What is Beth-El Fellowship and Our History?
In 1993, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me that it was a good time to start a fellowship to deal with the increasing number of pastors and churches, both denominational and independent, that were looking to us (The House of the Lord®) for mentoring, teaching, guidance, support, and acccountability.
This impression was in keeping with my secondary burden and vision, which was to be a leadership training resource center for the Church community in the region and beyond. It is out of this impression, burden, and vision that we organized the Beth-El Fellowship of Visionary Churches (BFVC).
Want to learn more about Beth-El? Click here to view a presentation.
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What better way could we begin to fulfill that vision than by organizing a fellowship to mentor, teach, and hold accountable the pastors and churches who are looking to us for guidance and support? I am using the name Beth-El, because of its biblical significance. The name "Beth-El" means "The House of God." Therefore, the "Beth-El" Fellowship of Visionary Churches will be a fellowship of "Houses of God." (Excerpt by Bishop Johnson from a 1993 Vision Statement)
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The word "fellowship" means:
1. communion: a sharing of common interests, goals, experiences, or views
2. society: a group of people who share common interests, goals, experiences, or views
3. companionship: companionship or friendly association
4. similarity: membership in a group, or the sharing of characteristics with others
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Although the BFVC was initially organized to support independent churches, we have quickly realized that churches with denomination affiliation may also need some type of support network to undergird them in their mission of helping to usher in the final manifestation of the Kingdom of God. The BFVC is committed to assisting pastors and churches in important areas that many seminaries, Bible colleges and Bible Institutes, as well as denominational conferences seem to vastly ignore. As a result, many pastors admit (if only secretly) to feeling inadequate, unprepared and/or alone in their call to the ministry.
Pastors and churches don't have to settle for being mediocre or even good, but should pursue greatness in the Kingdom of God. In this season, the Holy Spirit is directing us to seek His desire even more and expand our vision, and we invite you and your church to be a part of our Fellowship and the next move of God.
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