IHOP Indianapolis' Value Statement

I. INTERCESSIONa. Night and day prayer is a literal reality taught in scripture and it is a prerequisite for full scale revival. This is based upon the worship patterns of the Tabernacle of David, Jewish worship under Ezra and Nehemiah, worship around the throne of God (Rev 4), the Parable of the Persistent Widow (Lk 18), and the Lord's Prayer (Mt 6). b. We value solitude and quiet contemplation with Christ. It is the foundation of healthy community We believe in gazing upon the beauty of the Lord through nature (Ps 19), through the written word of God, and through quiet communion with the Holy Spirit within (II Cor 3:17, Eph 3:16). Solid and vibrant relationships with others are dependant upon a healthy and vibrant personal communion with Christ.c. The Bible prayers are our model for prayer Prayer is agreement with God. We know we are in agreement with Him when we are praying the prayers He wrote. The whole body of Christ can unify around the Bible prayers.d. Worship and prayer are two currents within one flow of the Fathers heart In heaven, the prayers of the saints are mingled with the music of God and the songs of the saints (Rev 4 & 5). In the heavenly model, the elders have a harp worship and a bowl prayer. Jesus prayed that the kingdom would come to earth as it is in heaven (Jn 17).II. HOLINESSa. First commandment first - We believe the first commandment, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, must have first priority in our hearts, affecting how we spend our time and our money. b. Friendship with Jesus - the one necessary thing. We believe the inward satisfaction of a vibrant and intimate relationship with Christ is the fountain from which fruitful and lasting ministry spring forth.c. Lovers outwork workers - Without the flames of Divine romance awakening and fascinating our hearts, the work of ministry will burn us out. d. Superior Pleasures - The pleasures of sin can only be resisted when the greater pleasure of Gods love is satisfying the heart (Psalm 37). Our goal must be to make God our delight, He will complete the work of bringing forth our righteousness. - "Sin is what we do when our hearts arent satisfied in God" John Pipere. Our Beauty to God - In our immaturity, weakness and sin, we are lovely to God and he delights in us. Immaturity is different than rebellion. Immaturity says yes to God but struggles in carrying out the yes. God delights and enjoys the immature believer who has a willing spirit but weak flesh.f. Authenticity We can only export or reproduce what we are. We can only give away what we own. We must be sure that the things we are trying to reproduce are the things we have become. Our stated values must be our actual values. g. Unity of Believers - We can only see a complete picture of Gods love with all the saints Full revelation and full blessing will only occur in the context of full unity under the banner of Jesus. (Eph 3:18, Ps 133).III. OFFERINGS TO THE POORa. Simple lifestyles - We believe in living materially modest and simple lifestyles, and that everything over and above what we truly need is to be radically given to the poor and for the advancement of the gospel in the earthb. We embrace a fasted lifestyle - We believe that the routine forsaking of fleshly pleasures positions us to receive all that God freely and joyfully offers us, and it frees up more resource to give to the poor and to missions.IV. PROPHETICa. Divine strategy for ministry to people flows out of a lifestyle of ministry to the Lord - David entered the tabernacle as a worshipping priest. Inside, surrounded by musicians, songwriters, and singers ministering to the Lord day and night, David received divine revelation and instruction. He then went out from the tabernacle as a King, and with that divine information, defeated all the enemies of the Lord. b. The great commission will be accomplished through the Great Commandment - We will be only partially effective in evangelism and discipleship until we are consumed with love and adoration for our God.c. The Fullness of God. We will persistently contend for the fullness of God in our midst and in our city.