SUMMARY
Ultimately…read morePathway Community Church made me repeatedly feel like widget product going down a state-of-the-art assembly line. I'm just needing less corporation and production and more Christian spiritual growth opportunities and authentic relationships.
DETAILS
Pastor Ron is a great encourager and teacher from the pulpit. I have never met him. I like how his sermons use the Bible but he also curates insights from other Christian authors. In a way, Pastor Ron seems separate from all the rest of the "weekend experience" glitz and very high production brand of Pathway.
The building is top notch, the music is primo... meaning the outward facade and consumer part of it is totally first class. But I've never been greeted by one single person in the church other than the volunteers standing at the door, and frankly that is nice, but that's their job. No one really seriously urges you to grow with God other than Ron encouraging you to read a book he recommends or stopping by Next Steps in the overcrowded lobby.
If you take the initiative to ask about various things or take any sort of non pre-programmatic "next step" the answers I receive are always, "A different person is in charge of that now, let them get back to you" or, "We are going through some changes with that." Seems like Pathway is constantly reinventing itself, restructuring, re-examining it's mission and who is delegated to do what. If you don't fit into a widgetized process either as a participant or initiator, Pathway totally breaks down. Their leadership / structure feels like analysis paralysis. Maybe Pathway is too big, too much like a corporation... friendly, positive, but feels like a machine, an efficient assembly line.
If you want to slip in to either the downstairs or upstairs sanctuary, not be greeted, sing along to some pitch perfect music with blinding LED lights and a fog machine, hear an encouraging message and slip out... this is the church for you. If you want to go be part of authentic community, be really stretched to grow spiritually in your walk with Christ, then you might be as disappointed as I was.
I think it's revealing that Pastor Ron recently laid out like the next 4 months of sermons in great detail. Maybe some people like knowing where the ship is headed, but when your worship leader (who is quite gifted and seems genuinely passionate about the Lord) has the title of "Director of Weekend Experience" it just underscores, this is a high-production, plan months in advance machine. I really hope if the Holy Spirit any given Saturday or Sunday said to change direction that Pathway leadership would be willing to or even could logistically shift with that much production inertia, pre-planning and armies of volunteers already in motion. God can bless a big church or a small one, but I can't imagine Pathway could pivot easily with anything or respond to new opportunities quickly.
There are a few churches (Sardis and Laodicea) in Revelation 2-3 who had the outward appearance of having it all together, but being over confident or not aware of their true condition. The Lord called them to wake up from being dead or complacent or self sufficient. I hope Pathway Community Church isn't like that.
I want to underscore that every leader at Pathway Community Church seems to love the Lord and is working super hard, no fault there, it's just collectively it is like a corporation. Our enemy is the one who accuses, that's not my job, but I hope someone from Pathway will take this review to heart.
