THE LORD’S SUPPER / BREAKING OF BREAD (COMMUNION)
We partake in the Lord’s Supper together every Sunday. This meeting kicks off our Sunday gatherings and is an hour in length. It’s a precious time of reflecting on the Lord’s Jesus sacrifice for us and partaking of the elements that commemorate this sacrifice, the bread and wine (loaf of bread and small wine cups). Men share short devotional thoughts and pray audibly while women pray silently. We also sing some hymns together.
Anyone is welcome to attend, but partaking of the Lord’s Supper elements is reserved for those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus and have made a personal commitment to Him. Find out more about what we believe regarding the Lord’s Supper.
FAMILY BIBLE HOUR / SUNDAY SCHOOL
The second meeting is when the preaching happens. This meeting is an hour in length, with the first 20 minutes including announcements and congregational singing for all in attendance. The final 40 minutes is dedicated to preaching/teaching from the Word of God. Preachers/teachers for the adults include the elders at the assembly, other capable men from Bethel, as well as visiting speakers from other assemblies. This meeting often includes a focus on the gospel, the good news of Jesus coming as our Saviour from sin.
While the preaching time is going on in the sanctuary for the adults, the children (up to 16 years old) go downstairs for Sunday School. There are classes for different ages where the children will receive age-appropriate biblical instruction from the teachers.
During this meeting there is also a supervised nursery available for young children (under 3 years old).
MID-WEEK PRAYER MEETING & BIBLE STUDY
Prayer is very important to us and features prominently in our mid-week meeting. During this hour-long meeting, the time is split evenly between prayer and studying God’s Word. This meeting is more informal than the Sunday meetings in terms of dress and structure.
Anyone with a prayer request is welcome to bring it forward at the meeting, and notes/letters from missionaries and Christian organizations are shared to highlight items for prayer. Men who feel led are encouraged to pray aloud while the women pray along silently. The assembly also shares prayer requests via email list as they come up during the week and we pray for each other in this way as well.
The Bible study portion of the meeting is often a continuous teaching series covering a specific topic (e.g. salvation), book of the Bible (e.g. Romans) or character from the Bible (e.g. David) over a number of weeks. Video studies are also sometimes used during this meeting.