When we planted Harbor in 2005, we wanted to come up with a logo that communicated what we seek to be: small boats that are brought by Jesus out of the stormy seas into the safe harbor of God’s grace, equipped to go back out to cross big oceans and make a difference in the world.
So we took a stylized version of the sail from a Hawaiian sailing canoe, encircled it with a box to symbolize the harbor of God’s grace, and made the sail slightly overflow the bounds of the box to show that we don’t intend to sit around and keep God’s grace to ourselves – we’re sent out of the harbor to share God’s grace across the islands and around the world.
All of this is reflected in our vision to be a place of refuge, redemption, and resurgence, all for the renown of Jesus.
A harbor is a place of refuge where boats can take shelter from the stormy seas.
And a harbor is a place of redemption where boats can be restored and made new. Scrape off the barnacles. Fix the dings. Polish up the chrome.
But a harbor isn’t just a place for boats to come and stay. If all the boats in a harbor never leave the harbor, then the harbor isn’t fulfilling its purpose. So a harbor also exists to be a place of resurgence, equipping small little boats to go out and cross big oceans.
That’s the mission of a harbor, and that’s the mission of our church. God made us to be a place of refuge, redemption, and resurgence for Honolulu, all for the renown of Jesus.