Higher Ground, Biblical Christianity in a Contemporary Community

Higher Ground Church Activities

Abuse Victim Advocacy	Providing healing pastoral counsel and support to victims
Holy Spirit Baptism	Leading Christians individually to Holy Spirit baptism
Water Baptism	Community & family supported water baptism (Deerfield)
Media Challenges	Challenge listeners/viewers to interact online (WayFM)
Subliminal Open Mic	Writing & performing Christian music at secular open mics
Virtual Church	Modeling Christian city life online with auto-facilitation
Discernment Writing	Writing & publication of discernment topics for ministers
E-Sermons	Sermons with L'Abri-like curriculum auditability
Jail Friendship	Befriend people in Broward jails
Video-to-Challenge	Online contemporary music-video-to-challenge funnels
Addictions Counseling	Providing those with addictions a biblical recovery model
Authenticating Christianity	Providing a path to Christ without abandoning values
Beach Praise Unplugged	Saturday monthly beach praise with guitars and vocal
Character Integration	Integrating compelling Christians into pop storytelling
Christians in Recovery	Sponsorship of Christians going to 12-step groups
Communion Dinner	Pot luck dinners w/ deep but brief Communion ceremony
Credit's Due	Show non-believers how things they like came from God
Matrix Catalysis	Finding catalysts and incentives to build this matrix
One-on-one Discipleship	Relationship building and leading individuals to maturity
Proph-Hop Fusion	Free-form prophecy to hip-hop & genre-fused beats
Social Net Evangelism	Entering existing social nets & effectively presenting Jesus
Terrance Completion	Post-production of Terrance the movie

Themes and Messages

Reverend Douglas is the Pastor of Higher Ground Church, but the focus of his messages are our relationship with God and with each other. Those seeking a greater purpose for their lives, a way to integrate their educational life and their faith, a way to express themselves creatively, or just meet like-minded people will find Higher Ground with us.

Higher Ground Church is a voluntary member of the Assemblies of God Churches, the defining beliefs of which include the key role of the Bible in clarifying God's truth and intention and the unending possibilities of the miraculous in everyday life. We serve the area of North Broward County, including Lighthouse Point, Hillsboro Beach, Parkland, Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Sunrise, Tamarac, Margate, North Lauderdale, Lauderhill, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Coral Springs, Coconut Creek, Margate. We are also service the Palm Beach County city of Boca Raton.

Here are just a few of the Sunday service themes. Don't let the interesting titles fool you; they are all biblically based and life-giving.

Why Christians Won't Shut Up About Jesus --- An explanation of the compulsion that some Christians have to talk about Jesus to those who don't seem to be interested, and why other Christians don't seem to have the same issue.
Christianity in the Car --- A provocative view of the idea of loving our neighbor as ourselves when we are behind the wheel of a car
Christians Make Love Too --- A survey of romance and intimacy in the Bible and why Christians should be good lovers
Is God Male or Female? --- An examination of the nature of God and the role of gender, masculinity, and femininity in things heavenly and human
How to Party and Slow Down Time --- A coverage of the wedding in Cana, the pop psychology notion of being in the present, and why those who followed Jesus had fun
Full Listing of Interesting Themes and Messages

What we do on Sundays?

At Higher Ground Church, we listen for what God might be saying, not assuming we know all the time what it is we are to do. Although God is steady and true, His desire for us continuously unfolds, and we would be wise to listen for His voice.

Rev. Douglas is interested in the growth and maturity of those who attend and participate in Higher Ground Church services and activities and is motivated by a love for people. His leadership provides for those who are not interested in ritual or the pious trappings of typical religious organizations. It is a vital relationship with God that can make a woman or man soar over the mountain tops.

Here are some of the things that make Higher Ground Church fun, relevant, and positive experience.

We are fine with casual dress, so you can dress up if you want to or wear jeans. We only ask that you don't wear shorts, short skirts, or low cut tops, since we don't want our meetings to seem like a beach party (although we do hold events on the beach) or a pick-up spot.
We pick our music from a variety of musical styles, focusing mostly on a somewhat progressive, musical combination of R&B, rock, and contemporary worship.
Messages from the Pastor or guest speaker will always be relevant to real life in our contemporary world.
We stay away from legalism, the practice of passing judgments on people as they pass through various stages of spiritual growth. Legalists in the Gospels were generally yelled at by Jesus for forcing codes of conduct on people instead of encouraging a relationship with God and letting God bring about an internal change that eventually flowed outward.
We don't like underhanded tactics for getting money. If there is some legitimate need, we will tell you flat out what it is and let you decide if it is important enough to sponsor. There will be no mention of giving a tenth of gross income, since such rules are without purpose under the new covenant. (Hebrews ch. 7-9) If you want to contribute to the work of Higher Ground Church, we thank you, but we keep the budget lean, so that we don't have to constantly beg.

A Typical Order of Things

Although each Sunday Service is different, there is a typical order that we follow most of the time. Of course, if the Holy Spirit has a different idea, it is wise to listen.

Welcome to Higher Ground Church
Introductory, praise, and worship music
A curious question
An unexpected answer
A prayer for those in need
An invitation for the adventurous
Music for the mood
Meet and greet

Map and Directions

From I-5 southbound, take exit 39, the Sample Road exit in Pompano Beach.
Go left (east) at the end of the exit ramp.
Travel 4 tenths of a mile on Sample Road to the first light, which is NE 3rd Avenue.
Take a right (south) onto NE 3rd Avenue.
Crystal Lake M.S. is immediately on your left.
Enter at the front of the building.

From I-5 northbound, take exit 39, the Sample Road exit in Pompano Beach.
Bare right (east) at the end of the exit ramp.
Travel 2 tenths of a mile on Sample Road to the first light, which is NE 3rd Avenue.
Take a right (south) onto NE 3rd Avenue.
Crystal Lake M.S. is immediately on your left.
Enter at the front of the building.

Click here for more directions and some easy-to-follow maps.

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Creatively Practicing Biblical Christianity in Our Contemporary Community