Everything we do in GO is toward fulfilling the Great Commission of Jesus by developing disciples who make it a daily practice to share, grow, and work toward Making Disciple-Makers. By sending teams where participants are involved in a mentorship program, we believe the skills of MDM will be developed so deeply in their patterns and habits of their everyday lives that they will instinctively act on the three main directives of disciple-making in all their relationships. Not only will this increase the number of those lead to Christ, but it will encourage others around them to take an active role in participating in the work needed to see the Great Commission fulfilled.

Jesus gave us the mandate in Matthew 28:19-20, “Go, make disciples of all nations…teaching all I have commanded you…” which includes teaching them the duplicating principles of MDM. Gone are the days of taking teams on missions and making them *vacationaries. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is why we serve others in need, and the rewards are many. The satisfaction after a mission trip knowing there is life-change that is sustainable and implementable in the lives of those we just served, in the work of the organizations we partnered with to further the Gospel, and in our lives for the long-haul is a few of the greatest.

In Matthew 9:37, Jesus said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”  Raising up Disciple-Makers will help to not simply put people in pews, but will ecourage life-long engagement of their faith through pouring into the next believer.  This also encourages our indigenous partners lifting them up and seeing their goals accomplished by adding “laborers” to serve alongside them for the furthering of the Gospel.  It not only deepens the commitment to their work but also propitiates long-term opportunities for future GO Teams to return and participants who will return to serve again on GO Teams.

Win - Win - Win!



* vacationaries is a term used by Robert Lupton in his book Toxic Charity to describe short-term missionaries
justifying a trip to serve others in order to have time away. i.e. like a vacation. Small price to pay to get away.
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GO Founders and Founding Board members believe that in order to accomplish the work Christ has called us, we must set and live by higher standards and values that will impact those in our organization and others that come alongside.

Truth / Scripture / Bible
We believe that the Bible is the foundation of all Truth, absolute Truth, and is what we rely on to live by the principles God has laid out for us. We believe it to be the only inspired, trustworthy and true, infallible, Word of God. 2 Timothy 3:16 and 17 say, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for the teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Love
I Corinthians 13:13 says, “And now these three remain: Faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” We know that God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die in our place for the sins we’ve committed that separate us from Him so we might have relationship with Him for eternity. Because He loved us to this degree, it causes us to reciprocate that to others in order that they might come to know Him, and that we might have good relationships with them as well. Every person with GO is asked to live out this love shown to them in their work, in their play, and in their deliberate steps to see the Great Commission fulfilled.

Faith
Ephesians 2:8 states, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God…” We believe that in order to perpetuate the mission of GO to align well with the intentional focus of sharing the Gospel and training new believers in the Truths of Scripture, each staff person, board member, and volunteer in leadership should be a person who professes Christ as their Lord and Savior, and lives as an example of those beliefs.

We also believe that every person who serves on a GO Team does NOT have to profess a faith in Christ. We believe God can use the experience on our teams to move people to come to faith in Him. As this is not our primary focus of ministry, we would be open to welcoming those who do not believe but still want to serve. However, because of our goals and tactics of ministry, the number of non-believers would be held to a manageable number depending on the leader(s) of each team.

Hope
Without hope, we have only the non-sustainable effort of ourselves. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” With the gift God has given us we have hope that we too can be with Him for eternity, have communion with ALL those who believe, and until we are there we can work to gather others who would join us in this life and the next. It is through His strength that we GO!

Evangelism and Discipleship / Communicating the Gospel
Being intentional to share the Gospel with others is key to Jesus's command to "go make disciples". We can not merely assume others will see Jesus in our work or actions. They may. However, we believe we must be intentional to tell people how Jesus has forgiven us, and offer that to them to choose to receive that gift or not. Yes, we must model our faith as well. However, people must hear the Good News to know how to respond. We want to always be improving our communication of the Gospel to those who do not know Christ as their Lord and Savior, and on how we integrate the Truths of God’s word into each individual person. Then, and only then, will we have new believers who can join us in making disciple-makers.

Passions / Skills / Purpose
We believe God has given each person passions, skills, and talents to use for His purpose of bringing others into a loving and growing relationship with Him and other believers. We challenge each individual to GO all out for God! GO leaders work diligently to place the right person in the right position at the right time in order to put them in areas where they will be able to facilitate using their skills and talents and work in areas they are passionate to realize their purpose.

Vision / Innovation / Imagination / Inspiration
We encourage every person to GO for the very best in what God gives them and calls them to. No is never an answer to an idea in GO! We want everyone to use their vision, innovation, imagination, and inspiration to shine a light on opportunities to better our programs, increase the effectiveness of our presenting of the Gospel, raise our outcomes of disciple-making, and lift others up in a way that causes others to want to join us in our work.

Accountability / Good Stewardship / Giving / Tithing / Stewardship / Generosity
GO takes very seriously the stewardship and accountability of all financial and spiritual matters of our organization. We work diligently to make sure that we are not duplicating opportunity by duplicating resources, but are partnering to work smarter and more diligent with what God has given us. We have a three-tiered accountability system with all funds, and are diligent in budgeting and planning for each ministry, GO Team, staff person, and volunteer account. We work to provide the highest level of privacy and security for all our financial partners’ accounts.

We provide financial training for personal budgeting, tithing, giving, and teach classes to parents on how to integrate a heart of giving in young children. GO leadership believes that God is very clear on how we should handle our finances, and what God says about His role in the financial areas of our lives. We hope that we will be among the leaders of good stewardship and generosity for every year we are in operation.

Integrity / Credibility / Honesty
We believe GO staff, board, and volunteers should live their lives above reproach (Titus 1:7-9) in the understanding of all the above Scripture as a guide for their steps. We pursue honorable initiatives driven from what we understand and believe from Scripture in His Word, and conduct our work in honest, transparent, and ethical ways. Our foundation for these principles is found throughout Scripture, and we believe we should align ourselves with Biblical practices in all our relationships and business/organizational dealings.

Communication
We value open, honest, and thorough communication at GO. Staff, board members, and volunteers strive to clearly communicate in truthful, accurate, timely, and relevant ways between one another, with those who participate on our teams, and with our partners and potential participants. We work to be approachable, keep open doors for talking through issues, and come to agreeable resolutions in God-honoring ways.

Relationships / Transparency / Trustworthy / Humility / Unity / Teamwork / Support
Our hope for everyone involved with GO is to have positive and vibrant relationships that will lift them to live a life worthy of Christ. To do this, we must practice being trustworthy, transparent, supportive, and humble; be quick to listen, slow to speak, and be in unity as true teammates with all those we work and serve with.

Courteous / Respectful / Thoughtful / Understanding / Welcoming
Simple attributes go a long way in relationships. Taking time to think and act on basic practices: being respectful, courteous, thoughtful, understanding, and welcoming, can make the difference for others, especially when they are new to a situation, group, or organization. Being cognizant and of these simple practices is a key ingredient of GO.

Grace / Repentance / Resolutions
Because we believe “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), we must live in the understanding that there will be strained relationships. The manner in which we resolve our differences not only affects those involved, it also shines a light on them to others who are looking to see how they live their faith. We work to address conflict as we are instructed in Matthew 18:15-17.

Excellence / Commitment / Responsibility
We desire to do everything to the glory of God by doing it with excellence. We do this by giving top training to our staff and volunteers, continually better our programs, being accountable in our finances and budgeting, expanding our ministry opportunities, partnering with domestic and international ministries, and following up with growing disciples to see them sent out to share the Gospel. Our commitment is to accomplish this mission through our staff, board, volunteers, and all the practices and values set forth in our organization. We believe it is our responsibility to follow God’s call to empower thousands to integrate Biblical practices of evangelism and discipleship in their everyday lives.

Dependability / Timeliness / Consistency
The manner in which we treat others determines much about how they will work with us. Our goal in GO is to be dependable for others to rely on, be timely in order to show the respect others deserve and to be consistent in how we work with others in order to provide safe and comfortable atmospheres for others to join in our work.

Work Ethic / Hard Work / Productivity / Professionalism
GO staff are required to raise a team of supporters for their salaries, and volunteers give of their own resources to participate in the work of GO. This motivates GO leadership to set a standard of excellence in our work ethic and productivity as if we were working for the Lord Himself. The culture of our offices, teams, and meetings abroad indicate to others how responsible we are with the gifts that God has provided through those who financially partner and pray with us. We lift them up in our actions and attire as we serve in GO, and as we have a high standard of professionalism.

Partnerships / Cooperation / Empowerment
GO partners with other organizations in order to sustain long-term change and viability for spreading the Gospel and Making Disciple-Makers. GO Teams work in international locations uplifting indigenous leaders and filling needs they determine and desire. We serve alongside them, but under them in order to see long-term growth and development long after our teams return home. GO partners with domestic churches, families, and medical offices in order to provide opportunities for their people to serve on missions, and to advance their programs and directives. Our hope is that their participation with GO Teams will not only enhance the relationships in their organization but will also move them toward our MDM initiative.

Compassion
Reaching out a hand to help someone in need must be done in a way that truly helps and does not cause harm. We desire to be compassionate, but we must also to be wise in how we serve the needs of those who are hurting. Working with long-term missionaries or indigenous leaders in foreign countries assists to better serve where there is truly need, and helps to build healthy relationships for the Gospel rather than our own desire to give.

Prayer
All movements in GO should be guided by God, allowing the Holy Spirit to move us from our understanding and communication with Him in prayer. This “lifeline” to God is vital for every decision and move we make in the work He has called us to. He directs our steps, and we must keep in communication with Him.

Spiritual Growth / Leadership / Personal Growth / Development / Maturity / Seniority
Spiritual growth is a necessity for all Go staff, volunteers, and GO Team leaders in order for them to pour into the lives of others. To have the impact for Christ that we desire, they must implement time in their schedules for personal spiritual growth and development, and continue to grow their relationship with Christ in their lives.

Assessment / Context
In Matthew 10:16 Jesus says, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” Context is everything in understanding what is going on in any situation, and knowing how to assess the situation well is extremely important. Whether a message in a letter, a battle in a raging war, a group of people in a quiet village, or a family sitting around a dinner table, assessing each individual and the overall situation to know the story has to be done well to know our next steps. Great assessment assists GO in knowing where to serve, who to partner with, who’s in need, whom to send, what to take, and how long to be there.

Seniority
We want to cheer on and lift up those who have given much of their time, talent, and resources to develop and catapult GO to where it is. Our hope is that those who have invested time into the mission of GO will have the wisdom and maturity to advance and step into positions of leadership as they are available. Because we know time and age do not necessitate maturity nor wisdom, we must be careful to determine the right person for the right position, for the right time, no matter their longevity or age, and each GO staff and volunteer is encouraged to communicate their desires for advancement, but to be open to allow leadership to determine who is best for the role, and supportive of those who may advance before them.

Family / Risk
For those who serve on GO’s international missions, there is an inherent risk. Our hope is that this risk aligns with the commandment Christ gave us to make disciples, and the eternal reward will outweigh the earthly risk. Because GO has a high priority in families, we take very seriously the health of each family involved with us. We provide opportunities for couples to receive the marital care they need and work to provide opportunities for kids to join in ministry with their parent(s). Our hope is that these young disciples will someday grow to perpetuate the work we’ve begun.

Flexible / Spontaneous
GO Teams especially learn very quickly that being flexible is key to minimizing frustration and chaos when serving in other cultures. Not only does it assist in building deeper relationships with our partners, and keeps tensions between team members at a minimum, it also provides more opportunities to serve and share the Gospel with those we’ve truly come to serve. In as much as we practice being flexible, GO Teams must also be prepared to be spontaneous. Very little goes exactly as planned on a mission trip, and thus, being prepared to jump when asked to jump, and wait when asked to wait is key to the success of our mission.

Applying these traits in other circumstances in GO has proven to be positive as well. So much of our Western culture is driven by those who make the decisions, and by just simply being flexible and spontaneous, we cause ourselves and others much less grief.

Recreation / Play / Fun / Vacation
We are very passionate about our work with GO. But everyone needs a healthy balance. Our leadership makes a valiant effort to incorporate times of fun, play, and recreation time with our teammates, and mandates that each staff takes the appropriate time of vacation allotted them from their work.

Hospitality
We believe that developing relationships with others in order to model and share the love of Christ with them is key to them opening themselves to the saving Grace of Jesus. We strive to open our hearts, homes, and ministry locations for others to be welcomed in to develop friendships, and to hear the message of the Gospel.

Community
Leaders of GO desire to develop a community that works well with organizations and agencies around the globe in order to see vibrant relationships and collaboration toward the fulfillment of the Great Commission. We believe we will accomplish more by complementing the ministries and organizations that already exist in the areas we serve, and our hope is that our Core Values will create and strengthen our “inner” GO community in a manner that will attract and invite other organizations to have life-long partnerships with us. We pray this will create a global community that will work together to have a heavenly impact and will see all of us GO!