Let’s say you love soccer.  It’s your thing.  You can’t get enough of it.  Some people like the kind games when you’re sure to win, but you think an comfortable game is boring.  Others like when teams are evenly matched so that each team has to work hard and you’re never sure who’s going to win, but you know of an even better kind of game…  that perfect game is that one you’re always waiting for.  It’s that one you never forget; the one you shouldn’t have won because you were by far the underdog.  It’s the one you gave all of yourself for and then some.  You ran harder than you thought your body could ever handle.  You took risks and took them boldly.  And you won what no one thought you could.

Most American churches have become easy and comfortable in hopes of attracting more people. Has this worked?  Being a Christian has become boring, too easy, and too comfortable. Like the kind of soccer game that seems as though it’s not even worth playing because it’s too easy.  Who would want to join this kind of game?  We need churches that remind us of the game we’re supposed to be playing, of the calling Christ has for us, the courage we need to muster and risks we must take.  Give it your all!

Quote by Eric Shipton:       “Man is a contradictor
y creature. Throughout his history he has assiduously sought security and ease and plenty: yet if he is provided with these blessings, he soon becomes restless and discontented.  Deep in his nature there is a yearning for the hard and perilous road, for the difficulties and dangers that test his skill and courage. Faced with this challenge his spirit rises, his heart beats faster and life takes on a new and fuller meaning. Confronted with the unknown, the difficult, and the unattainable… Recognizing this, it seems less strange that men climb mountains [or in our case, less strange that the church is not growing].” 

-Emily L.