Member - Orange County 2012-14

Gender

Female

Which describes your role at Mars Hill?

Member

What Mars Hill location(s) did you attend?

Orange County / Huntington Beach

What years were you involved / attending?

2012, 2013, 2014

How did you first hear about Mars Hill?

Husband listened to Driscoll's podcasts.

What was the circumstance of your first time attending Mars HIll?

Husband wanted to go hear the Real Marriage series and we were looking for a new church as newlyweds.

What were your first impressions?

Based on the podcasts, I didn't want to go.

Why was Mars Hill your church home?

Because my husband wanted it to be and I couldn't put my finger on a concrete reason why we shouldn't go there.  I just had a bad feeling about it so I gave it a chance.

What about your time at Mars Hill has had a positive impact on you?

We made a few "normal" friends.

What about your time at Mars Hill has had a negative impact on you?

Everything else.  The teaching being black and white with no gray area left our marriage with what felt like no grace.  When I disagreed with Driscoll's interpretation of scripture my husband would say things like "are you even a Christian?  You just don't agree because you don't want to follow that part of the Bible."   Sitting and listening to that teaching every week, I felt like I didn't fit in and something was wrong with me.  I started feeling like crap and judged.  

What would you like to have changed about Mars Hill?

Mark Driscoll out of leadership and the chauvinist attitude gone.

Which describes you?

I left Mars Hill prior to closure.

Please describe why you left Mars Hill and what that experience was like.

We left Mars Hill because of the way leadership was treating people.  We didn't experience all the things folks in Seattle did but our last community group leaders treated us pretty badly.  With the last straw being the husband who refused to make eye contact with me when I would talk to him and who would only look at my husband in defiance of me speaking as a woman.

How would you describe the reason for Mars Hill's closure to an outsider.

They f***ed themselves with their bullshit.

What's changed for you since your time at Mars Hill came to an end?

Different church, not trusting church, suspicious of people who are too black/white on beliefs, re-evaluating what I believe and what is actually true.