Speaker: Vince Klassen

Have you ever noticed how two people can look at the exact same world and come to completely different conclusions about it?

One sees everything falling apart.
Another sees slow progress.

And both are absolutely convinced they’re the ones seeing reality clearly.

In this talk we’re going to explore how the stories we believe about the world quietly shape our emotions, our relationships, and the way we show up every day.

Because when we don’t understand why certain stories pull us in – and why others make us angry or defensive – those hidden forces can start steering our lives without us even noticing. They can leave us anxious, cynical, disconnected from the people we love, and fighting battles that never seem to end.

Join us as we look at the stories of our spiritual ancestors and use them as a mirror—revealing the unconscious Parts inside us that quietly pull the strings and sometimes drive our lives into trainwrecks.

When we begin to see what’s happening beneath the surface, something shifts. We gain the ability to respond instead of react, to understand each other better, and to stop letting those unseen Undercurrents quietly wreck the things that matter most.

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What if the most dangerous moments in your life aren’t the loud ones, but the quiet ones? The ones where a voice inside you starts making a very convincing case. A case to quit. To blow it up. To take the shortcut. To say the thing you swore you’d never say. To do the thing you promised you’d never do.

In this talk, we’re going to explore why intelligent, thoughtful, good people still find themselves steering toward walls they never intended to hit. We’ll look at the hidden forces that shape our reactions, the stories our brains tell us in real time, and why we so often feel hijacked by something that doesn’t quite feel like “us.” If you’ve ever surprised yourself - in anger, in fear, in giving up - this conversation will give you language for what’s happening and a way to begin catching it before it catches you.

This isn’t about shame. It’s about awareness. And once you see it, you won’t be able to unsee it — in your marriage, your parenting, your goals, your work, or even the cultural stories swirling around you. If you want to understand the forces quietly shaping your decisions - and learn how to stop crashing into the same wall - this one matters.

See you at the Spiritual Gym (and invite someone in your life that you think could find value in this).

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What if one of Jesus’ most famous stories isn’t about waiting for a miracle - but about becoming one? This week we’re stepping into the middle of the feeding of the 5,000 and listening carefully to the moment we usually rush past: when Jesus looks at his students and says, “You feed them.” Not someday. Not supernaturally. You. Together. This talk explores why we so often hope someone else - a conception of God, systems, miracles - will fix what’s broken, and what changes when we see ourselves as the Good News instead. It’s about Taking Water, caring for the people right in front of us, and rediscovering a spirituality that doesn’t opt out of the world - but leans into it.

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Speaker: Vince Klassen

What happens when the faith that once fit… doesn’t anymore?

Many of us were taught that religion is one-size-fits-all. Believe the same things. Follow the same rules. Stay in line.
But what happens when you start to notice things are a little off? When questions won’t go away and answers don't work anymore? When the experience that brings peace to others no longer works for you?

This talk tells a story many quietly carry: we call it The Meadow and the Ledge - a journey of doubt, deconstruction, anger, grief, and courage. It explores why leaving certainty doesn’t mean failure, why different people need different things, and why the Bible itself resists simple, universal answers.

We’ll revisit Friends Church’s manifesto—Taking Water, story over certainty, and honoring unique spiritual journeys—and name the inner voices that try to shame us back into places we no longer fit.

Whether you still love the Meadow, are standing at the edge, hanging on the Cliff, or threw it all away long ago, or are having a party on the Ledge this talk offers language, compassion, and permission to be where you are.

You’re not broken.
Your journey isn’t wrong.
And you don’t have to do it alone.

Come on out to Church on the Ledge

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Speakers: Vince Klassen

Many of us grew up in a Christian tradition that left a mark (even if we didn’t grow up in it, the influence of the Christian tradition has snuck into us from the people around us).

Sometimes it was subtle. Sometimes it was loud.
Shame around sex. Guilt about desire. Fear about who we are, how we love, or whether we even belong in a church at all. Sadly, this list could go on forever.

And that is still in us: the leftover voices, rules, and fears that still follow us, long after we’ve left those traditions behind.

This isn’t about defending Christianity—or tearing it down.
It’s about telling the truth: that religion is powerful. Powerful enough to wound. Powerful enough to heal. Powerful enough to keep us stuck in shame—or move us toward lives of health, connection, and purpose.

If you’ve ever felt hurt by church, unsure about faith, or curious whether religion can still be a force for good—this talk is for you.

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Speakers: Vince Klassen

Taking Water its in this thing called (transcendent) We

Recently I had an experience that’s stayed with me. I was running with a group near the Talisman Centre by the river. It was –10°C when we noticed a man standing under the bridge. At first, no big deal—until I saw he was wearing only a t-shirt. Then I noticed he had just one shoe.

I felt the pull to keep running. To assume there was a reason he was there. That someone else would help. I’ve been in moments like that before—and I didn’t stop.

Friends Church exists to inspire a healthy spirituality that Takes Water to the world around us. All around us. Even to that man under the bridge. It asks us to take those moments seriously—to stop and help if we can, and if we can’t, to reflect on why.

Are we too busy? Is our life in chaos? Do we lack the support to support others? Is a Part of us giving a perfectly reasonable excuse to keep going?

This week, as we begin exploring Our Manifesto, we look Taking Water in the eye—why we offer it sometimes, why we don’t at others, and what it means when we feel like we’re the ones who need Water.

Join us—not for shame or guilt, but for a deep and honest exploration of Taking Water, and how it shapes both us and the world around us.

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Two Sundays - the end of an era, and the beginning of the next.

This Sunday, Vince’s on the Hotseat. Ask him those questions you’ve always wanted to ask - but maybe never had the chance or nerve to.

Bryce (aka Bad Boy with a Heart of Gold) is back in the host chair, putting your questions front and center. He’ll be hitting him with real questions submitted by you—no topic off-limits, no question too bold.

We’re talking theology, life, relationships, doubts, weird Bible passages, church culture—whatever’s been on your mind.

Let’s make them sweat—for all the right reasons.
Don’t miss PASTOR ON THE HOTSEAT

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Speakers: Bryce Lokken & Jeff Jarvis

Two Sundays - the end of an era, and the beginning of the next.

This Sunday is Jeff's Last Sunday at Friends Church so you can ask him whatever you've always wanted to know about him.

Bryce (aka Bad Boy with a Heart of Gold) is back in the host chair, putting your questions front and center. He’ll be hitting him with real questions submitted by you—no topic off-limits, no question too bold.

We’re talking theology, life, relationships, doubts, weird Bible passages, church culture—whatever’s been on your mind.

Let’s make them sweat—for all the right reasons.
Don’t miss PASTOR ON THE HOTSEAT

Bring a friend and join us in the Gym this Sunday.

Donate to Friends Church

To donate to this podcast and support the making of more of these please visit https://friendschurch.ca/podcast