Thrice frontman Dustin Kensrue became a worship pastor of Mars Hill Church's Bellevue campus when the band took a hiatus, but after a year or so, he stepped down from his position and switched to a smaller church in California following the Mark Driscoll scandal.
He opened up about his experience during a talk with Toby Morrell and Matt Carter of Bad Christian Podcast, since both of them also served at Mars Hill Church at different times.
"I learned a ton from being in Mars Hill. I'm kind of taking that with me," said Kensrue. "Something that Mars Hill did really well was having an eye for detail."
The flipside to that, according to the singer, was that everything was a performance and expectations for excellence were set at an all time high in the church, he says.
All three men agreed that the Mark Driscoll controversy continues to hound the Mars Hill Church, since they are constantly being asked about it. But Kensrue said that "most people are careful not to dig in and be nosey."
Driscoll was the founder of Mars Hill Church but he came under fire in 2014 for using questionable marketing strategies to promote his book, and using vulgar words and intimidation tactics.
Since Kensrue left, he has tried not to dwell on past negativity since it only "overshadows all the good." The singer has instead been focusing on his music and worship services. "I don't want to bring all of my Mars Hill brokenness with me," he explained.
Kensrue also talked about his band Thrice and confirmed that they will be doing several shows this year, including Canadian Amnesia Rock Fest from June 18 to 21 and Hevy Fest 2015 in the UK on August.
"I love making music with those guys, playing tours with those guys," said Kensrue, who keep insisting that Thrice never disbanded.
Other members of Thrice include Teppei Teranishi for guitars, Ed Breckenridge on bass, and Riley Breckenridge on drums.
In the meantime, Kensrue will be releasing his solo album Carry the Fire on April 21, which will be a follow up to his 2007 release Please Come Home.
