BETHANY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

"The Church with Acts 20:20 Vision"
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Bethany's History
On January 5, 1878, twenty-three men and women gathered to organize a Church. While they had lost much during the Civil War, they had not lost their faith. The first recorded worship services were held in the Brockton area in the schoolhouse, which was built in 1870 on land given by J.L. Harris. The Reverend Billie Deavours, C.C. Carey, R.A. Seale, and Henry Cranford led the worshippers that day.

A protracted meeting was held under a brush arbor near the present church site during which several people expressed interest in founding a Church. Among them were Mike Williamson, J.L. Harris, Ezekiel Boggs, Joe Freeman, Martin Venable, Edd Sharp, and a number of other people. It was in the Harris School on January 5, 1878, that Bethany Church was organized.

On April 28, 1878, the Reverend Henry Cranford delivered the dedicatory sermon in Bethany’s first Church building. In the summer of 1908, the Reverend George D. Stone conducted a Revival in a large tent which had been set up at the left of the Church. During this Revival, 116 people united with the Church. To show unity of purpose and a unyielding and tenacious spirit, all joined hands to pray. This circle was so large that it literally reached around the entire tent as they prayed and sought the Lord for Bethany Church and the spiritual welfare of the members and friends.
Mission:
The mission of Bethany United Methodist Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. Local Churches provide the most significant arena through which disciple making occurs. Further, the mission of the Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ by preaching and proclaiming the Word of God, the Good News of His grace, and by exemplifying Jesus’ command to love God and neighbor, thus seeking fulfillment of God’s reign and realm in the world. 
 
 
Process:
We at Bethany Church make disciples as we:
• Proclaim the Gospel, seek, welcome, and gather people into the Church.
• Lead people to commit their lives to God through profession of faith in Jesus Christ and baptism by water and the Holy Spirit.
• Nurture believers in Christian living through worship, the sacraments, spiritual formation and discipline, and other means of grace.
• Send believers into the world with the mission of the Church to be a loving and caring people winning the world for Christ.