Bethany Covenant Church

The sermon from Sunday, September 1, 2024
Numbers 9:15-23
As Bethany Covenant prepares to move into our next stage, we look to Israel's movement through the wilderness, God's provision for the present, and vision for the future.

Following God September1, 2024Numbers 9:15-23As Bethany Covenant prepares to move into the next stage, we look to Israel's own movement through the wilderness and God's pr...

Who doesn’t love potluck brunch? Or celebrating God’s generosity?

Did you know the original practice of tithing looked like hosting a community meal in the presence of God to celebrate God’s generosity? Well, that’s what we’re going for! Join us!

We’re having a special Brunch Church this Sunday! Join us at 11am for a Celebration of God’s generosity to us as a church.

Today was Youth Sunday at Bethany Covenant and our students led us in all kinds of ways throughout the service. They sang, they prayed, they read scripture, and they did it all so wonderfully well. We’re so grateful for these students and we wish them and their teachers many blessings as they begin a new year of learning.

Here’s the blessing we prayed over them during the benediction (there are still a few copies left on the welcome desk in the donut shop if you’d like to pick up a copy!).

We’re so proud of these students and we’re excited to see how God will meet them in the coming year!

This Sunday we will celebrate students and teachers and bless them as they head back to school! Our youth will be leading the worship service. Join us for this special time together!

Time: 11:00am
Location: 1307 E. Main St., St. Charles, IL (inside Dimples Donuts)

TOMORROW!

Join us for a special worship service celebrating Pastor Laura Tarro’s ordination on Sunday, August 4th at 9am at Pollyanna’s Brewing in St. Charles!

Professor, author, and New Testament scholar: Scot McKnight will be delivering the message.

Important meeting Wednesday night!

Important meeting Wednesday night! See details in the photo:

On June 2 we begin a new sermon series looking at the stories of Samuel, Saul, and David.

To learn more about the context, watch this short Bible Project video about 1 Samuel.

Book of 1 Samuel Summary | Watch an Overview Video What is the book of 1 Samuel about in the Bible? Watch as we explain its major themes and gain a deeper understanding of its place in the biblical story.

We’re ready for baptisms! We’re ready to grill! We’re ready to worship and celebrate together!

It might rain tomorrow, but the pavilion is large and there’s room enough for all of us!

SUNDAY, MAY 26th: Bethany Covenant will have an outdoor worship service with baptisms and a church picnic! See pictures for details.

Today is Pentecost Sunday.

Today the church celebrates the pouring out of the Holy Spirit that enabled the preaching of the good news in many languages.

The Holy Spirit came with wind and fire and filled the disciples with courage.

We celebrate the birth of the church, the gospel being preached to the nations, and all the signs of the kingdom that attended the arrival of the Spirit. Men and women prophesied. People from all over the world heard about Jesus in their own language. Gifts of healing, restoration, and good works of caring for the vulnerable were the result.

The liturgical color is red.

This is the prayer of blessing we prayed for our students graduating from high school on Sunday:

Before you were even formed, God knew you.
While in your Mother's womb, God named you.
At your birth, God's breath filled you with life.
Today we celebrate what you have become
at this moment in time.

And so we pray,
God of our beginnings,
We thank you for the gifts of these graduates;
their excitement, their awesome wonder and curiosity,
their open speech and encouraging words.
Their contributions have blessed and challenged us,
and we have become a richer and more diverse community because of them.

As they step forward into the world that awaits,
comfort their fears with the full knowledge
of your divine presence.
Strengthen their resolve to walk in the footsteps of Jesus
as modern-day disciples in a world that needs their spirit.
Guide their feet as they move through life,
protecting them from the pitfalls of darkness
while they help to lead future generations
into the warmth and promise of your light.

We ask this blessing upon each of them,
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Source National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry (www.nfcym.org)

Join us next week on Pentecost Sunday for special guest preacher, Tony Pizarro (pictured here with Pastor Laura and Pastor Melissa).

This Sunday we’re starting a new sermon series about the early church in the book of Acts.

We’ll talk about the gift of the Holy Spirit, how the Spirit of Jesus transformed Jesus’ followers into living witnesses, and what this means for us.

The signs of the Spirit looked a lot like the purpose God’s Temple was supposed to serve in the life of Israel.

Book of Acts Summary: A Complete Animated Overview (Part 1) Watch our overview video on the book of Acts, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. In Acts, Jesus sends the Holy Spirit...

Join us on Maundy Thursday for a Seder dinner. We'll learn more about Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples.

Maundy Thursday: Seder Dinner — Bethany Covenant Church MAUNDY THURSDAY SEDER DINNER: Thursday, March 28th, 6-8pm. We’ll learn about the last supper Jesus shared with his disciples and eat food from Just Kabobs. This is a great time to invite a friend to join us! 

Join us for worship on Easter Sunday at 11am!

Pastor Melissa is participating in this walk on Saturday. Let her know if you’re interested in joining her!

Time change this Sunday!

What is the work of Jesus? Proclaiming freedom.

Jesus' Work: Proclaiming Freedom 2/4/24; Mark 1:29-39

It’s no mistake that the sign we make with the ashes is a cross.

On Ash Wednesday, I reminded people that they were formed from dust and to the dust they would return. Repent and believe the good news of your salvation in Jesus Christ.

Jesus makes the difference.
The cross makes the difference.

You are going to die. Humanity was created whole and placed in a garden of fruitfulness and peace. But chaos invaded that sacred space and our world has carried the scars of brokenness ever since.

Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust.

A sign of the cross on your forehead, a public witness of your only hope in life and in death.

As a pastor, I love Ash Wednesday. All the pretense and posturing is stripped bare. You are made from dirt, and one day you will return to it. And then I say, “By God’s mercy and grace God has granted your salvation by the unspeakably precious gift of his son, Jesus Christ.”

Then I lean forward and say your name while rubbing ashes on your forehead. You are formed from dust, to dust you will return. Repent and believe the good news of your salvation in Jesus Christ!

We in the church have allowed so many layers of cultural Christianity to form over the person of Jesus. Those layers are tied to family traditions, church practices, and our nostalgia—and if we’re not careful—they can smother and distort the voice of Jesus and the way of the cross.

Lent is a time to follow Jesus in the wilderness. Quiet those voices that compete with Jesus. Interrogate and peel back the layers of cultural Christianity. The only way forward is the way of Jesus and the cross. Repent and believe the good news. Freedom. Jesus says, I came to proclaim freedom and salvation for those in bo***ge, body and soul.