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#147. Is the Church Worth Staying For? Church Hurt, Belonging, and Why Gathering Still Matters
Church Leadership Episode 147 • 24th February 2026 • Our Urban Voices • Dr. Alfonse Javed
00:00:00 00:27:39

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Does the church still matter in our modern world?

After waves of disillusionment, #churchtoo movements, and political divides, it’s easy to question the value of investing in the church.

Dr Carmen Joy Imes (PhD, Wheaton) is associate professor of Old Testament at Biola University. She is the author of Bearing God's Name: Why Sinai Still Matters, Being God's Image: Why Creation Still Matters, and the editor of Praying the Psalms with Augustine and Friends. Her new book is Becoming God’s Family: Why the Church Still Matters.

Book: Becoming God’s Family: Why the Church Still Matters

Dr Carmen Imes' Blog

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:

  1. Ways People Have Been Hurt by the Church
  2. Unity in a Multiethnic and Intergenerational Congregation
  3. Church on the Couch is Not Church

ABOUT THE GUEST:

Dr Carmen Joy Imes (PhD, Wheaton) is associate professor of Old Testament at Biola University. She is the author of Bearing God's Name: Why Sinai Still Matters, Being God's Image: Why Creation Still Matters, and the editor of Praying the Psalms with Augustine and Friends. Her new book is Becoming God’s Family: Why the Church Still Matters.

RELATED LINKS:

  1. Dr Carmen Imes, Biola University
  2. Book: Becoming God’s Family: Why the Church Still Matters
  3. Dr Carmen Imes' Blog

TIMESTAMPED SHOWNOTES:

00:40 - Introducing Dr Carmen Imes

01:21 - Major Issues When People Experience Hurt in the Church

02:14 - ...not being heard

02:38 - ...gifts are not welcome nor recognized

04:30 - ...conflicts, boredom, needs not met...

04:45 - Ways to Minimize Hurting People

05:48 - ... the role of trust and context

07:26 - ...being vulnerable

08:02 - ...engaging and working through differences

08:31 - ...feeling well loved

11:34 - Biblical Example of Belonging

11:51 - ...metaphor of family

12:23 - ...solidarity

12:58 - ...individualism in our society

13:48 - Unity in a Multiethnic and Intergenerational Congregation

14:18 - ...learn to defer and love one another

14:24 - ...de-center the majority culture

16:30 - ...appreciate each other

17:31 - Church on the Couch is Not Church

17:47 - ...online church is a blessing if it is a necessity

18:34 - ...but it is a poor substitute for in-person church

19:01 - ...family needs to be together physically

19:49 - ...your presence is important and encouraging to others

20:07 - ...church is not just transmitting information; a community is bi-directional

21:42 - Cultivate curiosity to hear people's stories

24:45 - Finding Dr Carmen Imes and her books

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