I recently attended the Leadership Advance Conference at Bethel Church in Redding, CA. to see some of the things going there and find out for myself what I thought and discerned from the experience.
My wife went to Bethel on a visit recently and came back describing of an amazing spiritual experience, prayer ministry like few she had ever seen and profoundly powerful worship. I was moved by her description of the happenings in Redding and vowed to go soon. When my pastor called me up and asked my attend Leadership Advance with him, I jumped at the opportunity.
I have often said, you cannot “think” an experience from God, you can only have one. As uncomfortable as some experiences in churches can be for some people, it is true you can’t “think” an experience. The pendulum between faith and reason has swung almost entirely over to the thinking, soul realm in many churches today to the point that having certain kinds of spiritual experience tends to be met with a suspicion and fear. I personally find it hard to believe that the absence of spiritual expression in church is God. All too often, churches have little if any spiritual expression in church. How can a God, who describes himself as “Jealous” be anything other than emotional. And while I don’t think that can be God, I also find it hard to believe that and anything goes, off the charts experiential affair is as well – although I will always allow God the room to stretch my personal tent whatever direction he chooses to go.
A great word from Bethel’s children’s education director was mentioned in a workshop that I attended. He said, “If you can do something on your own [in ministry] without the Holy Spirit, it’s not big enough. How true! We wonder in church why there is no power? Well perhaps it’s because we’re trying to do too much on our own power instead of using God’s power? It stands to reason that God’s power is probably hard to bring to the body unless we are tapping into something other than our own abilities. Therefore, we must become intimate with the Father and able to share an deeper level of personal experience with him. When we do this, I believe it opens up our expressions in so many other ways; as in more devout prayer, heart-felt worship, obedience and revelation.
Bethel Church has done something that other churches should notice, which is embraced intimacy with the Father resulting in great revival and unimaginable growth the last few years. More than anything, they want the presence of God – not big facilities, not big tithes or just bigger congregations and buildings. Yes, those are all nice, but they are byproducts of a deeper, more intimate affair with the Father and Bethel seems to have it. By tapping into the presence of God, Bethel experiences more joy, freedom and love than any church I have ever been to. All the religion in the world cannot compete with God’s presence and Bethel seems to have embraced that fact for which they are openly criticized simply because they are different and some of the things happening there unexplainable.
Perhaps Bethel can say it best. I want to share this paragraph from Kris Vallotten, the prophetic leader at Bethel who writes in his book, Developing a Supernatural Lifestyle, that life in church shouldn’t be business as usual anymore, “I am convinced that religion is the father of genetic cloning. Religion invented cloning long before the world ever thought of it. Religion has a way of sucking the most powerful people on the planet into a spiritual look-alike contest and calling it discipleship. True discipleship is meant to empower people to be transformed into the image of their creator, but religion redefines the terms, conforming people into replicas of their leaders. Religion takes God’s mighty men and makes them artifacts in a museum.”
So I implore you to be different. Don’t let church become the sterile environment it is in so many places around our country. Dare to be different. Dare to expect great things like visions, miracles, signs and wonders. Hold your leaders accountable to that expectation if it’s not happening in your church. God hasn’t stopped working in those things, we just don’t know how to bring them to body. Dare to expect a visitation from the Father, that hopefully will become a co-habitation through your continued obedience and cooperation with the Holy Spirit.
Below follows my impressions of Bethel:
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
My first impressions of Bethel were everything from original and unique to spiritual. Driving in the entrance of Bethel, entering cars were met with 500 cheering, flag waving, students welcoming leaders as they arrived. When was the last time you came to a church or conference where you were met with more honor than that. Everywhere you walk at Bethel, people in service pray and bless the visitors. Smiling faces greet you no matter where you go and others visiting were incredibly courteous.
TEACHINGS
In three days of teachings from the likes of Bill Johnson, Danny Silk or Kris Vallotten, I didn’t hear one thing that contradicted or even loosely challenged the word of God. Never did any of the men and women of Bethel Church ever say one thing that professed anything other than scripture. One of the things taught at Bethel was about the proper alignment of governance in church in which Danny Silk explained how church today follows a pastor-led model instead of an Apostle/Prophet led model. Silk says, that is why the church resembles the world more than ever before, because it has broken away from God’s proper order explained in 1 Cor. 12:27-28 and until it accepts that fact, it will never reach its potential. Other teachings were superb as well, presented as smaller workshops or breakout sessions where attendees could interact with Bill Johnson’s staff.
SPIRITUALITY
People are not comfortable with open manifestations of the spirit will not be comfortable with Bethel. For some reason, if you show no emotion, or act like nothing is happening on the inside of you, that’s God. But if you openly express the impact on your life as they do at Bethel, that’s not God. I’m not sure where these rules came from, but clearly, Bethel’s most loyal walk in the spirit, are sometimes slain in the spirit, or are struck with joy. Just about any response they have comes under scrutiny because they are open to the possibilities of God rather than closed.
Bethel is also home of the School of the Supernatural. The very idea of this is probably offensive to those who hold to more traditional expressions for the Christian faith, but at least Bethel is trying. From what I saw, they offer a dramatic amount of material and teaching of a responsible spiritual walk through their school without squelching spiritual expression altogether as seems to exist in many other Christian Churches.
BILL JOHNSON
Bill Johnson believes in a church that is actually transformed in the presence of God. As I observe around the world, I see amazing creativity. God created all of it. But in the church, is see no such creativity. Churches typically are systems made by men who want to build “kingdoms” more than they want to the presence of God. I watched Bill Johnson wait on God several times during my visit and was amazed by his patient, still spirit. Always discerning what is going on around him, Bill Johnson’s spiritual sensitivities should be envy of every leader. In the words of Graham Cooke, “If we are a church unchanged by the God we serve, we are nothing more than the Rotary Club with tongues.”
I was thoroughly impressed by Bill Johnson and had a brief opportunity to meet and speak with him. He was nothing less than honoring and nothing more than humble. Would you want anything more from your pastor?
FACILITIES
The reason I am writing about this is because there are often assumptions made based upon the way a facility looks. Bethel is large – after all it hosts conferences and guests from all over the world, but it is far from extravagant. The children’s ministry area clunked loudly every time the air came on. The auditorium seats about 800 people and is a far cry short of many churches. There are various rooms where smaller groups can meet at Bethel which also offers a coffee shop and bookstore, stocked full of both Bethel and non-Bethel materials.
Bethel also owns a second location that seats about 250 about 2 miles away from its main campus for its School of the Supernatural. Again, nothing too extravagant for a body that large.
Finally, Bethel fashions an amazing House of Prayer with rooms to pray, rest and meditate on the Lord. The main soaking room has an unassuming fountain with music creating an ambiance for prayer that is quite unique and moving. A table sits by the door with a book of written words that people have left for Bethel. A drawing book with pictures, some drawn by children, is also there for people to look through. Finally the grounds around the Prayer house are nicely landscaped with stone paths and benches where people can go outside to spend their time with God if the would rather.
SUMMARY
There is no doubt going to be people who are uncomfortable with the freedom that Bethel enjoys. However, we serve a supernatural God and yet, when we see a supernatural occurrence, we want to curse it. We don’t recognize the very God we serve. We might as well be saying, “Please God, come. Please come, please come, please come – just don’t manifest.” Clearly, we don’t know him like Bethel does. They are not afraid, even if they don’t always understand what is happening around them. As one pastor said to me while we were there, “Why can you cry your eyes out after having an experience with God and receive all the pats on the back of understanding you could conjure up, but when Joy comes on you and you feel laughter, happiness and excitement, they want to cast it out of you?” So I ask doubters…what does AMAZING joy feel like, act like, look like to you? If we are supposed to experience joy, where exactly is that being modeled.
All too often, I believe, that the lack of a healthy model is the reasons for problems that plague our society. For instance, no fathers in the home results in many social ills. The same goes for the Church. If no one models joy, freedom, spirituality, or fatherhood instead of always talking about it like it’s something sterile in a medical book that we’re completely removed from, how will we ever have more of it in our natural world.
I understand that we are not always going to agree on doctrines, but I truly do not understand why reasonable people cannot agree that God is 1) Supernatural, 2) Unpredictable, 3) Consistent, 4) Dynamic, 5) Alive and 6) Personal. If he is these things, he is not boring or boorish, heavy handed, but a loving Father who wants to see his kids get free.
Bethel is one church that has found its place. It is a church that is growing. It is one place where people can actually become more than pew fodder for pastors. Pastors should follow Bill Johnson’s example in that he seems to want a big people over a big church. If you go there, you’ll notice that Bill Johnson has both. Think about that for a while.