Weekly Bulletin
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Sunday Worship
Weekly Schedule
Join us for a Sunday morning donut fellowship before our single indoor service at 9:30am. (No ABCs, Sunday School, or Children’s Church. Nursery will be available.)
Then, come back at 6:00pm for our Summer Celebration—an indoor evening service with worship, testimonies, prayer, and more. Afterward, we’ll head outside for lake baptisms and enjoy a time of ice cream and fellowship together.
We’re bringing back our Fall Festival—a fun-filled community outreach event with games and activities for kids, a Story Wall to spark gospel conversations, and something for all ages. Mark your calendar and get ready to invite friends, family, and neighbors!
It will take a strong team to make this event happen, so stay tuned for how you can jump in and help.
In addition to our regular ministry expenses, we also made our second $60,000 payment toward the new boiler project. Here are the financial numbers from the previous month:
Giving | Expenses | Budget |
$237,091 | $309,559 | $289,055 |
YTD Giving | YTD Expense | YTD Budget |
$463,328 | $589,900 | $578,109 |
Announcements
Our deepest sympathies to Sandy Hartman on the death of her father, Carl Steenhoek, on Monday, July 15. Sympathies also to Marie Lindahl and Jason and Erin Church, on the loss of Marie and Erin’s grandfather.
Join us as Rachel Ellison, serving with Wycliffe Bible Translators in Nigeria, shares an update on her first term. She’ll talk about learning Hausa, adjusting to life and ministry in a new culture, and preparing for future translation work among an unreached people group. A short presentation will be followed by refreshments. All are welcome!
H.E.A.R.T. is a ministry at Bethany that seeks to provide support to women and couples who are grieving the loss of a baby at any stage of life. Join them for a work night; no skills are needed. Tie ribbons on ornaments, fill Keepsake bags, and put items in stillbirth boxes. These resources are given out through hospitals, doctor offices, pregnancy centers, and more.
Our NYC Team departed this week and is now on their way to a week of evangelism training and outreach using tools like Story Walls, evangelistic prayer, and worldview surveys. Please continue to pray for their ministry this week, and follow their updates at bethanycentral.org/nyc25.
All ladies are invited to Gracie Cross’s shower. The shower will take place at Bethany in the Café. Gracie is registered at my/babylist.com/gracie-cross.
The Library has been moved to the adult wing. Use the provided computer or paper system to check out books and grow your faith through reading.
Access an extensive library of faith-based videos for kids, youth, and adults, available on any device. It’s easy and free to join. Visit bethanycentral.org/rightnowmedia and click “Request an invitation.” We’ll send you an email invitation to set up your account so you can take advantage of this great resource.
Icebreaker: What is your experience with growing plants? Do you have a green thumb, or do you struggle to keep things alive?
Discussion 1: Jesus drove out those buying and selling in the temple and said they had made it a “den of robbers.” Why was Jesus so passionate about purifying the temple? What had gone wrong in the way the temple was being used? How do you think the people responded to Jesus’s actions?
Application 1: Jesus’s cleansing of the temple shows His desire for worship to be pure and focused on God, not profit or appearance. Is there anything Jesus might want to “clean out” in your own heart so that it can be more centered on true worship? This may be a sin or a distraction.
Discussion 2: Peter noticed the fig tree Jesus cursed had withered. Why do you think Mark connects this story to the temple cleansing? What might the fig tree symbolize about the spiritual condition of Israel — or anyone who appears fruitful but isn’t?
Application 2: It’s possible to look spiritually healthy on the outside but lack real fruit. What happens to those who appear healthy on the outside but lack fruit?
Discussion 3: The religious leaders demanded to know where Jesus’s authority came from, and Jesus responded with a question they couldn’t answer. Why do you think they were so threatened by Jesus? What does this moment show us about their hearts?
Application 3: Sometimes we resist Jesus’s authority in our lives when it challenges our comfort or control. Is there an area of your life where you’re struggling to surrender to Jesus’s authority? What would it look like for you to trust Him more fully in that area?