This past Sunday, I made the public announcement at our church that our family will no longer be attending church. And I will be stepping down as the Sunday School director as well as all my other responsibilities in the church.
I’ve been trying to keep the news undercover until yesterday, now I can publicly share what is going on.
A little background first. Our family have been members of the church for 2.5 years. We originally joined because the kids programs were very good for a small church, we could walk to church, and I enjoyed tremendously Lester Cooper (who was the interim pastor at that time).
Since then, I’ve been given the responsibilites of Sunday School director, website administrator, and sign changer. I’m grateful for the opportunities and how our kids have grown in the church. But, two things in particular have been pulling me away from the church.
One is that the church has not been effective at reaching the community. The church is smack in the middle of a neighborhood where white Americans are the minority. It’s mostly Koreans, Chinese, Indians, Europeans, and Blacks. And though all the kids programs are ethnically diverse, the main congregation has not been able to get beyond a single demographic. (I do realize however that few churches have been able to be diverse, so this church is not unusual.)
Another thing is that I’ve been discontent with traditional churches for years. I’ve recently finished reading a book that resonated with what I’ve been feeling about the church – Organic Church.
Where do we go from here? I have no idea. One thing I want to make sure is that I’m not taking control and telling God to come along for the ride while I’ve charted the course. But, I’m trying to rely on God to lead in every step and just go along and see where He’s going to take us.