A values-driven mission

The key to really understanding the ministry of The Voice of the Martyrs in Canada is appreciating the importance of our organizational mission and values.  The Voice of the Martyrs exists for only one reason – to glorify God by serving His Persecuted Church.  This, in a nutshell, sets the direction for everything we do and sets limits for what we will not do.

How we fulfill our God-given mission is spelled out in our core values. We are a values-driven mission meaning that everyone, including me, is accountable to follow the values that we think are essential in carrying our mission in a manner that glorifies the Lord.  There is rarely a decision that comes up when one or more of these values are not referred to in some way and I encourage my staff to challenge me if they think that I or the mission are not following through on them faithfully. 

Uncompromising Faithfulness to God. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· Glorifying God in all that we say and do as individuals and as a ministry
· Acknowledging our dependency upon God in all aspects of our service for Him
· Promoting and modeling prayer above all other acts of service for the Persecuted Church
· Accepting the Bible as our absolute authority in both mission belief (orthodoxy) and practice (orthopraxy).
· Researching, modeling and teaching what it means to be a sacrificial, cross-bearing disciple in the 21st century in Canada and around the world.
· Choosing to trust God to supply our needs rather than engaging in direct solicitation methods of fundraising.

Integrity. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· The truth
· Accurate reporting
· Strict financial accountability
· Careful monitoring of international projects
· Speaking the truth in love and listening to each other as staff members seeking the truth

Independence within Partnerships. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· Maintaining our identity as an independent Canadian mission best equipped to know how to accomplish our mission in Canada
· Partnering with other like-minded individuals, missions, and organizations in ministering to the Persecuted Church worldwide

Respect. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· Serving the Persecuted Church according to their wishes, aspirations, and needs, and not according to our own predetermined strategies
· Refusing to promote (even unintentionally) the spreading of intolerance and hatred towards others, even persecutors
· Recognizing the Image of God in each of our staff and treating them accordingly

Evangelical and Non-denominational. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· Our staff holding to an evangelical theology
· Ministering to persecuted Christians regardless of denominational affiliation
· Unity in the essential beliefs of the historical Christian faith and freedom to differ in nonessentials.

Excellence. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· Never being satisfied with “good enough”, always looking to improve
· Exceeding the service expectations of our donors and friends
· Never being satisfied with the “status quo”, always looking to the next challenge
· Seeking to be proactive rather than reactive in outlook
· Not being afraid to fail in the pursuit of excellence

Empowerment. This is reflected in our commitment, for example, to:

· Standing with the Persecuted Church, encouraging and equipping without creating dependency, maintaining and promoting their ability to be self-governing, self-supporting, and self-propagating, and resisting any programs or ministry that would detract from this
· Unleashing the knowledge, experience, and motivation of each of our staff members through the accountability, direction, and support that only effective cross-centred, servant-leadership and a team-oriented environment can produce
· Demonstrate trust with our staff by sharing as much as possible with them about the mission’s operation.