How do we re-speak the word “church” in a time and context when it has so many mixed reactions and false assumptions. And it’s true, there are bad days in churchland. There are days, when I wake up and want to run away and be a Barista or fly with WestJet. We all have those days. We all wish that the word church would mean something more than what people think about it—you know: a social club, always asking for money, organized religion, hypocritical… blah, blah, blah. Who wouldn’t want to stay away if that’s what church means. Our work is to help people understand that those are really, truly false assumptions. And while it is true that we ask for money from time to time, it’s because that is part of our spiritual practice—a centuries old practice of sharing our resources by responding to God’s abundance and therefore making sure we support the live of those in our community. It’s actually pretty profound. But, I digress.
Bruce Reyes-Chow stays in the family of church because, he says, “It’s that acceptance, that love, and that challenge to grow that keeps me coming back to church”. And because of his children. “More often than not, it’s a place where they will be loved, they will be accepted, and they will row more and more into the people God intended them to be”. (Animate Facilitator Guide, P. 92)