Being burnt

Like many of us in this category, you may have given yourself enthusiastically to the work and ministry of the church in the past. You trusted. You believed in the message of Jesus – and you still do, deep down. But the way churches operate, the kinds of things that were expected or said, became too much. You may have encountered ‘Christian’ people either in leadership or amongst the congregation whom you now suspect were just downright evil. Their level of brokenness, all dressed up in a façade of respectable spirituality, perhaps accompanied by wealth, was extreme and it bled all over you and your family.

Let’s say that you stuck at it for longer than was good for your mental health, but you did so because you hoped and believed that this was just an unusual period in your journey of faith. Things would get better, you thought. And didn’t Jesus struggle with awkward people, after all? He didn’t give up, so you felt you had to carry on, too. But the personalities and the structures of formal or informal power in the church just did not change or soften. In fact, your questions and explanations seemed to incense them all the more. The contention became ugly and you knew that this was not what Jesus called you to.

With a sense of relief, tinged with guilt, you finally left.

Walking away

Now you have made a life for yourself that does not include the Christian church. Sundays are free. Midweek evenings are free. You can’t believe how much time has been freed up for you to do other things. You don’t give all that money to the church anymore. You’ve made the break and you are determined never to go back to that quiet hell you lived through before.

Except that every now and then, you wonder how your relationship with Jesus can deliberately exclude the very people for whom he died and rose again. It’s an agonising thought that torments you sometimes – not all the time – just sometimes, when you think about it, or when you read what you’re reading now.

And now?

So how will life go from here on? I’ve wondered about that myself. Is there a way back to the Christian community without the dreadful trappings of the institutional church? I certainly don’t want to retraumatise myself by mixing with that particularly damaging kind of Christians. Are there any genuine followers of Jesus out there who will not side with the church in its destruction, and who will hear each other’s story and journey with us compassionately?

An invitation

I have searched for a small community of people whose similar experience could provide the context for finding my own way through the hurt, disappointment and anger. I didn’t find any in my city. So my wife and I opted to extend an invitation to any who would like to explore what is still possible in community. I am involved with a small group of Christians who have been through a lot, but we’re still standing. Apart from those gatherings, my wife and I are available to you if you would like to join us on the lawns of Kings Park for a safe and informal conversation. There is no pressure and no strings attached – just some fresh water, as it were. We simply want to hear your story and journey with you for as long as you wish, as you try to figure out some of the pressing questions that emerge from having been burned by the Christian church.

Please email me, Ian, at ian@freshwaterchurch.com.au and I can let you know when we meet.

There is a curious release in telling your story.

Fresh Talk is a series of onging events and conversations.

Past Events

> Can Broken People Really Be Restored?
> Loosening the Grip of Cancer
Freshwater Church Subiaco Perth

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