Parting Ways

I grew up in my faith in many ways in the Calvary Chapel movement. I have served as a volunteer and minister, and most recently as a lead pastor within the movement since about 1997. It has been a wonderful environment to learn in. I learned that “you’re qualified because you’re called, not called because you’re qualified.” I found inspiration to step out in faith and see what God may want to do. I learned that structure and plans are good, but many times, God may want to deviate from those plans… and that’s OK. Pastor Chuck Smith has been a huge inspiration in this regard, saying many times, “blessed are the flexible for they will not be broken.”

There are soooo many wonderful memories and lessons that I have had the privilege of looking back on since being a part of the Calvary Chapel movement. Yet, as amazing as it has been, I feel the leading and inspiration to step out in a new venture of faith. This means I will be moving away from the Calvary Chapel movement as a pastor and ministry. There are many reasons to stay and also many reasons to leave, so I’d like to share a couple of the latter with you.

First, I would like to clarify that I do not have any grievances with Pastor Chuck or the Calvary Chapel movement. I do not have an ax to grind, so to speak. I am not going to malign or put down the movement. Rather, I would like to share where I feel I have grown apart or different from the movement. So please don’t take this as a slam against Calvary Chapel.

My heart has really been enlarged to the greater Christian community as a whole. As that has happened, I’ve been inspired to venture out and try different things in approaches to ministry that others outside of Calvary-dom have  used. I believe that ministry is a moving target. Meaning just when you think you have “the formula” figured out, culture shifts and what once connected well with one generation is now beginning to drive the next away or just miss them altogether. So I want to be more open to new ideas and expressions of faith. Sometimes, that may be returning to ancient expressions as well, but the key point is “different than now.”

For many people, they attend a particular denomination or network of churches because they appreciate “the format.” They expect things to be a certain way, it just happens whether we mean it to or not. In  some cases we have the opportunity to push comfort zones and get people to take another step out of the routine and into something fresh. But sometimes, it’s best to let it go. Jesus warned about trying to put new wine in old wineskins. Why? The result would be a complete loss. Both the wine and the wineskin would be lost.

I feel this has been true in our context here in Charleston. New wine and wineskin have been lost in the endeavor to push the envelope a bit further in ministry. This is not good and it’s why Jesus warned against it. So to be fair to those with expectations, as well as with those who would like to venture out, we feel the best way to keep that “spoiling” from happening would be to not be affiliated with Calvary Chapel, thereby removing some of those expectations.

This will give us the freedom to do various styles of Bible studies without ruffling the feathers of those who want nothing but verse-by-verse studies (as has happened recently). We will also be able to use a greater variety of authors and resources for Community Groups and discipleship without having to stand against strong voices within the CC movement and cause alarm or distraction. All in all, we will be able to  be more open with our approach to ministry and choice of resources, deepening our repertoire of reaching this generation for Jesus without having to worry about stumbling someone and causing internal disruptions, distractions and divisions.

For example, I don’t mind admitting that I feel a strong connection with certain ministers and visionaries within the Emerging movement. A lot of scorn has been placed upon all things “Emerging” within CC circles, thereby causing alarm to those with that kind of expectation. I also don’t mind saying that I would like to see more of the working and moving of the Holy Spirit and His giftings in our meetings. The Holy Spirit was the KEY FIGURE to the success of the early church in the book of Acts, and I believe the same is true today. I could go on and on, but the point is, there are some things that would be too much of a divergence for those coming from traditional Calvary Chapel backgrounds, so out of love and respect for everyone, I feel it best to sever that affiliation and thereby remove that set of expectations.

So there you have it! Long-winded, I know, my apologies. But I am certain that I have only scratched the surface of some of the curiosities out there, so if you have any specific questions for me regarding this decision, I would be more than happy to try my best to answer them. Please post your questions and insights here or shoot me an email offline (seanpnelson@gmail.com).  Also, be sure to keep it loving and gracious and kind. I will not respond to harsh aggravation and will delete similar comments. Grace and peace!