Walking into a room, mostly filled with complete strangers is intimidating. Some are better than others at coping, putting themselves out there, and becoming acquainted. When I walked into the Botanical Gardens where the Alpha Course has been meeting for the past eight weeks, I felt like I was entering a family reunion. I searched the room for any one person standing alone and couldn’t find it – even if there was potential for that, Casey Schutza, the Alpha Director, would never let that happen.

The location was beautiful. I arrived early, 30 minutes before the general Alpha attendees would get there. Leaders were meeting to receive a pep talk from Casey and to pray over the people, by name, that would be attending that night.

“God made us a people. Let’s invite these people into that. Alpha is ending, but our relationship doesn’t have to end.” Encouraged Casey. “I can hang out this summer. Come check out my Life Group.”

He laid out his plan to invite everyone in the room at the end of the night to three things – Discipleship, Community, and Questioning. Invite the new believers to join our church community in discipling relationships. Invite people who are still struggling into our faith community to grow and learn. If you still have more questions to ask and are not ready to commit to anything, join us in a six-week book study called Confronting Christianity.

Then Casey encouraged the leaders with Luke 18:1-8.

“God’s heart is never like this ‘unrighteous judge’ who has a breaking point. The Father doesn’t have that. He never gets frustrated with our questions, our doubts, or our struggles. He actually delights in our asking. God is excited that we are asking for his power to move in the lives of these people.”

Then the leaders circled around a picnic table and prayed, expectant for God to move in people’s hearts.

“I pray people would get an idea of what it would look like if they followed you with their whole life.”

“I pray that we would see the truth and the beauty tonight. Would your Spirit move heavy tonight? Would your remove the barriers on people’s hearts weighing the things that are said? Help everyone to see who you really are tonight and be drawn to that.”

“Our work is meaningless without you God. We can do nothing apart from your Spirit.”

“I thank you for the people that are at our table, that their judgements and ways are searchable by you. We thank you that you delight in us as we seek you. You are good.”

“God, I pray that those who have knowledge and foolishness mixed up in their hearts and in their minds that you would enlighten them. I pray you would give them a great vision of your glory. Would you use tonight to show them a true meaning of life and that you give them a purpose in living for you. Remind us that there is no council, there is no good apart from you.”

After the leader prayer time, people began to gather in a large meeting room with high ceilings – one side with straight windows overlooking the Grapevine Botanical Gardens. People slowly trickled in, greeted by kind volunteers welcoming each one by name and often hugging their necks. Attendees grabbed a meal of barbecue, cole slaw, potato salad, beans, and banana pudding as they took their regular seats around their assigned tables. As they sat down, they immediately engaged in cheerful and warm conversation. Seriously, these people have known each other for eight weeks and have only met once a week during that time – how did they form such deep relationships so quickly?

I sat down with a couple before the activities began. Michelle and Earl explained why they came to Alpha and what has been their experience so far. They were invited to Alpha by some friends who had facilitated a previous Alpha Course.

“My husband and I discuss this every morning…We have a lot of conversations about God. I have a little bit of a different view. I wouldn’t say I’m a traditional Christian in the sense of what Alpha means and what most people that go to your church mean. I’m often a dissenter here… I absolutely feel like this is a safe place for discussion. I’m a pretty strong, opinionated person, and I don’t shy away from debates. If anything, I come on a lot stronger than anyone at [my] table, and they have been so gracious and very kind. It’s been good.” – Michelle

“I’m always interested in fellowship and learning new things from different people’s opinions, and this has been the place to do that. I have a very strong belief in the Bible. When you think of God, there is nothing better or more powerful. That’s how I try to relate to any relationship when we contradict what we believe. This is an opportunity to hear what other people have to say and speak what I want to speak. It also is an opportunity to pray for others and even myself.” – Earl

Michelle and Earl are joined by about eight other people at their table. Like the other tables in Alpha, there are people there flat-out rejecting Christianity, some claiming to be Christian but rejecting some of its core truths and values, people questioning their faith from childhood, and table leaders who have been equipped and trained to discuss Christianity with confidence in a caring and kind way.

I asked Casey Schutza, the Alpha Director, what was Alpha trying to accomplish in the lives of the people attending.

“The heart behind Alpha is that people can come and learn about the Christian faith in a safe environment where they can ask questions, raise objections, and do so in a way where they're not looked down upon for their questions, there really are no dumb questions. Or even work through some of their past hurt, maybe its church hurt. They can work through it in a way that doesn't shock leaders and doesn't surprise anybody but is a space where you can both learn and work through things that you've experienced. And the idea is not to have just a Christian perspective, but to allow people from different opinions on faith or even different faith backgrounds to learn about the Christian faith, but also to say what their opinion is on life in a safe environment. To learn where we find purpose in the world.”

Casey picked up a mic and officially welcomed everyone there tonight. Then, before talking through any curriculum or topics, he took time to recognize a few of their leaders that specifically help each week with food prep – faithfully giving every Monday to serve the people at Alpha. Everyone clapped and cheered on the couple. Casey didn’t stop there. He then had a couple of men stand up who were having a birthday. The group sang to them, and a cookie cake was passed around the room to celebrate. It felt like I was at a family birthday party with people making jokes, singing, and laughing in celebration.

Casey then introduced the topic by asking the room an icebreaker question, “When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up?” The topic of the night was, “What is my purpose?” – a deep question that most people wrestle with throughout their life. The tables enjoyed each other's answers. I heard things like, “A Ranger’s pitcher, an NFL quarterback” and of course an astronaut and teacher. The Alpha branded video was played for about 20 minutes that talked through how the Bible would answer this question and this led to the table discussions with questions thrown out by the table leaders.

I was able to sit through the discussion at a table with a few people from Church at the Cross, a young couple who were working through their own issues with the Christian faith, and a woman who was a recent immigrant from Japan speaking in broken English. Each person at the table talked through his/her questions and was honest about personal struggles. I heard things like, “I find so much joy and purpose in my husband and kids, but I need to know what my individual purpose is.” And another said, “I am overwhelmed with the thought that I don’t know what fulfills me or makes me happy. My friends who seem to have a better grasp on their calling seem to have so much more joy in life.”

The Christians at the table were honest as well with their own wrestling and doubts. They could relate to the unbelievers in an honest way that empathized with their confusion and helped them feel understood. At the same time in a gentle and kind way, they brought the truth of how the Bible has helped them process these deep and hard questions.

I could see the wheels turning in the young couple at our table as they verbally worked through the fog and started to better understand what God wants for their life. At one point, a Christian woman at the table said, “Our purpose is to know God, and make him known to the rest of the world.” We further worked through that – to know God, is to know his love for you and to love him in return. What is the chief end of man? It is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. Our Father wants us to trust him, to love him, and to enjoy him. When we do, this brings him glory and honor and attracts others to do the same. This is our purpose.

I asked Casey more about the intentions of placing people from all different faith backgrounds, Christians and unbelievers alike at a table.

“People realize that, even though they disagree on core worldviews, they actually have more in common with one another than they realized. At one table you've got a guy who's a stoic Buddhist and another guy who's an atheist, and then three or four Christians, and they're realizing, ‘Hey, we disagree on the main things of where we build our lives, but we agree on a bunch of minor things. We don't have to hate one another.’ They realize they can discuss faith without being enemies, even though they may disagree on basic life and meaning.”

This is exactly what I witnessed. There were people, literally from all over the world, who have vastly different backgrounds, worldviews, religions, and perspectives. They have been placed in a room together and are asked to work through provocative and challenging questions about life. As they enter civil conversations, everyone is seeking to understand themselves and others at their table. This leads to a connection between each other. It rapidly enhances honest and vulnerable discourse that builds trust, produces relationships, and practically allows people to love one another and care for their souls.

Here’s what Casey has observed over the past three years of administering Alpha.

“As Alpha’s closing, we're nearing the end. There are a couple that both would say that they're not followers of Jesus. And yet they expressed to their group how sad that Alpha is closing. They say, ‘Hey, this summer, we'd love to see you once every week or two to get dinner.’ There is a couple that have connected to a Life Group. They've said, ‘We don't really have a space in a community like this.’ They don't go to church, and they don't have anything like it in their life. So I think, personally, they've tasted some community, some Christian community at Alpha and they've thought, ‘Man, that's a missing gap in my life.’”

As the night concluded and everyone was dismissed, I sat down with the couple at my table to ask them a few more questions about their experience. Landon has a Christian background, although he stepped away from the faith for a number of years, he saw the importance of returning to Jesus when he started dating Brittany. Brittany has a more complicated relationship with the Church. She told me a little about her background and why she was at Alpha.

Reading the Bible enhances my life, it doesn’t take anything away…

“I grew up in a Catholic home and as I grew older, I saw more hypocrisy in the church. All these people want to do good deeds, yet they are not always good people… A couple years ago I went through personal stuff in my life and I thought, ‘ok maybe I need to go back to church, I need this in my life.’ I’ve had a lot of questions about the Christian faith. Coming here has really opened my eyes. I see going to church differently – reading the Bible enhances my life, it doesn’t take anything away which I thought it would. I definitely feel like this is a safe place to bring my doubts, concerns, and questions. I feel like I’ve met the people I need to open up to in a safe place.”

I also heard from Mason, a young single man who was invited by one of our CATC Young Adults. I asked him how Alpha has been going.

“It’s a little bit out of my comfort zone, but it is nice to get to know people and be in a little bit more friendly environment than I am used to. I go out a lot, and I’m trying to go into some better, more positive places instead of going to a bar and watching a sporting event every night. Having tough conversations as I’m meeting new people has helped me... I’m kind of relearning. I stepped away from the church for a long time so it’s like I’m sticking my toes back into the water.”

Alpha is a starting point. It leads to discipleship, community, and questioning. Each person attending Alpha is in a totally different place spiritually. Some have left knowing a Jesus they never knew before and are ready to be baptized and discipled in the Christian faith. Others have worked through their church hurt and are ready to step into a Life Group or start attending on Sunday mornings to be around other Christians. Then there are those who are not ready to make any of those immediate leaps, but still have further questions – they still are wrestling. Alpha provides a space for that kind of follow-up as well.

After reflecting on my time at Alpha, I thought what an honor it was that these people whom I met for the first time that night were willing to open a dialogue with me over some of their deepest and darkest struggles, thoughts, and feelings. They saw Alpha as a place they felt safe to be vulnerable. An immediate and mutual agreement was met from the start, one that is the most basic rule to gain trust in any relationship. I will listen and seek to understand you, and you will listen and seek to understand me. That is loving and kind. God is using imperfect people with broken and pieced-together lives to reach each other for his glory and to grow his kingdom.

We are seeing God use Alpha in partnership with His Church to reach the lives of many people. It takes crossing a pain line to join a group of people you never have interacted with before, and then open your life to them – share your doubts, your concerns, your past hurt, and trauma. What I’ve witnessed is once you take that step outward, you gain a more loving heart toward people around you and a heart toward God. You start understanding your purpose.