There's probably someone in your life right now who's a little more distant than you'd like. A relationship that's a little harder than it needs to be. And if you're honest, somewhere in the back of your mind, you already know why. Something happened - something you did, or maybe something you've been doing for years without realizing it - and now you're paying for it. We all have patterns in our relationships that are quietly costing us way more than we realize. Not in dramatic blow-up ways, but in the slow accumulation of distance, resentment, and walls we didn't mean to build. This Sunday we're starting a new series about what it actually looks like to stop creating those costs - and start building the kind of relationships you actually want. I'm going to start by telling you about a mistake I made that followed me for a decade.

Come ready to be honest with yourself. See you at the Spiritual Gym

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Most of us have a list of reasons why our lives are harder than they should be. Things we didn't choose. Ways we're different. Losses we didn't deserve. And somewhere along the way, we quietly made peace with using that list as a reason to stop pushing.

This week at the Spiritual Gym, we're sitting with a question from a man who earned the right to ask it - a Rabbi who lost his teenage son and still chose to show up for his life. He reframes something most of us treat as a wound into something we might not expect. And it's not a platitude. It's not toxic positivity. It's harder than that - and more honest.

If life has handed you something unfair, something that makes the ordinary harder than it should be - this one's for you.

Join us Sunday at Friends Church.

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Speaker: Vince Klassen

What do we do when we're confronted with something unforgivable?

Not the small stuff. The real thing. The kind of act that makes us wonder if some people are just… evil.

Our answer matters. Not in some abstract philosophical way - but in something that cuts right to the heart of this series: what it actually looks like to Live Life Abundantly.

Because underneath that answer is a bigger one. What are we, as humans? Is there something in all of us that we keep disconnecting from - and what does it cost our lives when we do?

Here's what we keep finding: the way we see other people - especially the ones who've hurt us, failed us, or horrified us - shapes the life we're able to live. More than most of us want to admit.

What would change if we looked at the people we've written off - or the person we see in the mirror - and found something unexpected there?

Come find out. Friends Church, this Sunday.

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Johnny Cash made Hurt famous—but it was written by Trent Reznor, a 30-year-old caught between two versions of himself: the person on stage and the kid alone in his room. And in that tension, he asks a question most of us quietly carry: What have I become… and how did I get here?

This week, we’re using that question to rethink something many of us were taught to fear—sin. What if it’s not about punishment or getting it right, but a signal that something in your life is pulling you away from who you actually want to be?

If you’ve ever felt that gap - between your life and your values, between who you are and who you’re trying to be - this one matters.

Join us at the Spiritual Gym this week. Let’s figure out what it looks like to actually live abundantly… not just trying not to screw it up.

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Ever catch yourself thinking, “I just need to get through this week… then life will feel better”? Or “once that thing changes, then I’ll finally feel okay”? This week, we’re going straight at that feeling - the quiet sense that something’s off, something’s missing, something about your life (or you) just isn’t quite enough. And instead of trying to fix it or outrun it, we’re going to unpack it.

Because what if that feeling isn’t a problem to solve… but a signal worth understanding? What if - even more provocatively - it’s what some scholars have suggested is "sin"? Not something to fear or run from, but an indicator that we’ve drifted from an abundant life.

In this talk, I’ll give you a surprisingly practical way to navigate those moments - so you’re not stuck waiting for life to change before you can actually live it. If you’ve been feeling that low-grade “not quite right,” this one’s for you.

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I had a bit of a moment a few weeks ago. I went through the Bible and looked up every single time the word “sin” shows up… and what I found honestly surprised me.

Not in a good or bad way – just… not what I was taught.

I didn’t find the clean, clear list of do’s and don’ts I grew up with. I didn’t find Jesus obsessing over defining sin or making sure people avoided it at all costs. What I did find—especially in the tradition I was handed – was a whole lot of fear. Fear of messing up. Fear of getting it wrong. Fear of hell.

And I can’t help but wonder… is fear really the point?

Because when Jesus talks about why he came, he says it’s about life – full, abundant life. And that doesn’t sound like fear to me.

So this week, we’re going to wade into some deep water. Not to tear anything down—but to see what might be underneath all that fear. To ask what our spiritual lives could actually look like if fear wasn’t running the show.

If you’ve ever felt that tension… or quietly wondered if there’s more to this than just getting it right… this one might be for you.

Join us at the Spiritual Gym this week. Let’s explore what it could look like to actually live—abundantly.

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We just watched something incredible happen. 21 people from our community showed up in Mexico and, together with local families and donated resources by you, built a home that didn’t exist before. This Sunday, we’re going to celebrate that story - but not just to look back. We’re creating space for you to step into something that can shift your life right now. Because “Taking Water” isn’t just about going somewhere far away - it’s about breaking out of the patterns that keep you stuck, isolated, or playing it safe. It’s about discovering what happens when you actually live generous, connected, purpose-filled in your everyday life.

If you’ve been feeling a little dry, a little disconnected, or just ready for something more - this is for you. Come celebrate, but also come expectant. Come ready to be inspired to step into the next phase of life

Join us at the spiritual gym to be inspired and to find purpose.

P.S. We are bringing a little taste of mexico to you all. So save some room for a little Churro inspired snack after the service.

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Speaker: Vince Klassen

Happy Easter!

It's the biggest celebration in the Christian calendar — and this year, we're centering it on the teaching Jesus said mattered most: Love your neighbour.

Simple idea. Surprisingly hard to live out.
Especially when your neighbour grew up somewhere completely different. Lived a life you can't imagine. Works every day just to feel like they belong.

This Sunday, we're sitting down with a couple from our own community - immigrants from South America - to hear their story. Not to debate politics. Not to take sides. Just to know them. Because you can't love who you don't know.

Right now, the word "immigrant" carries a lot of weight. We think that's exactly why it's worth showing up this week.

Come learn how to love more skillfully. Come learn from the words of Jesus.

See you at the Spiritual Gym. 💛

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