I LOVE this church, although if you are a progress...

I LOVE this church, although if you are a progressive Christian you may have a couple issues as i'll note later.

When i first walked in about 20 years ago i was overwhelmed by the sense of joy. It felt like a community, the people are real and welcoming, and dress is casual. I have been going ever since, about 20 years, with some gaps here and there. For the first several months i was overwhelmed every week by the pouring of the Spirit, and still am quite often. There is a good cultural mix of real people and it is pretty big so a chance to meet a wide spectrum. There are many opportunities for growth and participation including recovery and other classes, lots of foreign and local missions (i went overseas with them several times), and emphasize smaller "life groups" where you can get to know some people better. The worship team is also AWESOME. It is a flourishing, creative community.

There is also a wide spectrum of political beliefs, so most people should be able to find common ground, and the preaching itself is not "political" as the focus is on Jesus.

But if you are a progressive Christian you may want to take note of a couple things:

--As you know conservative beliefs of some may seem harsh and when Facebook first came out i was rather taken aback, but i consider CA my family and returned to worship God/BEing.

--I knew a lot of people there wouldn't support gay marriage but i was disappointed to find out the church had an official position against it (i'm straight). Later i heard thirdhand that a great drummer on the worship team was asked to stop playing with them when she came out as gay. That almost crushed me. I am horrified that the love of Jesus is not considered big enough for her. So i stopped donating $ but i still feel it's my family.

--Lastly their core beliefs (this is common to most churches i'm afraid, as is opposition to gay marriage) include such points as: the "Bible" is infallible or inerrant.
I don't believe concepts such as "perfect" or "inerrant" are even real. Is there a perfect tree or a perfect rock? What does that even mean? Nothing written by flawed people is flawless, inspired by God or not. People can believe whatever they want in life of course, but my issue is if you don't accept this and other certain points, you are then limited in the leadership positions you can hold. But it takes all kinds of people to reach all kinds of people, right?

Overall I've been conflicted and still sometimes look for a church that supports the LGBTQ community for who they are made by God, but i STILL love this church and consider it my family despite its perceived flaws (as God loves me despite mine!). If you accept their core beliefs and don't expect people to wear suits and ties, you will likely love it here.