Bees in My Bonnet

Dear Readers of my Blog, It has come to my attention that I have let my thoughts leak out in a potentially offensive manner.  So I want to issue a formal apology to my audience. You need to know that I only write a smidgen of what goes on in my brain because I really do want to steer clear of controversy and not be a thorn in people's side with my ramblings.  I really don't want to hurt people's feelings with the things I write.  I don't intend to be judgemental, harsh, rude or nasty.  I hope you know me well enough to know that. I also want to say I didn't write my 50 Reasons to Leave a Church to point at anyone in particular.  I myself have said some of those very things.  Some of them are ridiculous.  Some of them are valid.  And some are in between - neither ridiculous nor valid or invalid - they just are. I have been a part of seven churches in my life of 36 years.  Three of them are in Hong Kong.  Two of them in college. ...

Disclaimer: I'm not saying these are the reasons you should  leave a Church.  Just throwing out a bunch of reasons why people DO leave churches.  I'll let you guess as to what the legitimate ones are. Here we go: 50 Reasons to Leave a Church 1.  You changed your religion 2.  They wouldn't let you paint, "Smile! God Loves You!" for the gym floor mural 3.  It's no longer a democracy, and we all know democracy was the heavenly prescribed best method for how to govern a church 4.  They removed that stained glass window you so liked 5.  The music is rock-band style 6.  The music is not rock-band style 7.  You are allergic to people 8.  They're not spending money the way you want them to (and we all know that how a church divvies up funds is the crux of everything so you will vote with your feet and dollars and go elsewhere). 9.  The preaching is dry and boring 10.  They don't have a program for everyone in the fam...

I recently had the privilege of reading a powerful memoir. It so powerfully moved me that I felt it was important to expose all my readers to her heart - her life.  I loved how she drew me in and made me feel I was walking with her on her journey through hope, depression, acceptance and joy.  Her honesty is refreshing - and so often I felt myself nodding along with her experiences - both positive and negative. Here Gillian shares with us some responses to questions she's received - let it whet your appetite for this book and look for an upcoming giveaway on this blog! Gillian Marchenko is an author and national speaker who lives in Chicago with her husband Sergei and four daughters. Her book, Sun Shine Down, a memoir, published with T. S. Poetry Press in the fall of 2013. She writes and speaks about parenting kids with Down syndrome, faith, depression, imperfection, and adoption. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Chicago Parent, Thriving Fami...