What's After Church Jason McBride

We receive God’s goodness so that we can demonstrate God’s love. Our sharing of God’s kindness can take many forms, like giving money, gifts, or time. A simple yet powerful way to share life and love with another is through our words.

One approach to faith or spiritual growth will not support your development for a lifetime. When you change, you will need additional support and new practices. A healthy evolution transcends and includes the previous stage. It consists of the best from the past while embracing a new and better reality. You do not need to abandon all that has gone before. Look for the value in your past journey and release what is holding you back. Take the best of what you currently have and combine it with the best of what is to come.

There is a type of reading that informs the intellect as it shapes the heart. It requires the recovery of skills that are out of fashion: leisurely, meditative, prayerful, and repetitive reading. As we engage in this reading, we bring our mind and Spirit before the Divine so that the Infinite Presence has the opportunity to take us one step deeper into self-awareness and understanding.

Every person is 100% unique, including how we connect with the Divine. There are no dittos among souls. Just as we have different personalities, we also have different ways of connecting spiritually. What resonates for one person may or may not resonate with another. Even though we are each wired differently, there are themes and patterns for how we experience God or the Divine. The key is understanding our specific spiritual personality and connection type.

Growing up in a Christian family and attending church, I saw firsthand that Christians love to judge and classify everyone, just like the Pharisees. I became very adept at making these distinctions based on the club rules. Sadly, I find it easy to judge others.

Peter learned the hard way that we should not call anyone impure or unclean. 2000 years later we need the same reminder.

Leaving the Church is hard, and this comes as a shock to many. After feeling the anxiety of being in the Church, they stop attending, thinking the stress will go away and they will be free. Initially, there is a release of pressure and newfound freedom. A couple of weeks after leaving the Church, they say, “This feels great. I love my weekends, and I don’t miss the drama of the Church!”

However, similar to the honeymoon period of a new relationship, the initial excitement begins to fade, and the reality of the changes and everyday life becomes apparent. A few months after leaving the Church, the excitement is gone, and they say, “I didn’t realize leaving would be so difficult. I am lonely, and I miss the routine of going to Church. I have lost touch with most people, and no one reached out to see how I am doing. I thought the relationships were stronger, but I guess I was wrong. I am hurt, and I am angry.”

We seek to go around this wilderness, but the only way out is through this space. If we embrace this season, then we can grow through it and emerge transformed. There are treasures in the wilderness if we are open to its work in our life. But, if we are not careful, we may miss the gifts it offers. The wilderness is a place that will teach us about our self, strip us of false conceptions of God and Church, and uncover the hidden treasures in our souls. 

So, how do we navigate this phase of the journey?