SPIRITUAL FORMATION
The Church exists to glorify Christ, make Him known, and extend His kingdom. Simply put, the Church’s purpose is achieved through discipleship. Because of this, discipleship is the primary focus of everything we do at Nu Church. It is not just one program among many — it is the measure of success for all that we do. Our driving question is this: Is this shaping us into the image of Christ for the sake of others?
God's Mission for the Church
Formation at
Nu Church
We believe spiritual formation is not a strictly linear process, but a two-part, ongoing cycle that works together: The communal spaces we create as a church fuel personal growth, while personal growth strengthens the life of the community.
GATHERINGS
COURSES
COMMUNITIES
CIRCLES
PERSONAL GROWTH
Christlikeness is the end goal of the Christian life. Happiness, success, doctrinal correctness, or even “going to heaven” are not the ends in themselves. Transformation into Jesus’ character is the measure of maturity. We believe maturing process follows a natural progression: it begins with curiosity, leads to imagination, deepens into informed belief, and is ultimately worked out in community.
When evaluating your own formation or helping someone else, you can ask:
CURIOSITY
Am I curious about this?
IMAGINATION
Can I imagine it being true and how it might change my life?
INFORMED
Do I need more information or understanding?
COMMUNITY
Is this something I need to live out in community?
Ask honest questions. Welcome doubt. Pursue truth.
We believe God is a deeply personal God who meets us right where we are. Curiosity is not a problem to solve — it is often the very place where God wants to meet us.
Formation question:
"I’m really curious about this idea. → Am I participating in Gatherings?"
Believe God does new things in old and ordinary places.
You’ve been curiously pursuing an idea in community. Now the question becomes: What if that were true? What if this truth you’re encountering actually changes everything? Can you imagine what your life — and the world around you — would look like if it were real?
Formation question:
"I'm starting to imagine life differently. → Am I participating in Gatherings and Community?
Loving God with our mind as well as our heart.
Imagination doesn’t replace truth — it helps us fall in love with it. It moves us from “What if?” to “This could be true… and I want it to be.”
Once you reach this point, lean in. Search for truth with confidence, believing God will help you grow “in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18).
Formation question:
“Am I lacking information?” → Am I in a Course?"
We are shaped into Christ’s image together, for the sake of others, as a multi-ethnic, multi-generational family.
Real transformation happens in relationship. It is in community that we learn to love, forgive, confess, encourage, and spur one another on. This is where truth moves from our heads to our hearts and hands.
Formation question:
“Am I needing to activate what I’ve learned?” → Am I in a Nu Community and a Nu Circle?"
COMMUNAL SPACES
Discipleship is the intentional, communal process of cooperating with the Holy Spirit to put on the character of Christ (Colossians 3:12–17) so that we can better embody His love, truth, and healing presence to a broken world. Communal Spaces are the intentional environments we create together as a part of the process of being shaped into the image of Christ.
Because transformation happens in community, we have to next ask: “Am I engaged in the communal life of the church in a way that helps me move forward from where I am right now?”
GATHERINGS
COURSES
COMMUNITIES
CIRCLES
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FORMATION
RESOURCES
The church is not primarily a teaching institution, social club, service provider, or event venue. It is the embodied presence of Christ in a community. It is a colony of heaven on earth.
Every spiritual discipline, every group meeting, every ministry addition, and every sermon should be evaluated by this standard: Does this help people become more like Jesus for the sake of others?