The Facts
Service Locations
Bellevue, WA: A handful of committed families and singles meeting at SAMBICA on Sunday mornings at 11 to worship God and edify one another’s faith. There is a Bible study on Tuesdays that walks through the Bible, chapter by chapter. There is a morning prayer meeting over Skype every day except Sunday, for those who want to participate. Additionally, there is a weekly online global service over Zoom for those interested in the work worldwide.
East Asia: There is one family and a handful of single people worshiping in their home every week. As the service is broadcast online, it is possible to attend from abroad via Skype.
East India: Hundreds of people worship together across urban and rural services in India. Many of these people are among the impoverished and/or unreached communities in India. Nutritional as well as educational outreaches along with regular prayer meetings exist to strengthen believers in their walk with God. Baptisms and outreaches are always a source of encouragement for the worldwide church to participate in with prayer and thanksgiving.
Tokyo, Japan: The people who attend the Tokyo service are among the nicest people in the world. There is a fellowship dinner on Friday night, and service on Sunday night, both in-person and streamed online via Facebook. The church is engaged in outreach to the lost, both local and overseas.
Middle East: The ministry in the Middle East reaches out to both urban and impoverished rural communities that have never heard the Good News. A combination of gospel preaching, local church training, and humanitarian work are some of the main foci of the church.
Sydney, Australia: A few families and singles meet weekly for worship as well as prayer. The church meets in homes and are very warm and family-like, and stream the service over Zoom to enable overseas participation.
Structure
We have elders.
We don't have a pastor, but we do have elders who are all employed with jobs outside the church. The elders make decisions together, directly from the Word of God. Even the qualifications of being an elder came right from the Bible. The elders were not chosen for their ability to manage money. They were chosen by their desire to care for the church and defend the gospel.
On dealing with church issues, they look at what the Word says about the issue and follow accordingly, and always with love and the understanding that all the people here are God's children so we treat people as well as we treat our own children.
Controversy
It is possible to say we are a big, fat oxymoron!
We take the Bible seriously, and literally. And we do believe that it is the church's responsibility to tell people if the things they are doing is sinning. If you are living with your boy/girlfriend and attending Friends church, you will be told that living with your boy/girlfriend is a sin and that the Bible says that as church leaders we have a responsibility to gently guide you in the right direction. Since your salvation is our priority, we will say it nicely enough that you really can move out of your boy/girlfriend's house and still feel welcome at the church. We wouldn't necessarily tell our neighbor the same thing, as the Bible instructs us not to judge outside the church.
At the very same time, the Bible instructs us boldly to go out into the world and preach the gospel. It is impossible to preach the gospel to the world if you are unwilling to let "the world" in your front door. We are trying to work hard at making an atmosphere where non-Christians are welcome to come to service without compromising the "spiritual depth" of the preaching. That means that sometimes the discussion is prepared with the not-yet-saved in mind, while others are directed at spiritual growth to the believer. -- This seems impossible or a very tight rope to walk. The overseas nature of Friends Church makes it more possible to walk this fine line as churches overseas more often than churches in the US have at any time a greater number of the not-yet-saved at a service or event. This brings greater opportunity to the believers to help out and spread the gospel at home.