the Gospel.
4. The leading and empowering of the Holy Spirit.
5. Expectant faith and persevering prayer rooted in the promises of God.
Values 6–9 are our relational core values – our horizontal relationships with others. They express who we are, how we engage with the lost world around us, and with one another as believers.
6. The dignity and value of every person.
7. Love and grace expressed among us in community.
8. Families and relational networks in discipling the nations.
9. Interdependent relationships in the Body of Christ in advancing the Gospel.
Each of these values shape who we are seeking to be as God’s people and who we are encouraging others to be as we invest our lives in the spiritual growth of others.