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XP3 101 | What does “XP3” mean?

This post is part of a series of posts called XP3 101. Be sure to check out the entire series! You can check out the previous post in this series by clicking here.

Hi everyone. My name is Jeremy and I’m the Co-Director of Orange Specialists here at Orange. I’m also a small group leader and spent a bunch of years serving as a student pastor before joining the team here at Orange.

When we first launched XP3, things looked pretty different than they do today, but one thing has always stayed the same, and that’s the core philosophy and strategy of the XP3 curriculum. In fact, that strategy shows up right in our name.

But before I tell you what XP3 stands for, let me back up a little. Because if we’re going to talk strategy and philosophy, we have to start with something Jesus said – something that shapes everything we do here at Orange.

You know it, of course. It’s Jesus’ response to the question, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment?” Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself.”

Did you catch it?

Love God.
Love your neighbor.
As yourself.

We call these the three vital relationships. They’re the three relationships we want every student to experience and to grow in: their relationship with God, with themselves, and with others.

We sometimes talk about these relationships as though they are dials – dials that can be turned up or turned down at various points in a student’s life. Picture this with me.

  1. First, you have your dial representing a student’s relationship with God. We call this the WONDER dial – wonder for who God is and what He has created.
  2. Second, you have your dial representing a student’s relationship with themselves. We call this one DISCOVERY, because it’s about discovering who God created them to be.
  3. And third, you have a dial representing a student’s relationship with others, which we call the PASSION dial – passion for community, for serving others, and for being a part of God’s big story.

Wonder. Discovery. Passion.
God. Self. Others.

These are the three vital relationships that we want to see every student experience. They’re the three dials that we want to be constantly turning and adjusting throughout their whole lives.

And yes, I said their whole lives – not just in middle school and high school. Throughout a person’s life, the levels of these dials will need to be adjusted. For example, it’s pretty difficult to talk to a preschooler about compassion or the value of community, but by the time that preschooler gets to high school, you’re going to want to make sure that passion dial is turned way up, as you mobilize them to go into the world.

In middle school, we believe the DISCOVERY dial needs to be turned up pretty high because middle schoolers are desperate to discover their own identity. They want to know who they are, where they belong, and if they matter. So with XP3 Middle School curriculum, while you’re going to see us address all three of these dials on a regular basis, you might notice that we pay a bit of special attention to this idea of discovery.

And in high school, we believe the PASSION dial needs to be turned up highest because in high school, students are longing to make a difference in the world. They want to know what they’ll do and how God will use them. With XP3 High School curriculum, you’ll see us regularly emphasize the values of service and community with high school students.

So now that you know the strategy, have you figured out yet what XP3 stands for?

XP3 stands for the 3 things we want kids to experience.
Love for God, for themselves, and for others.
Deeper faith, wiser choices, and stronger relationships.
Wonder, Discovery, and Passion.

So now that you’re familiar with the big-picture vision of XP3, the rest of this XP3 101 series will introduce you to more of the specifics of XP3 curriculum. Here’s what’s coming up…

Stay tuned!

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