The familiar drag of the bar stool announces to no one in particular that I’m here. Again. The bartender has already poured my well vodka soda with lime and holds his hand out expectantly for my card; he knows to keep my tab open. The first sip tastes like communion, I breathe a sigh of relief, settle back in my chair and I am at home, this is church to me. I grew up in church but never felt quite as comfortable in the pews of bright-eyed parishioners dressed in their Sunday best seeking God, as I do in the neon-lit booths of dive bars crammed with mascara stained and sweaty bodies seeking something.    I glance around the bar to see who will play a character in tonight’s story. That’s what I love about bars, nearly all good stories start with, “So (someone and someone else) walk into a bar”- punchline and antics ensue. I realize too late my black dress has slipped up too high on my thigh and my self-harm scars are showing. My face flushes and I jerkily pull it t...

As I look at the skyline of East Village SD in it’s skeletal, gestation state, I am reminded of those signs, painful as they may be, that remind us that we are in fact growing.  They usually involve a lot of noise, there are definitely cranes present but energy is in the air.   1.   The general environment of our life seems loud.    I don’t mean that the decibel meter is actually clipping, but rather there are ideas, experiences and even relationships that seem disruptive.  Often these experiences are inciting growth, but so often we avoid them.  The problem is, growth doesn’t happen in a vacuum, disconnected from life, but happens through connection - connection to ideas, experiences and ultimately the others we encounter every day.  Staying   safe  and   comfortable  will never lead to change, we have to incite change with the noise of a inciting event.   A friend of mine moved out to the West Coast in September. ...

Join us at  Second Sunday  and get to know some up and coming local vendors, enjoy light bites, and meet some really cool people in your community who are developing their own relationship with Jesus. Sunday April 9th 7pm 705 16th Street San Diego 92101