The Way Christian Center

Pastor Michael McBride of The Way Christian Center is on the Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC) tonight (4÷11÷2013) talking about the need for new gun control laws to honor the children killed at New Town. He’s on the National Mall taking part in an action sponsored by the PICO Church Coalition Lifeline to Healing Campaign. They are putting up 3300 crosses up to represent the gun violence deaths since the New Town massacre. They are staying up overnight reading the names of all of the dead to keep the pressure on Congress to vote to reduce the violence. He is very inspirational and everyone needs to know he rocks. I’m proud he’s from the Bay Area on national TV with Rachel. They both rock!

As my wife and I had moved from SoCal to the Bay Area one of our concer s was finding a church home. Well we did not have to look too far a friend that was attending Cal Berkeley told us about The Way so we decided to visit. On our very first visit Pastor Mike recognized we were new and greeted us and made us feel very much at home. Pastor Mikes preaching is Biblically sound, intellectually spoken and comedicly attention grabbing. Not only is the word great but worship is very spirit filled! The way this and many other churches in the area combine forces to help the community is very refreshing and honestly the way the body of Christ should work together. Pastor Mike not only preaches the word of God but lives it as well and that is apparent by the way his family and congregation care for others.

I love The Way… The Way. The Way! The God in me loves the God in you! This is by far the best church I have ever been too. To this day I think it was divine intervention that I started going to The Way. For once I found a church where I could be my old imperfect self, be accepted, and engage with people who help me be a better me. Pastor Mike is the best! He is down to earth, intelligent. His preaching style really resonated with me. He is about educating his congregation but doing it in an approachable, funny way. AND P. Mike is an advocate and community organizer at heart with a passion for public policy (my soft spot). I attended the way when I went to school in Berkeley and now that I am back in New York I have yet to find a church that stacks up to The Way. I know that Pastor Mike and The Way will continue to grow and be a great influence in the Bay Area.

There is a wide range of churches and an even wider range of criteria on which to judge them. When looking for churches, I look for the following:
(1) Outward focus — do they care for the neighborhoods they are in? Do they get involved with local schools?
(2) Holistic ministry — do they care for the whole person (spiritual, emotional, physical)? Do they care for the whole community’s health? Do they care about events going on around the world?
(3) Communal search for God — do they create space for people to get to know each other and find God together?
And for all of these questions, the Way gets resounding «YES“s. I love this church and always feel welcome whenever I stop by.

The Way is, without a doubt, the most powerful church that I have ever attended. The love that pulsates through the air as the congregation sings its welcome song, «I love you and you can’t do nothin’ about it!» is undeniable and extends far beyond the 5 minutes it takes to sing that song and greet each other.
I have been a Christian for most of my life and I grew up in a church full of people who undoubtedly loved God, but did not have the same sensibilities about the need for social justice and honest engagement with the world around us that I experience at The Way. This space to interrogate the injustices in the world and apply my faith to alleviate them has made all the difference in my personal spiritual growth.
I am also compelled by the vast variety of people one will encounter at the church on any given Sunday. They are teachers, students, single parents, families, graduate students, school administrators, carpenters, businesspeople, artists, grandparents, lawyers, new Christians, seasoned Christians, seekers, folks who’ve faced obstacles such as loss, death, –all committed to improving their lives and those of the people in their communities. I believe that this kind of configuration very aptly represents God’s kingdom – diverse, forgiven and loving.
The proclaimed motto of the church is «The Way is L.I.V.E. – Loving, Intellectual, Visionary and Empowering” – all of which are embodied both in the pastor and the congregation. People at the church are tutors, mentors, parents, volunteers, community leaders and all seem to live by the belief that even if we don’t individually have it all together, together we have it all.
The Way challenges me to face each day with hope and to apply the very words of Jesus in order to love my community (with all its strengths and flaws) and do the very real work that is required to demonstrate His love. It does this through its weekly discipleship small groups, Sunday school and motivating sermons delivered by Pastor Michael McBride & his brother, Ben McBride.
As one of our members used to say, «When you’re on your way… stop by The Way!»