Bethel has entered an intentional time of discernment about our ministry together. We are calling this “Bethel Reforming” and we are excited about what God is up to here among us and where God is leading us.
“Bethel Reforming” is centered around cottage meetings where we will dream, share, and listen for the Spirit of God as we form and re-form our life together in Christian community.
We will be focused on the 5 P’s (Prayer, Purpose, Principles, Priorities, and Possibilities).
Our cottage meetings, to which you were invited to attend in a personal letter sent to your home, are scheduled to last no more than 1 ½ hours. The leadership of Bethel will coordinate the meeting and lead you through a visioning process. There is a “catch-all” meeting at Bethel for anyone who was unable to attend the home meetings. This will be held in Discipleship Hall immediately after the 11:00 worship service on Sunday, April 29.
After our cottage meetings are finished we will compile the principles and possibilities together and invite the entire congregation to gather for a shared conversation on Sunday, May 20 in between worship services at 9:45 am.
At this gathering, we will hear from you again as you reflect upon and prayerfully discern what has been shared and communicated from the cottage meetings. The council will then take that information and prayerfully discern next steps and initiatives. When this process is complete, we will again gather the congregation for feedback and planning.
Our hope is that as we head into the Fall, we will have a clear set of initiatives and goals that will guide us forward immediately and into the future, toward 2020 and beyond.
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