Church isn't Starbucks.

I had a profound moment of revelation this afternoon as I was reading the book 'In a pit with a lion on a snowy day' by Mark Batterson. He started a church in D.C., which I didn't realize until reading the book that I had visited one of their ministries - 'Ebeneezers', a Christian cafe.

The entirety of the book reflects on how our faith and our trust in God needs to develop into the ability to take risks. In one particular chapter, he mentions that 'too many people in too many churches are too much alike' - meaning that we are conforming ourselves rather than cultivating diversity.

I've been thinking about what church I will find myself when I move back to Vancouver, and part of me is praying to find something I am familiar with - worship songs I know and love, an atmosphere I'm comfortable in, and perhaps even people I already know. And then it pops into my head, clear as day, 'CHURCH IS NOT STARBUCKS, JOHANNA.'

It makes perfect sense to me, but let me explain.

The church I'm currently involved in consists of 15 different nations and languages, families with 7 children, singles, recently married couples, current college students, doctors, refugees, and even some pastors in the making. As a result, our church has a huge variety of needs, and a huge variety of resources. Every now and then when I help lead worship and I'm looking at this group of people raising their voices and hands to God, I get goosebumps at this living image of 'every tongue and every nation praising God.'

Why do I believe that going back to Vancouver means I need to find a church I am comfortable in? While RiverRock (my church in Buffalo) has stretched me, that doesn't mean I can stop growing.

Church isn't Starbucks. It isn't designed to be a place that has identical lattes, that has a familiar logo, that has an identity based in having the same experience every time you come in. Church is supposed to be the exact opposite - a place to grow and nurture each other as we take on the risks of life - whether thats marriage, kids, or college. Church is the place we AREN'T comfortable - it is the place where we are vulnerable in tears or joy, worshiping, praying, fellowshiping - all of this is anything but comfortable! And from our ability to step outside of our comfort zones, we are able to embrace social justice, embrace generosity, embrace new relationships.

Christ was not calling his apostles to establish a place where people could feel comfortable. The foundation of the church was of passionate faith and huge risks. Not even the Holy Spirit slid in comfortably and quietly; rather, it was a radical experience of intense prayer and speaking in tongues.

My background with the Christian Reformed denomination seems at first rather banal. But as I look into the history of my grandparents taking on the huge risks and financial commitments to establishing a Christian school and church building, I am encouraged that sometimes we really do get it. Maybe its my own generation that I'm lumping into a ball, but we seem to think we 'deserve' the things we've been born into. If we were born into poverty, would we deserve that too? There is so much more opportunity for our faith - for our risks - to express the majesty of God.

I love Starbucks. But keep it to the occasional latte. I want to see less of a comfortable mentality in the church and more miracles.