Thoughts on Bethel

So last week was my trip to visit Bill Johnson's church, Bethel, out in Redding California. I attended the Advance Leader's conference which was by invitation only. I was there with 800 of my closest friends, of which included Sandy Freese and Jill Sloneker.

After a stopover in Napa Valley on the way out (What happens in Napa stays in Napa!) we headed up 3 hours north from there to Redding. It is beautiful country surrounded by hills. Bethel Church is located up on a hill and the view from there is breathtaking on clear days.

Besides the breathtaking view, the culture at at Bethel was inspiring. I wasn't surprised that they were so steeped in the supernatural, but they made it very NATURAL. There was a sense of anticipation for God to move in powerful ways and the prophetic there was very normal. Within 5 minutes of walking in the door, a man named Bill offered to draw prophetic pictures for us and pray for us. Apparently that is something Bethel teaches at their Supernatural School of Ministry. After he was done, Bill took us on a tour of the building and shared with us about the School. The school currently has almost 900 students in it's first year program, approximately 250 in the second year and 50-60 in their 3rd year. Each year the student is invited back based on their performance and God's calling on them. Bill had completed his 3rd year and was not on staff but very involved behind the scenes. By the way, did I mention Bill was in his late 70's?

One of the other highlights of being at the conference was of course hearing Bill Johnson speak but also Kris Valloton and Danny Silk, additional teaching pastors there. They spoke to a room full of pastors and senior leaders of having honor in the church culture for each other. How important it is to honor those who have walked the spiritual path before us. Danny Silk spoke about being the importance of being in covenant relationship with one another, not ending relationships when it hits storms. He referenced Bill Johnson's support for Todd Bentley as an example of support for a friend and fellow pastor even through a moral failure.

Kris also spoke of making our churches a safe place for people to make mistakes, especially when people are learning and growing in a culture of operating in supernatural gifts. They see the church as the classroom, teaching and training with hitting the streets and loving people as the end in mind. In fact, first year students of the School of Supernatural Ministry is graduated unless they have failed at least 3 times. If they don't fail, they have not risked.

They made a point of how many churches would change processes and systems to stop behavior that is unwanted. For example, if a church had an open mic for prophetic words and someone gave something that was off, they would stop having open mic versus using it as a teaching moment for the one who gave the off-balanced word. Honor in their culture means speaking the truth in love even when it is difficult and redirecting people when necessary. Such a healthy choice of leadership!

Then Bill shared of so many healing testimonies that had occurred on their property and through their teams. I came back to Ohio with my faith infused. It is amazing how much of a malaise you can get into when you are not in an environment where the supernatural is not commonly experienced. It becomes the exception versus the norm and I can find myself quickly leaking the faith that was infused into me. It just reminds me how much I have to stay in God's presence and word, believing it CAN be different. How critical it is to surround myself with people who are hungry and desperate for the power of God to be demonstrated through signs and wonders, seeing lives being transformed.

But I have to say my favorite part of my visit was the Alabaster House, which is their 24/7 prayer environment. It is an octagonal building that is walled with windows giving a full view of the Redding area. Located high on a hill, it gives people who are praying an opportunity to face any direction and pray over that regional area. Surrounding the building is gardens, a walking path, a pond with koy fish and of course, the pool of Bethseda (see picture below). In the water pool, there is a concrete sculture of an angel. Just stunning.

On our last night, Bill Johnson and his team laid hands on every single person at the conference imparting to us. Jill, Sandy and I all noticed a tangible difference in the spirit when Bill laid his hands on us. So we all walked away with the belief that we had received an impartation of anointing and will keep pressing in for all that God has for us here in Ohio.