I don’t invite people to church anymore.

Hi friends,

Lately, God has been stirring my heart about how I view the Church, so much that I have been saving chapters that hopefully will become a book, bible study or course some day! I wanted to share something that might challenge and encourage you too.

I don’t invite people to church anymore. 

Now before you misunderstand, let me be clear, I love my local church. Our family is rooted and connected to a local body. I love our pastors, the staff, and the ways we serve our community. But here’s what I’ve realized. It’s not my church staff’s job to disciple the people God has placed in my life. That responsibility belongs to me. And the beautiful thing is, the church I belong to believes and preaches the same thing. We are all called to live as disciple-makers, not just church attenders.

In Matthew 28:19, Jesus didn’t say, “Tell your pastors to make disciples.” He said, “Go and make disciples.”  That call wasn’t given to the elite few at the top of a church hierarchy. It was given to every believer.

We try our best, imperfectly, to practice what we preach. That’s why my boys lead a Bible study in our home, where everyone is welcome. And please hear my heart, it’s not perfect, polished, or easy. Inviting people into our home means inviting them into our real lives, our messes, and our imperfections. But it’s also incredibly rewarding. It’s sacred. Because discipleship happens in the everyday spaces of life, not just within church walls.

It’s why our ministry chooses to disciple people right in our living room. It’s why all three of my kids feel led to be leaders in Fellowship of Christian Athletes at their school. Because church isn’t just about a Sunday morning experience, it’s about how we live out the Gospel every single day.

We were never called to tell the lost, “Come to us.” We were called to go to them.

I'm not trying to sound like I have all the answers because that’s definitely not the case. We’re just a family doing our best to love and serve the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind. What you’re reading is simply a glimpse into our journey as it unfolds, messy, honest, and still very much in progress.

I believe the Word Of God. Every single scripture is alive and active. I understand that many people look to the smartest, the brightest, and the most educated voices to help them understand the Word of God. And I deeply respect those who have studied and labored to rightly divide truth. But somewhere along the way, I think we’ve started to rely more on human wisdom than on the leading of the Holy Spirit. And maybe that’s part of why so many are hurting.

How come the little “c” church is causing so much damage?

How come there are so many people who don’t want to set foot inside of a church building?

How come the Church of Jesus Christ, which was meant to represent His love, has gained such a bad reputation?

These are questions we should be wrestling with as children of God. Because Jesus should be the most appealing, attractive, and beautiful thing the world has ever seen. And yet, there are still so many lost and broken people who feel unloved, unseen, and unwanted by the very people who claim to follow Him.

I don’t want to tear the church down. I want to be the Church.

Because the Church isn’t a building.

It’s not a corporation.

It’s not an institution.

It’s a living, breathing organism that should be multiplying.

That’s the Church I want to be a part of.

I want to see the walls of religion fall. I want to see competition, jealousy, selfish ambition, rivalry, and the thirst for control eradicated. I want to see bosses become brothers and sisters again. I want to see the voices of women rise where they’ve been silenced. I want to see the Church operate like the Church.

I want to see the Kingdom of Heaven happening on earth.

That’s the movement I believe Jesus started. That’s the one I want to live and die building.

If something in this message has stirred your heart, I’d love to hear from you. Write me back at christy@fearlessunite.com. Let’s keep this conversation going as we seek to live out what it truly means to be the Church.

With love and purpose,