Reason to Return

Do you really need church to have a relationship with God?

Church can produce all kinds of automatic reactions depending on your past experiences. Perhaps your family was actively involved in church, or maybe your experience was limited to attending on the occasional holiday. Is it a place you associate with feelings of shame or joy? Does it bring anxiety, or do you have fond memories? Few people are neutral on the subject of church.

Are you one of the 16 million American women who have left the church in the last decade? There are many reasons for this exodus. Many women who leave the church―especially those who still consider themselves to be Christians―desire a closer relationship with God and a deeper spiritual life. What they may not realize is that the imperfect churches of their pasts might be keeping them from meeting those deep spiritual longings today.

In Reason to Return, Ericka Andersen delves into the reasons why women are leaving church in droves. With gentle insight and thoughtful research, she invites Christian women who are hurt or disillusioned by the churches of their pasts to fulfill their unmet spiritual longings for God and community―and consider what the church might still have to offer them.

1. Opening Credits
2. Dedication
3. Introduction
4. Part : The Reasons We Leave
5. Chapter 1: Our Desires | Searching for More
6. Chapter 2: Our Time | Do We Have Enough for God?
7. Chapter 3: Our Misconceptions | We Don't Need Church to Have a Relationship with God
8. Chapter 4: Our Understanding | What Is the Church to Us?
9. Chapter 5: Our Excuses | A Million Good Reasons
10. Chapter 6: Our Pain | When Church Hurt Still Hurts
11. Chapter 7: Our Psychology | Repercussions
12. Chapter 8: Our Messy Lives | Finding Grace When We Need It Most
13. Chapter 9: Our Complacency | When We Feel Spiritually Numb
14. Chapter 10: Our Politics | Is This a Problem?
15. Part 2: Reasons to Reconsider
16. Chapter 11: Our Spirituality | The Missing Piece
17. Chapter 12: Our Questions | There Is Freedom in Asking Them
18. Chapter 13: Our Discomfort | How It Leads to Growth
19. Chapter 14: Our Loneliness | Combating the Epidemic
20. Chapter 15: Our People | What Happens When We Gather
21. Chapter 16: Our Presence | Showing Up Is Powerful
22. Chapter 17: Our Kids | Why Church Matters for Them
23. Chapter 18: Our Belonging | A Place to Be Held
24. Part 3: A Call Worth Pursuing
25. Chapter 19: Our Authenticit | Being Who We Are
26. Chapter 20: Our Community | Finding the Right Space and Place
27. Chapter 21: Our Society | How Going to Church Changes the World
28. Chapter 22: Our Rituals | Building a Meaningful Life
29. Chapter 23: Our World | Clinging to Hope during Uncertain Times
30. Chapter 24: Our Futures | Our Church Past Isn't Our Church Future
31. Chapter 25: Our Calling | Why the Church Needs Us
32. Chapter 26: Our Dreams | Mapping Out a Plan
33. Chapter 27: Our Destiny | Made for This
34. Closing Credits