Leaving Church Without Leaving Faith: From Hopper to Pilgrim

A follow-up to "Why Church Hopping Isn't Backsliding."

Ever feel like a polka dot shirt trying to match with striped pants in church? You're not crazy, and you're not alone. That awkward sense of not fitting in—despite loving Jesus deeply—might not be a character flaw. It might be a calling.

Leaving Church Without Leaving Faith

The hardest part about leaving church isn't walking away from a building—it's wrestling with whether you're disappointing God by leaving brothers and sisters who seem genuinely comfortable in what they see as "God's House."

If you're wrestling with this right now, let me say something that might shock you: leaving church doesn't mean leaving your faith. In fact, for many believers, it's the most faithful thing they can do.

But it seems to me that many of our church family, who should be understanding, are the ones biting us from behind. They call you a "church hopper"—like you're some spiritual grasshopper bouncing around without meaning, purpose, or commitment.

What if they're missing something special about your walk with God? What if you're not a "hopper" at all—but a pilgrim?

The Question That Changes Perception

I've been wrestling with this lately, and I have to ask: When did we decide that geographic and denominational loyalty became more important than spiritual growth?

Because this is what I'm seeing: believers who are hungry for authentic faith, desperate for sound biblical teaching, and willing to sacrifice comfort for truth—and they're being labeled as problems by the very institutions that should be celebrating their passion.

Something's not right here.

Would We Call the Apostle Paul a "Church Hopper"?

Paul's Second Missionary Journey

Let's be honest. By today's standards, the Apostle Paul would absolutely be considered a church hopper. The man was constantly on the move—Antioch to Cyprus, through Asia Minor, across to Macedonia and Greece, and ultimately to Rome. He rarely stayed in one place for more than a couple of years.

But here's the thing: Paul wasn't hopping from churches or shopping for one—he was building them. He wasn't running away from his commitment to a congregation—he was running to it...and the next, and the next.

His movement was an on-fire mission, led by the Holy Spirit, and marked by deep, sacrificial love for the communities he served. When Paul heard the call, he responded as Jesus called his first disciples,

Then He said to them, 'Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.' They immediately left their nets and followed Him" Matthew 4:19-20.

There was nothing casual about their response to Jesus or Paul's reaction later. They trusted and obeyed Him. They were committed.

The question isn't whether you leave—it's why you leave and how you leave.

The Holy Spirit Still Guides Believers (Remember?)

Paul was guided by the Holy Spirit. But here's what the "church hopper" critics seem to forget: we have that same Holy Spirit today. Jesus promised,

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me" John 10:27.

What if—just what if—the Spirit is creating a holy restlessness in your soul? What if He's prompting you to leave, not out of fickleness, but out of faithfulness? What if staying in a place that starves your spirit or compromises your conscience would actually be stifling the Spirit?

I'm talking about those of us who can actually read the Bible, who ask the Holy Spirit for discernment, who study with understanding, like the Bereans, who

"...received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" Acts 17:11.

I'm not writing to spiritual toddlers who need to be told what to think. When we find critical deviations from God's Word being preached to a sleepwalking congregation shouting "AMEN" without a clue what they're agreeing to—maybe the problem isn't our "church hopping."

Maybe the problem is the contemporary "church."

Why Leaving Church Can Be an Act of Faith

Here's what drives me crazy: Sunday services that remain at the same remedial level, assuming every person in attendance is there for the first time.

Week after week of spiritual milk when you're desperate for solid food.

The author of Hebrews had harsh words for this:

"For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food." Hebrews 5:12.

Sometimes leaving church is the most faithful response to spiritual stagnation. When an institution fails to feed your soul or challenges your conscience with unbiblical teaching, staying might actually be the unfaithful choice.

The Syncretism Crisis: Why Biblical Discernment Matters More Than Ever

Recent research from the Barna Group reveals a sobering reality that every believer should be aware of. According to their studies, less than half of senior pastors hold a consistently biblical worldview.

Even more concerning, the percentages drop to the teens for seminary teaching faculty (13%) and youth pastors (12%)—the very people responsible for training our future church leaders.

This isn't about questioning anyone's heart, calling, or sincerity. These are dedicated individuals serving God to the best of their ability. But it does reveal a systemic challenge that affects biblical teaching across denominations and institutions.

When the very institutions training our spiritual leaders struggle with biblical consistency, individual believers bear even greater responsibility for testing everything against Scripture.

The irony is profound: those who leave churches seeking pure biblical teaching are often accused of embracing syncretism—the blending of biblical truth with worldly philosophy. But Barna's research suggests that staying in many mainstream churches might actually expose you to more syncretistic thinking, not less.

Please understand my point. This doesn't mean all churches are compromised or all pastors are failing. It means that the responsibility for biblical discernment cannot be outsourced to institutions. Whether you're a pilgrim visiting different churches or a committed member of one congregation, you must personally "test the spirits" (1 John 4:1) and ensure that what you're receiving aligns with God's Word.

For the pilgrim, this data validates something they may have sensed but couldn't articulate: their spiritual restlessness might not be a sign of pickiness—it might be the Holy Spirit protecting them from subtle compromise.

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;" 2 Timothy 4:3.

The False Choice Between Extremes

But then you look around at your options and find yourself caught between unacceptable extremes:

• The Stagnant Church: Culturally comfortable but spiritually asleep, where passion for God is viewed as disruptive zealotry

• The Progressive Church: Where foundational biblical truths have been redefined or abandoned to accommodate the Zeitgeist of our time.

  
  

The result? Spiritual homelessness. You're looking for the Body of Christ and finding what feels like a social club on one side and a different religion entirely on the other.

The Philadelphia Complex

Here's the kicker: every church thinks it's Philadelphia (the faithful remnant) while viewing all others as Laodicea (the lukewarm apostates).

But Jesus' harshest warning—the most terrifying of the seven churches—was to Laodicea. And who were they? A settled, established, wealthy, self-satisfied congregation. They weren't "hoppers." They were leaders of their community. They had a building, a pastor, a congregation, and a reputation to uphold.

And Christ said He was about to spit them out of His mouth!

Lukewarmness is a dis-ease of the comfortable, the settled, the insider who no longer feels a desperate need for Christ. It's almost never the condition of the desperate sojourner willing to be uncomfortable for the sake of following genuine faith.

The Danish philosopher and theologian Soren Kierkegaard had a phrase for this: "The crowd is untruth." When everyone around you is comfortable, when there's unanimous agreement that everything is fine, when questioning is discouraged—that's often when you should be most concerned.

Sometimes the most dangerous place for your soul is where everyone else feels perfectly at home.

The individual believer, guided by the Holy Spirit and grounded in Scripture, might see what the comfortable crowd cannot: that the emperor has no clothes, that the temple has become a marketplace, that Christendom has replaced Christianity.

The Pilgrim Still Gathers: Fellowship Without Membership

Before we go further, let's be clear about what leaving church means—and what it doesn't mean.

Leaving church doesn't mean abandoning fellowship with believers. That would be falling away, and it's inconsistent with God's Word. Scripture is clear:

"And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching" Hebrews 10:24-25.

What it does mean is that the pilgrim is no longer constrained to one house of worship. Instead, they may visit and fellowship at many different churches as the Holy Spirit directs. They may participate in corporate worship, engage with communities of faith, and build relationships with believers—but membership is no longer a necessity for the reasons we've discussed.

Think about it: the early church met in homes, synagogues, and wherever believers gathered. They "broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts" (Acts 2:46). Paul fellowshipped with believers everywhere he went without joining their local membership rolls. Jesus Himself visited synagogues and gatherings without institutional membership.

The pilgrim embraces spiritual freedom from institutional loyalty while maintaining biblical fellowship. They gather with the saints—they simply refuse to limit their assembly to a single institutional structure.

This distinction matters because it addresses the false choice many believers feel they're facing: conform to institutional expectations or abandon faith community entirely. There's a third way: faithful fellowship without institutional bondage.

The Pilgrim's Ministry: Serving Beyond the Building

But what about service? How do pilgrims serve if they're not ushering at the local church or teaching Sunday school?

Here's what I've learned: pilgrims can create their own ministries as they are led by the Holy Spirit. This might involve writing a blog, providing outreach services to nursing home residents, ministering to veterans, or reaching the incarcerated.

There are countless ways to serve, whether the pilgrim is traveling or remaining in their hometown.

The question of "where and when do they gather" is likewise wide open. You can visit McChurch one morning (or all seven mornings of the week), meet at your favorite coffee shop, gather in the local park, or organize walking church services. You might lead Bible studies with nursing home residents or create outdoor worship experiences.

Let me assure you: if you are on the pilgrim path, God will keep you very busy doing His work. The difference is that your ministry will be Spirit-led rather than committee-assigned, organic rather than institutional, and personally meaningful rather than duty-driven.

Best of all, you'll never feel stagnant again! When you're free to follow the Spirit's leading in service, ministry becomes an adventure rather than an existence.

Let me tell you: every day as a pilgrim—unless I choose to pull the covers over my head and not get out of bed—is filled with reading, praying, listening, studying, writing, teaching, evangelizing, counseling, coaching, comforting, and yes, even preaching!

When you're living the Fellowship of the Unashamed Monday through Saturday, from 6:00 AM till 11:00 PM, Sunday legitimately feels like it should be a day of rest and recuperation. It's time to recharge the spiritual batteries rather than draining them like some electric vehicle.

The Pilgrim's Commitment: Yes Means Yes

Here's another crucial point: there's "normal anxiety" when we leave versus when we hop. The Holy Spirit reminds me that

"But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' be 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one" Matthew 5:37.

Waffling from leaving only to return to a different church membership isn't consistent. If we're going to depart on the pilgrim's path, we need to do so sober-minded. This isn't about indecision or spiritual wandering—it's about making deliberate, Spirit-led commitments.

The hopper moves casually, driven by preferences and comfort. The pilgrim departs decisively, driven by conscience and calling. Once you've recognized that institutional membership compromises your spiritual freedom, going back to that system—even at a "better" church—misses the point entirely.

Reclaiming the Pilgrim Identity

So let's stop apologizing. Let's stop accepting the "church hopper" label as if it's a spiritual diagnosis.

A pilgrim isn't wandering aimlessly. They're on a journey toward a true home, and they refuse to settle for anything less than the real thing. They're willing to be:

• Spiritually homeless rather than spiritually compromised

• Uncomfortable rather than complacent

• Misunderstood rather than conformist

• Growing rather than just attending

Christendom vs. Christianity: The Distinction That Changes Practice

When people ask if I'm a "Christian," I hesitate. Not because I'm ashamed of Christ, but because I'm forced to ask: "What do you mean by Christian?"

Kierkegaard offered a distinction that clarified my understanding: there's a profound difference between "Christendom" and "Christianity." Christendom is the cultural, institutional, socially acceptable version of faith. Christianity is the radical, transformative, life-altering relationship with the living Christ.

You can leave Christendom and find Christianity. In fact, sometimes you have to.

In practice, I'm more likely to say I'm an ambassador of Christ, a Follower of the Way, a disciple of Jesus, or a card-carrying member of the Fellowship of the Unashamed.

If I'm wrong in my walk, I pray God never questions my passion—my heart—as one of His followers. I just pray that if my compass heading is off, He'll nudge me back on course.

This is the power of reading and studying His Word and praying without ceasing—it's nearly impossible to get too far off the narrow path. But I can surely be led astray if I remain a dutiful congregant in a church that has lost its way.

No, thank you.

The Road to Emmaus

I think I can have much more authentic conversations with the Most High God as a "pilgrim" on the road to Emmaus. Perhaps Jesus will appear in the flesh, or through another sojourner, or in the breaking of bread with fellow travelers.

Because here's something else I've discovered: Jesus so often meets us after we've left the place we thought He was supposed to be. He meets us on the road, in our confusion and disappointment. He walks with us, enters our conversation, and makes our hearts burn by revealing Himself in the Scriptures.

He's found in the journey, not just the destination, as we sit before Him on the Judgment Seat.

Maybe Your Pilgrimage Starts Now

So if you're tired of defending your spiritual hunger, if you're done apologizing for wanting more than religious maintenance, if you refuse to choose between stagnation and compromise—welcome to the pilgrimage.

Your willingness to be spiritually homeless rather than spiritually compromised isn't a character flaw—it's a mark of authentic faith.

The narrow path was never meant to be walked in lockstep with institutional expectations. It was meant to be walked in step with the Spirit, wherever He leads.

Even if that makes you look like a "church hopper" to those who've forgotten what it means to follow "on fire" after God.

Walk on, my brothers and sisters. Let your pilgrim adventure begin. We’ll be waiting for you on the narrow path. Please let us know if this perspective resonates with you.

Related Posts:

• Why Church Hopping Isn't Backsliding: 3 Models to Find Your Fit

• Why Are We Here?

• Fellowship of the Unashamed

Reference: 

Barna, G. (2022, May 12). Shocking results concerning the worldview of Christian pastors [Research report]. Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University. https://www.arizonachristian.edu/2022/05/12/shocking-lack-of-biblical-worldview-among-american-pastors/

--- *Trace Pirtle is a retired university professor, pilgrim blogger, and founder of Faith in Action Ministry, Texas Hill Country. He writes for Christians who refuse to settle for Sunday morning faith while prayer-walking the narrow path in Kerrville, Texas. Welcome home, pilgrim.