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October 18, 2022

All-Church Quarterly Strategy Meeting (October 16, 2022)

Amanda Knoke

Director for Communications

Meeting Highlights

  • Treasurer’s Report
  • Motion to Separate our Campuses Into Three Distinct Churches
  • Membership Report
  • Global Outreach Report
  • Church Planting Report

Treasurer’s Report

Tim Brinkmann presented the Treasurer’s Report.

Third Quarter 2022 Summary

  • Giving was $1.8M
  • Spending was $2.2M
    • Spending exceeded giving by $423K

YTD 2022 Summary

  • Giving was $5.52M
  • Spending was $6.67M
    • Spending has exceeded giving by $1.14M

Mortgages

Bethlehem Mortgage for North Campus

  • $603K principal balance as of 9/30/22
  • Reduced by $301K YTD

Bethlehem Mortgage for South Campus

  • $6.31M principal balance as of 9/30/22
  • Reduced by $147K YTD

Praise & Prayer

  • Praise for increasing clarity of vision on transition and for talented, godly leaders who are working hard on a plan, and for committed members who are supporting our mission
  • Prayer for congregational consensus regarding the proposed transition plan, and that fourth-quarter giving would be strong enough to not saddle campuses (and possible separate churches) with extra debt in 2023.

Motion to Separate Our Campuses Into Three Distinct Churches

Elder Nick Brazis (North Campus) presented context from the Council of Elders for the following motion and detailed some of the aspects of the campus separation/transition that are addressed in an elder board resolution that was unanimously approved on September 6, 2022. The context included a brief timeline of God’s grace to Bethlehem over its 150-year history.

The motion was as follows:
The membership authorizes the Elders of the Church to take all actions necessary related to the separation of the Church and the creation of three separate and distinct churches.

The motion was approved by a vote of 801 to 28.

Membership Report

Pastor Ken Currie presented the membership report.

  • At the end of the July 31 All-Church QSM, the membership stood at 2,232. Since that time, 68 members have been added and 22 members have been removed.
  • Total Members at the start of the October 16 Quarterly Strategy Meeting: 2,278.

Global Outreach Report

Pastor Brad Nelson presented the Global Outreach report.

  • Pastor Brad shared some of the convictions that Bethlehem has had in global ministry and also with the Global Diaconate, which we started in order to help the poorest of the poor.
  • With the August 1, 2022, move toward campus autonomy and the disbursement of our 114 global partners, Downtown has 52, North has 38, and South has 24.
  • With our Fill These Cities 25 x ’25 vision, we wanted to reach 25 unreached, unengaged people groups. We have reached, after six years, two UUPGs. Reaching 25 UUPGs has proven to be a difficult challenge, but it is encouraging because some global partners have restructured their ministries in order to reach more unreached, unengaged peoples.
  • A global partner shared about their three main ministry areas, including an area in the mountains where they were able to share the gospel with 47 people who had never heard the name Jesus before.

Church Planting Report

Haddon Anderson (former Church Planting Resident, South Campus) presented a church planting update.

  • The Good News Church in Eagan has now been planted and had its second worship service this Sunday (October 16). It’s currently meeting in the second sanctuary of the South Suburban Evangelical Free Church in Eagan. Thanks to God for providing a place for them to worship!
  • Caleb Figgers, a Bethlehem College & Seminary MDiv graduate, is serving alongside Haddon as a second elder.

South Campus Special Meeting (4pm, October 16, 2022)

The South Campus Family Meeting was held October 16, 2022 (preceding the All-Church QSM), and included the following meeting highlights:

  • Membership Report
  • Updates and Testimonies

Membership Report

In executive session, the assembly removed 15 people from membership and added 7 new members for an updated count of 328 members affiliated with the South Campus.

Updates and Testimonies

  • Peter Thorpe gave an update on the recent meetings and discussions of the South Elders.
  • Several people gave an update on the Hawaii mission trip.
  • A global partner gave an update on their ministry in South Asia.

Downtown Campus Special Meeting (September 25, 2022)

The Downtown Campus Special Meeting was held September 25, 2022, and included the following meeting highlights:

  • Membership Report
  • Pastoral Updates

Membership Report

Elder Co-chair Darin Brink presented the membership report. The current membership of the Downtown Campus is 992. Since the last meeting, 13 people were added to membership. The membership report recommended 15 members for removal and the motion was approved.

Pastoral & Ministry Updates

  • Kenny Stokes and Darin Brink answered several questions about the transition and what that would look like for the Downtown Campus.
  • Jared Wass gave an update on small groups and Sunday school classes.
  • Chuck Steddom gave an update on outreach ministry.
  • Brad Nelson gave an update on Global Outreach.
  • Bud Burk gave an update on children’s ministry.
  • Kory Anderson gave an update on young adult ministry.
  • René González gave an update on worship ministry.
  • Andrew Ballard gave an update on youth ministry.
  • Ken Currie gave an update on his transition to college ministry.

     

Thank you to Church Clerk, Bobby Ratliff; Tony Morales; and Matt Moore for their assistance in preparing the updates.