.
Bethany
Association: An Update on Women
Living Single for the Lord in
Sword of the Spirit.
A Little Bethany History
Ten years since we first gathered from around
the Sword of the Spirit in Lansing, USA.
Tentative steps were all we felt able to take
together in 2005, we were not yet sure of
ourselves as a unit, back then we were only a
collection of community women from around the
world, each having In common a call from God to
be his alone, alongside a call to be local
community members.
We had no idea the adventure God had in mind for
us...
Now, what I feel most is mutual love and
confidence in our sure and shared hope that our
individual and corporate Bethany offering to God
is, in some mysterious way, pleasing to him. In
2015 at this Conference, when we prayed and
shared together, there was a unique warmth and
deep understanding as we listened to one
another, in the prayer and fellowship of
Bethany.
- Mags
T.(Antioch Community, London)
Women in Love with Jesus
What a joy being asked by the Bethany
Association if I would contribute to their
newsletter. It has been my privilege these past
few years to be chairman of the Bethany
committee in Europe. The road these ladies tread
is narrow and long, a rocky path so easy to trip
and stumble, but they are never alone, for
together they travel for the One they love. Yes
I see others joining them on this special trail,
infected by the hunger of these women in love
with their Lord.
What a huge gift to us all in the Sword of the
Spirit. We have the men’s brotherhood, the
Servants of the Word, and we have experienced
the overflow of fruit from their calling. We now
likewise have an expression for those ladies who
would consider a life set apart, single for the
Lord.
So I would like to thank God for this grace he
is lavishing on our communities, and I would
like to thank these ladies for answering this
call, and deciding to “give him their all.”
- Trevor
Perry (Former Senior Co-ordinator, Antioch
Community, London)
Such a Time as This
"For such a time as this..." Esther 4:14. This
quote has become a theme for us in the Sword of
the Spirit, especially among our youth. But I
think of this passage in a special way when I
think of my sisters in Bethany who have chosen to
live single for the Lord in the midst of our
communities throughout the world.
In the story of Esther we read that she has been
placed in the King’s court, alone and away from
her family. She has been called upon to stand for
her people and intercede with the king in order to
save the Jews from destruction.
For such a time as this, we in Bethany Association
have been called to live and serve the mission of
the Sword of the Spirit within the context of our
local community and to intercede with the Lord for
those who need his salvation. Sometimes it feels
hidden and alone but knowing my sisters are
serving in the same way throughout our communities
brings strength and courage.
May all of us do our part to respond to his call
on our lives to share the good news of Jesus
Christ in such a time as this!
- Sherry Snyder (President of
International Bethany Council)
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