In our services to clients, we love, serve, and respect people “right where they are.” We follow Christ, but we don’t require those we serve to do so. Spiritual care is offered, but not mandated as a condition of food or shelter.
With our volunteers and partners, there are many ways to participate. Some types of volunteers and partnerships really do require alignment of beliefs. Others may only need the absence of open disagreement. The Mission delights in being as broad a conduit of care as possible for the community.
In employment, we view all of our permanent staff as ministers of our mission, co-creators of our culture, and witnesses to the transforming power of Christ. As a community of believers centered on knowing and serving Jesus Christ, our religious beliefs, life in community and Christian values represent the heart of the Mission, informing and shaping the substance and style of all we do.
Our Beliefs
Yakima Union Gospel Mission statement of faith relies entirely
These beliefs create ministerial expectations of all who hold them. As such, we freely and willingly accept that:
– We have asked for this privilege and opportunity (Jas 3:1) to represent equally (Pr 24:23) to all persons the good news of God’s redeeming love shown in Christ Jesus (Jn 3:16-17)
– Biblical teaching about the Image of God (Gen 1:26) and Jesus’ command to love our neighbor as ourselves (Mt 22:39) means YUGM does not tolerate any discriminatory (Lk 10:25-37) or demeaning behavior in the delivery of its services. We are serving Christ himself when we serve our neighbors in need (Mt 25:31-40).
– We seek for God to direct us to situations of need—physical, spiritual, emotional, etc.– and ask God how we can be a part of meeting that need (Mt 25:31-40). This may involve offering prayer, spiritual support, and even an explanation of the reasons for our own Christian commitment (1 Pt 3:15).
– While all Christians are on a journey of spiritual and personal growth (Js 3:2; 1 Jn 1:8-9), we seek God’s power (2 Tm 1:7) to live lives that can serve as examples of a new creation (Mt 5:16), directed by the incarnate (Col 1:27) and written Word of God (2 Tim 3:16-17),
– By seeking to live out biblical instructions for interpersonal relationships, including promoting positive communication (Eph 4:29), avoiding gossip and slander (Jas 4:11), and pursuing reconciliation and conflict resolution (Mt 5:23; Mt 18:15ff);
– By pursuing the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22–24) and Christlikeness (1 Jn 2:6; Phil 2:5) as our relational standards;
– By avoiding anything in our personal, romantic, or professional lives that would undermine our Christian testimony, our Statement of Faith, or bring reproach on the name of Christ (1 Jn 2:3-5; Gal 5:19-21; Eph 4:29; Eph 5:3-5; etc.)
– We need to pursue spiritual disciplines and growth in Christ while we are away from work, including regularly gathering with other believers for worship, fellowship, and growth (Heb 10:25) so that we arrive with a surplus of spiritual assets from which to minister (Jn 7:38; Ps 51:10-13).
– We represent a broad range of Christian tradition and fellowship, and so we choose to focus on what we share in common (1 Cor 15:1-5), rather than our differences (Tit 3:9; 2 Tim 2:23), and we choose always to speak with respect and goodwill in regards to those differences.
