News Archive
Day 6 (Sunday)
What an amazing, challenging, encouraging, and faith building day today has been. Set off early to Bethel’s first morning service @ 8.30am. Simple and good worship, followed by a challenging message by one of their leaders. Then, after a quick pit stop in their coffee shop and a look around their Eagle Nest bookshop, had brief conversations with a couple of their senior leaders followed by a lengthy ‘interview’ with a delightful staff member called Ken Williams. He graciously allowed me to fire away about a whole raft of issues, ranging from how they do healing ministry, to pastoral failure, to church government, to staff and student recruitment (they’ve soon got a thousand students coming!), to resourcing, to women in leadership, plus tons more. He was sharp, kind and gracious, and finished up praying prophetically over Zoe and I. He was even kind enough to commend me for the range and incisive nature of the questions.The speaker on Sunday night was a guy called Kevin Dedmon. He is something else: funny, intelligent, humble, and slightly mad! Encouraged us to ensure we are open for a fuller and greater revelation of Jesus; “people oppose that which they don’t understand,” was one of his many challenging comments. Bethel has a number of folk who’ve paid a price for the church to be where it’s at today, not least from people misunderstanding and ostracising them. There’s only a small handful of people around from when Bill Johnson (senior leader) came 12 years ago. At least 2/3rds of the congregation have joined Bethel from other parts of the country; just moved to this small provincial town with no job, no family, just a belief that God’s calling them to be part of Bethel’s unfolding adventure. No wonder there’s a deep hunger for God around the place.
“He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his saviour.” (Ps 24:5). Obedience, stewardship and faithfulness to the vision that God gives you are always the clinchers in defining the degree of the favour and blessing of God upon your life (or church). This church is living testimony to it.