by Jayla Ward • 4 minutes
Courage doesn’t always include fanfare. It doesn’t always look like fighting in the heat of battle. It doesn’t always look like standing against a major corporation. It doesn’t always look like standing to speak in front of thousands.
Sometimes it is simply taking time to extend a hand to someone in need. Sometimes it is simply creating space for the hurting and vulnerable to find refuge.
Sometimes, courage means keeping the door open for a complete stranger.
Pastor Chris Avell of Dad’s Place Church in Bryan, Ohio is a great example of courage, resilience and fortitude.
Pastor Chris chose to make the church not just a place to gather on Sundays, but also a safe place out of the weather for the most vulnerable in his community. The church door is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In the cold Ohio winter, it is a warm place to enjoy a meal. In the heat of the summer, it is a place to stay cool and get refreshed, and even bring your pets.
But operating a 24-hour facility and meeting the needs of those who enter is no easy task. It requires love, determination and grit. It’s not easy spending sleepless nights offering a safe haven for people.
So, is it worth it? Yes.
Because at the end of the day, it is the right thing to do. If not you, then who? Who will love on the least of these? Who will notice those on the fringe of society, those who may have even given up on themselves? Who will say, “Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest”?
For Pastor Chris, it’s his daily mission to be present and give hope to as many as he can with the resources he has. And yet, city officials refuse to see this. They do not see a man who loves his community and wants to care for it. They see a troublemaker.
In late 2023, the city sent Pastor Chris and Dad’s Place a letter threatening to shut them down, giving them only 10 days or face a new criminal offense with each day of operation.
On a Sunday morning, New Year’s Eve, the police handed Pastor Chris a citation stating he would be prosecuted on 18 criminal charges.
His crime? Compassion.
Imagine the shock, the fear and the frustration. After faithfully serving your community, all the countless sleepless nights, all the tear-filled conversations, and now you are being regarded as a criminal.
Did any of it matter? What now? Who do I call? Is this it?
In that moment, Pastor Chris turned to God in prayer, asking for wisdom. Knowing what the city was doing to him and his church was wrong. He couldn’t let the injustice stand.
The Courage to Fight Back
Pastor Chris had a difficult decision to make. Armed with hope and conviction, he showed courage and decided to sue the city for violating his constitutional rights. Of course, for Pastor Chris, it wasn’t just about clearing his name. It was about the lives of the people that God put on his heart and making sure the church could continue caring for anyone who needed help.
This wasn’t going to be any easy journey. Quite the opposite. It would be a true test of his faith and perseverance.
The easiest thing would have been to yield to the city when they first sent the letter. But Pastor Chris knew that wasn’t the right thing to do. He didn’t make the easy decision when he chose to stand for his convictions and the people of Bryan. But he made it, nonetheless.
It takes guts to care for those the world has abandoned. It takes guts when the very city you’re caring for is lined up against you. It takes guts to be the face of a national news story and experience the predictable backlash.
The legal battle has been raging for two years in multiple courtrooms. It has been an unrelenting journey of harassment, discrimination and prosecution. Yet, through it all, Pastor Chris, his family, and his congregation have maintained an attitude of grace. It doesn’t make each day any easier, but it does deepen the impact of the ministry.
Their resilience and dedication truly embody James 1:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Pastor Chris’ story is one of so many who truly want to transform their communities and are punished for it. Yet, the government cannot criminalize compassion.
“My faith demands that I take action and that I lay down my life in love. It demands not just that I say that I love you, but that I live that out through my actions,” says Pastor Chris. “I am compelled by my love for Christ to lay down my life for anyone who walks through the doors at Dad’s Place.”
May we all live with this boldness, courage and love.
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