I heard the story of Ben Larson this morning as I pulled in to the parking lot. Needless to say, I stayed in my van and listened to the end. The fuller, print version with pictures and more audio can be found at. Click on the links (red text on the blog) to hear or [...]
This Sunday, our second offering will be for Ministry Shares. Ministry Shares are a way that we give to both our Classis and the Christian Reformed Church of North America. Both the classis and the denomination divide their expenses among the churches to determine what each congregation’s “share” of the ministry costs are based on [...]
A friend reminded me that there are other tragedies in the world besides Haiti. The Congo is one. In this New York Times article, Nicholas Kristof talks about one woman, Lisa, who is making a difference. In the video you find on that page, they have this conversation: Nicholas: So, Lisa, I have to ask [...]
I ran across a video today on LeadingSmart.com about Valleys – specifically, the valleys that early Christians walked through. There is a real value to studying history. In part, it helps keep our own lives in perspective. The Early Church from Granger Community on Vimeo. By the way, did you know that on Sunday at [...]
All right, so it’s cold outside and most of us are hoping for summer, but not really thinking about it much yet. But some of us are! Specifically, we’re thinking about summer activities and what we as individuals and as a congregation might be involved in. It is looking like we will not be involved [...]
As our Classis gets ready to meet again (March 1 and 2 in Edina), I thought you should be able to read this note that we just received from the clerk of Classis. “I hope it will run as smoothly as the one in September! Wayne Tobak…informed us that that was the cheapest – as [...]
It’s always nice to hear about your Alma Mater and your denomination’s official college in a positive light. What better friends could a country have? Or the other people on the flight, for that matter? What’s particularly interesting to me, however, is the comments about the terrorist himself. “He had extremist views and he wanted [...]
I just finished listening to the first two chapters of Crazy Love by Francis Chan while running on a treadmill. (Quick question: at what point does jogging become running? I think I’m still jogging, but running sounds a lot better.) But could you get any more fully alive! Heart pumping at 165 beats per minute [...]
I’ve started following a very intriguing blog. Thought-provoking. Question-asking. Today’s post was written by someone I’ve never heard of before, but might try to get to know better. Check it out! Also, I’m going to start putting interesting artistic stuff on the Bethel Art Camp Facebook page. Some of it is quite powerful and gives [...]
We (Bethel staff) were just wondering the other day how it’s going with the transition to “announcements by email.” There seems to be some confusion still for those who are not signed up for “announcements by email” as to whether they’re getting all the news. The short answer is, “If you’re getting the worship folder [...]
Well, it’s official! We have now switched our website over from Joomla to WordPress. Too much information? That’s fine. That long and the short of it is that they are both free (except for our host), but WordPress is a lot easier to manage. This should allow us to maintain an up-to-date website with minimal [...]
Bethel Church is going to be hosting a Christmas party on Sunday, December 20 beginning at 4:00 pm and you and your friends and family are invited to attend! We’re looking forward to a festive time together where we “Celebrate the Child!” Obviously, at a Christmas party we’ll be celebrating The Child, Jesus, and the [...]
I ran across an interesting question today: “What Would a Techno-Savvy Church Startup Look Like? Perhaps It’s Got Some Soul…” You can find the article here. We obviously live in a very different world than our parents did. Sometimes, we wonder if we are using the available technology to its fullest to help us in [...]
We all need more time. Some of us are looking for more time to get all of our work done; others are looking for time to relax from their labors. Somes are looking for more time with significant people in their lives; others are looking for more alone time. And most of us would say [...]
At what point do you become a part of the Body of Christ – when you are baptized or when you make a public profession of your faith? Do we receive God’s grace when we understand how God forgives sin or when we trust that He has forgiven our sin? Who can truly understand how [...]
Our Council recently ran a survey on switching the order of our Sunday School and Worship Service. Some people have suggested that we would do well to have worship first, then Sunday School after. Some have had experiences at churches where that has worked really well for them. Others have had experiences were it didn’t [...]
Over the years, Bethel Church has shown a great deal of care for me and my family in a number of different ways: After threats to give us a weekend on Mille Lacs in an ice house, you gave us instead a gift certificate to the Mall of America. Following in that tradition, you’ve blessed [...]
Many Questions I’ve been intrigued lately by some of the new questions I’ve been asked! “Why do we use leavened bread instead of unleavened bread in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper?” “What do you think of the rock group KISS? They’re one of my favorites, but I think they are often misunderstood by Christians.” [...]
Taste of Bethel For a number of reasons (sicknesses, hunting, etc.), our recent Taste of Bethel class was a small one. While we had good conversations about the Reformed faith and membership at Bethel, the small size means that we got done early. As a result, Taste of Bethel will not be meeting on Sunday. [...]
Keeping the Sabbath I hear that some people had some good conversation yesterday regarding Sabbath observance. I had one person ask me, “Where are the rules? How am I supposed to know what to do?” Good question. While we talked about Sabbath yesterday during our worship service, the real rub comes when we get home [...]
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