Bethany Bible Training Center

Where is Jesus?

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:26:00 +0000

Recently, I was reading my Facebook page and noticed what a recently married young woman I know had written on her wall. Apparently, she was decorating her home for Christmas and had put out a nativity set complete with shepherds, sheep, some wise men, Joseph, Mary, and of course, baby Jesus. Now, we get to what she posted on her wall. She said, “My cat stole baby Jesus and now we don’t know where He is.” Of course, I smiled at the thought. Then I quickly thought, “I know where He is. He is all grown up and living in your heart!” How quickly we lose sight of who Jesus is today and where He really is: alive and well, fully mature, and ever making intercession for each and every one of us He calls His own. Now, if we really take a moment and reflect on that one thought, it tends to give us peace and assurance. Ahh… all is well. He knows where I am and I know where He is.

Personal struggles, relationships, the busyness of the Christmas season, and life in general have a way of stealing Jesus from us to the point where we too can say we don’t know where He is. Maybe for some of us, it’s the little things that steal Him away from our hearts and minds; wrapping presents, preparing for a test, our favorite show on television, staying a little longer in bed in the morning, or even a good book. How easy it is to let our thoughts, emotions, people and events steal Jesus from us. Now, I can hear what you are saying - “I thought He never leaves us or forsakes us.” It’s true. He never does. But we often let things into our hearts that crowd Him out to the point where there is no room for Him. You see, He really is all grown up. He doesn’t just need a small manger anymore, but rather the totality of each and every one of our hearts. Little baby Jesus is now the mature Son of God. And He still seeks a place to lay His head and His heart. Neal A. Maxwell said, “Each of us is an innkeeper who decides if there is room for Jesus.”
This Christmas season, consciously make room for Him. Don’t let Him get lost in the trappings of the season, or buried beneath the circumstances of your life. Welcome Him afresh with wonder and awe of who He really is – King of kings and Lord of lords!

- Wendy Levey, Faculty

Fall Coffeehouse

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 22:28:00 +0000

Students, staff and faculty enjoyed coffee and performed specials during this Fall's coffeehouse

Annette, Wendy and Rod

Shane, Jordan, Sam and Luke

Luke and Josh

Victor and Mark

The Kitchen performs a special

Thoughts on the New School Year

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 17:28:00 +0000

Each school year, I have heard it said by someone here at the Bible school that this looks like it’s going to be the best year we have ever had. This time I’m not going to say that, but I do want to say that this year the students have come in with great desire for the Lord and real anticipation for Him to come and meet with them. I also believe that God loves to see that in our hearts because it gives Him a platform upon which to come and meet with us – in the worship, in the classroom as well as our prayer closets.

One aspect that has really excited me personally this quarter is a class I am teaching to Second Year, called The New Covenant (formally Hebrews). So far, this year we have had a few times of going around the table discussing different topics. The participation of the class, and their thoughts on the different subjects, has just been outstanding. Today our topic was, “Just who is this priest called Melchizedek?” It was great to hear what they thought. At the end of class, one fellow commented that after hearing all the different thoughts and ideas, he felt like his head was exploding. It was dizzying. Some said Melchizedek was a man, he was a vision or he was a type of Christ, and others said he must be Jesus. They were truly thinking and changing their minds as the topic went around the table.

To me, this is what Bible school is about. Us taking a subject and allowing the Holy Spirit to come in and teach us through the use of each one of us adding what we each feel He is showing us. For me as a teacher, there is no better outcome of a class than to get them all thinking and speaking into the subject, and then the Holy Spirit taking all of our thoughts and what is right from each one and teaching us.

I have one other thought concerning our chapels. The presence of the Lord has been coming in and our worship has been holding at a really high point. So, when we get to class, I feel that it gives us a great platform from which to begin.

- Jack Picataggi, President

Internship Report

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:07:00 +0000

Vangast Bitukenja is the pastor of Tanzania Assemblies of God Upendo Revival Christian Center in Dodoma, Tanzania and has spent more than twenty years in ministry. He has a heart to reach the Muslim people with the love of Christ and has travelled on missionary trips to the Muslim nation of Zanzibar, despite being previously jailed for sharing the gospel there.

Vangast and his wife, Rehema, are the proud parents of four biological children and three adopted children. He graduated from Bethany’s Advanced Biblical Studies Program in May 2011.

Vangast recounts his second- and third-quarter internship experience with New Jerusalem Church of God in Christ in Buffalo, N.Y., pastored by Willie and Verdis Griffin and presents a call for the American church to pursue godliness and holiness.

I have learned many things during my internship at New Jerusalem Church. One of among many is the life of Pastor Griffin and his wife, Verdis. To be honest, these servants of God have taught me a big lesson through their lives about true love. Their church has been a place where I have experienced the extraordinary presence of God and have sensed, felt, and touched the true love of God. In this church, love is not only spoken, but is being put into action. For the people in this church, love is the lifestyle of their daily activities.

The second thing I learned from the Griffins is how they teach their people through example. They also do before they tell their people to do something. I have seen the way they devote themselves to God and the work of ministry. They are ready to help their people anytime, are so humble, and they help people and work as if they were many years younger than their actual ages.

On another note, from my time in the United States, it grieves me to say that I believe that much of the church in America is now in compromise. Instead of the church influencing the world, to a large extent the world is influencing the church. I am saddened when I see church leaders who fear to correct and rebuke sin because they don’t want to offend people. They want to have big numbers in their churches. Of course, not all are like this, but I have seen it in some churches which I visited and in how some pastors treated their people. That is why I say this.

In some churches I visited, I didn’t experience the move of God; I saw how to collect money. Many plans were made only to honor people rather than God, and bishops were mentioned more often in conferences than the name of God. When we elevate our money, plans, and people above God, this is a great sign of a dying church.

I urge American churches to change their vision and start planning to receive missionaries from other countries. To be honest before God, America as a nation has gone down spiritually. I don’t mean that American churches should stop sending missionaries to other countries, but I am challenging them to see the reality. Many people are focusing on sending missionaries, but I believe that there is also a need for missionaries to come from other nations who may help America to rise again.

May God continue to purify His church around the world and raise up godly leaders, like the Griffins, who will shepherd His people into the fullness of God’s purpose for this hour.

Buy Oil

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 18:41:00 +0000

In February 2010, Stan Smith underwent emergency surgery to remove a large brain tumor, and some doctors are describing his recovery as “miraculous.” Nevertheless, ongoing medical treatment and some of its side-effects have made travel impossible for now.

If you would like to donate to a fund to help Stan and JoAnn with their financial needs during this time, please contact our Business Office at 315-429-8521, Ext. *812 or businessoffice@bethanybtc.org. Or, donate directly to Stan and JoAnn’s ministry at gospelsmith.com. We hope those of you who have been blessed by Stan’s ministry will be willing to be a blessing to him now.

Buy Oil
by Stan Smith

There are many good things to say about the anointing, but I’m going to boil them down to a single thought: the oil Jacob poured on the rock represented God’s manifest presence. The house where God lives must be a house that makes room for His manifest presence.

As a teenager, a troubling question made its way around the churches: if God withdrew His presence from the church, how many of us would know the difference? And how many of us would continue doing what we’d always been doing, totally unaware that God Himself had left?

I didn’t know if I could answer the questions well, but I resolved early in my Christian life that I would build my own ministry on God’s manifest presence, in such a way that if He withdrew, I would be unable to continue.

In John 14:21-23, Jesus gave a simple recipe for His manifest presence:

“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him…If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him."

This isn’t a call to live under the law; it is a call to grace, which we enter into by repentance and faith. And it is a call to intimacy, a life of hearing and responding to His voice.

In the beginning of my ministry, I didn’t know how to access the voice of God. If He spoke, I was likely to mistake it for my own thoughts. I missed a lot in my early days.

But I always looked for scriptures I could act on, and there are plenty. I learned that a deep walk with God doesn’t consist in prowling around in the obscure passages of scripture; it consists in finding the simples commandments and acting on them.

They’re simple, but they aren’t necessarily easy. Humble yourself. Submit to God. Serve one another. Love one another. In everything give thanks. Pray without ceasing. Whatever you do, do it as unto the Lord.

And I John 1:9 is one I’ve needed when I’ve sinned: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” It’s easy to say, “Yeah, yeah; I already know that.” It’s better to take a few minutes to do it, and to do it as often as necessary.

Jesus talked about oil in the parable of the ten virgins – it’s in the first few lines of Matthew 25. He told of ten virgins who needed oil in their lamps so they could participate in the part of the wedding that happened in the middle of the night.

I won’t try to explain the wedding customs in Jesus‘ day, but suffice it to say that His hearers found the story very believable. The point was this: five of the virgins were wise because they had bought oil during the day, and five were foolish because they had not.

It wasn’t a big purchase. I’m guessing they needed to spend about as much as someone might spend for a flashlight battery today.

In more than forty years of following Jesus, I’ve seen that this parable holds a key for all of us. It is impossible to pay a great price today to buy all the oil we’ll ever need. But we can make a small transaction today, exchanging a few minutes here and a small effort there to invest in God’s manifest presence.

Small investments add up.

Don’t be fooled by get-rich-quick schemes. See if you can find a small opportunity to buy oil before you go to bed tonight. Look for another before lunch tomorrow.

Buy oil. Small investments add up.

Stan Smith is a 1975 graduate of Pinecrest Bible Training Center and a passionate worshipper who uses his diverse gift-mix to equip the church, assuring the whole body of Christ that God wants to walk them into rich encounters with Him. Stan and his wife JoAnn live in Avila Beach, California and often minister together in prophetic teaching and in gifts of prophecy and healing. Stan has taught in Bible schools and was a pastor for 17 years, engaging in prison ministry, inner-city evangelism, and travel to many nations. Stan continues his writing ministry at gospelsmith.com.

Bethany Welcomes Guest Teachers for the Third Quarter

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 17:06:00 +0000

We are pleased to welcome Mark and Paulette Swiger and Dan Beaulieu as guest teachers for the Third Quarter. Mark and Paulette will be teaching Evangelism and the School of Missions and Outreach; Dan Beaulieu will be teaching the School of Preaching, Kingdom Principles, and Principles of Leadership.

Mark and Paulette Swiger are graduates of Pinecrest Bible Training Center who have served the Lord together for over 30 years. For the first twenty years, they pastored in small non-denominational churches. In 1996, they accepted a call to serve in the nations of the world, and since then, they have ministered on five continents, conducting more city-wide campaigns in India from 1996-2006 than any other international ministry. The Swigers currently reside in Fort Mill, South Carolina.

Dan Beaulieu is a Pinecrest graduate, a member of Bethany’s Membership Board, and the pastor of The Fellowship of Believers. He and his wife, Joan, live in Winstead, Connecticut.

Bethany Welcomes New Director of Admissions

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 17:43:00 +0000

Beginning September 27, Earlene Hollihan will assume the role of Bethany’s Director of Admissions, replacing Clay Laughridge, who will be working as President’s Assistant.

Originally from Lewistown, PA, Earlene read The Banner and attended Pinecrest conferences, and for almost 20 years, she dreamed of coming as a student for a season of “going deeper in the Lord.”

Earlene arrived for school in January 2010 and was assigned her work duty, first as Office Assistant and then as Bookstore Manager.

As a student at Bethany, Earlene says that God has enabled her to “be still, become more focused, hear more clearly, and to start stepping out and speaking and doing what I hear Him say with more confidence and clarity.”

Now, she says, accepting the position of Director of Admissions is just “another step in saying, ‘Yes, Lord, I’m available.’”

He is Worthy

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:27:00 +0000

With the First Quarter in full swing, the campus is beginning to feel more and more like a family. Students are getting to know each other better but most importantly, each student in his or her own way is getting to know the Lord better.

In this morning’s chapel service, the song of the congregation rose together as we sang, “Worthy, Worthy, You are Worthy, Worthy is the Lord” from the song entitled “Alabaster Jar.” We are taking that proclamation into to the streets of the local city of Utica this Saturday.

Bethany’s students will be participating in the festival “Worship in the Parks: A Tribute to Our Creator.” Two worship teams from the school will take part, as well as Third year student Samuel Torres, who will be one of the featured speakers.

As God has brought us together to this school to become a family, we will now go out and tell the local area and the world why He is worthy. This is only the beginning.

- Stephanie Polivka, Third Year student

Emptied and Filled

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:03:00 +0000

Even this early in the year, we are seeing in our students a real love and desire for the Lord. This first week or so as we are getting the students oriented to Bethany, the Lord has already begun to call them to empty themselves of “those things that so easily beset us” and to fill their lives with more of Him.

On August 30, we spoke to the student body in chapel about purity, and it was 2:00 in the afternoon before some of them had finished doing business with God, getting cleansed, forgiven and recommitting themselves to pursuing a holy, upright life before Him. It was wonderful to see their response to Him, and we believe this is only the beginning of what God intends to do in their lives.

WMHR Interview with Jack Picataggi

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 20:10:00 +0000

The Mars Hill Network, a Christian radio station based in Syracuse, New York (WMHR, 102.9 FM), recently interviewed Jack Picataggi about the school and its recent name change.

Picataggi's interview with host Dan Dunn aired at 11:30 a.m. on September 1 on the station's Spotlight program, which highlights ministries, authors and spokespeople from various public and community organizations.

You can listen to the interview at: http://www.bethanybtc.org/Resources.htm?http%3A//www.bethanybtc.org/resources/radio_spot.htm

New School Year at Bethany

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 19:49:00 +0000

The 2010-2011 school year opened at Bethany Bible Training Center with Registration on August 23, followed by worship and Orientation on August 24.

“We have a great group of students this year,” commented Director of Admissions Clay Laughridge, who also noted that the incoming First Year class is the largest since 2003, with students from Nigeria, South Korea, Canada, Bolivia, Cuba and Tanzania, as well as students from as close as New York state to as far away as Oregon, Texas, Florida and Virginia.

“As we start this new school year, we are so encouraged by the desire for God we see in the students the Lord has brought in this year,” observed President Jack Picataggi. “There is a real excitement and anticipation among the students, faculty and staff for what He is going to do this year.”

Third Year student Daniel Canton agreed, remarking that God has been moving and that “the teachers, the students, the staff, all seem to just really be open to what God wants to accomplish in all of our lives during this school year.”

Second Year student Jesse Spradlin said that already this year, “God is showing Himself faithful and revealing to me that the best is yet to come.”

New to the course schedule this year is the Devotion class for First Year students, taught by Dean Joanne Picataggi, which is intended to help students develop a consistent personal devotional life from the start of their time at Bethany.

Mark Mills-Powell is joining the on-campus faculty from Cambridge, England, to teach Church History and James for the first three weeks of the First Quarter. Bethany Board member and 1974 Pinecrest graduate Tom Worth is also returning to teach Romans.

Registration for the First Quarter is open until September 3; Second Quarter Registration is October 19.

A Look Forward for Bethany Bible Training Center

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 16:56:00 +0000

by President Jack Picataggi

From Pinecrest’s earliest days, a sign has hung in our Small Chapel with the words, “Occupy ‘Til I Come.” We have always believed this sign signifies God’s mandate for us as Christians to be representatives of His kingdom in the earth.

Since our founding in 1968, we have endeavored to “occupy” the unique role God has called us to as a “School of the Spirit,” where students can come apart to surrender their lives to the Holy Spirit for His training and transformation and to establish a vital relationship with the Lord. For over four decades, Pinecrest has been set apart as a place where God would know His people and His people would know their God.

As we look back over Pinecrest’s history, we acknowledge those who have gone on before us and paid the price to forge ahead in God’s purpose for this place. Many students and visitors have come and partaken of the presence of the Lord and the spiritual truths expounded upon in our pulpits; many lives have been changed and healed by the Spirit of the Lord and all He has done in and through Pinecrest. Joanne and I feel truly privileged to be a part of what God is accomplishing in and through this ministry.

Several years ago, Joanne and I visited The Bible College of Wales and met with Mr. Samuel Howells, son of founder Rees Howells. We asked him to lay hands on us to pray and impart, and as he did, he prophesied that we would lead a school in which God would raise up “end-time anointed ones.” We believe the Lord is in the process of preparing His Bride and that Pinecrest has stood for this day since He brought her into existence.

Now, the Board of Directors has prayerfully made the decision to change the school’s name to Bethany Bible Training Center. I view this change not as the end of what Pinecrest is and has always stood for, but rather the next step in God’s continuing purpose for us. I believe that, as in the Bible when God changed Abram and Jacob’s names to Abraham and Israel, our name change signifies a fresh equipping and enabling to accomplish the plans of God’s heart for our school.

In the Bible, Bethany was an insignificant house in a town outside Jerusalem, but when Jesus was there, it became a glorious temple for His presence. That is what we believe for Bethany as a Bible school. We could plan the most rigorous class schedule taught by the most prestigious Bible teachers with worship led by the most skilled musicians. But the truth is, without Him, all these things—our best-intentioned plans—are meaningless. God’s presence, His love and His grace is what changes us from who we are into who He has called us to be: ambassadors of His kingdom in the earth—to “occupy ‘til He comes.” No man can accomplish that!

So we desire God’s presence. We want to prepare our lives to be His habitation, that His very heart will abide in us as His people. Our prayer is that the Lord can look at our lives individually and at Bethany Bible Training Center corporately and say, “Here I have found a resting place. Here is a people through whom I can freely express My heart and My desires.”

In 2007, when Joanne and I returned to Pinecrest after my installation as President, we added another sign to the Small Chapel along with the sign, “Occupy ‘Til I Come.” This new sign echoes the cry of the Spirit and the bride in Revelation, and we feel it expresses to God this desire to be a habitation for Him. The sign, and the cry of our hearts—the very purpose of Bethany Bible Training Center—is this:

“Come, Lord Jesus.”

Welcome to Our New Website!

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 16:08:00 +0000

We are pleased to introduce our new website, wwww.bethanybtc.org. We hope you enjoy the new look to go along with our new name, Bethany Bible Training Center!

We will continue to add more content in the future, including new audio messages, devotional articles, and updated news, so keep checking back for updated information and resources.

2010 Pinecrest Graduation

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 20 May 2010 14:40:00 +0000

Graduate David Mwita with President Jack Picataggi

Pinecrest Bible Training Center celebrated the conclusion of its 42nd year with a graduation ceremony on May 8. Graduates entered to the processional song, “Jesus Paid It All,” and to a Chapel filled with proud parents, teachers and friends from around the world.

Twenty-two Biblical Studies and six Advanced Biblical Studies graduates were awarded diplomas, with graduates Ryan Maillard, from Trinidad, and Benson Ng’ang’a, from Kenya, also receiving ordination certificates from the Pinecrest Ministerial Fellowship.

Second Year graduate Alberto Rios led worship, selecting songs that had been a recurring theme and heartfelt cry from the students throughout the year: “The Stand,” “Stronger,” and “You Won’t Relent.” President Jack Picataggi commented on the song choices, “That’s why we’re proud of our graduates. Those songs show their hearts. They have given their all to the Lord, and you as their family and friends should be extremely proud of what they’ve begun and what they have covenanted with the Lord through their years here at Pinecrest.”

Dean Joanne Picataggi spoke to the parents: “Jack used the phrase, ‘You have given us your children.’ And I looked at them and thought, ‘Yes, some,’ but I see sons and daughters of God and disciples of the Lord. They may have come here one way, but they’re leaving another.”

The student body sang a special song of their choice, “When I Think About the Lord,” as an exclamation of thankfulness to the Lord for His faithfulness and hand of deliverance in each one’s life.

Faculty-selected class speakers Christa Callahan and Benson Ng’ang’a, from Second Year, and Ashley Dedee, representing the Third Year class, also shared on their experiences at Pinecrest.

Christa Callahan spoke on God’s love in the person of Jesus Christ. She said, “At Pinecrest, I found what everyone is looking for. I found Love. But I didn’t find it as a feeling, I found Love Himself, Jesus Christ.”

Benson Ng’ang’a urged the graduates and their families that it is time to turn back to God and to understand that we cannot live by bread alone, but we must trust God at His Word.

Ashley Dedee summed up her three-year experience with God at Pinecrest in one word: faithful. She emphasized that this was only the beginning, and that God still desired to do a transformation within each graduate as they left.

Second Year graduate Stephanie Polivka shared a song she had written entitled “Liberty,” based on the verse, “His mercies are new every morning” in Lamentations. She encouraged her fellow graduates, as Benson had, to believe the Lord at His Word to step into His promises.

Graduation speaker Jack Picataggi spoke out of Isaiah 54 and exhorted the students to not despise barren times, but to allow those times to propel them into God’s promises. He challenged them to enlarge their tents and that the Lord would, out of barrenness, produce what was even beyond their natural expectation.

As the 2009-2010 school year closes, we have great expectation for what God has in store for the upcoming year. Registration for the 2010-2011 school year will be held on August 23.

A Great Victory

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Mon, 10 May 2010 18:05:00 +0000

“Immediately [Paul] preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.” –Acts 9:20

Saul was the ultimate anti-Christian. He was so against the teachings of Christ that he petitioned for special permission to capture and imprison Christians and went around “breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples (Acts 9:1-2).”

And God turned him into one of the greatest soldiers in His army. Talk about a victory. Saul does a complete 180 and starts spreading the news he was trying so hard to stifle, going on to write over half of the New Testament.

I don’t know about you, but this gives me hope. I have noticed again and again that the Lord tends to take our biggest obstacles and make them His greatest victories.

I was in the Air Force for eight years and was discharged for a minor offense. I came home and tried to find direction, attending church with my parents out of obligation, but I was not walking with the Lord, and God was the last thing on my mind. I intended to finish my computer engineering degree and land a six-figure computer job. Of course, the Lord had a different plan.

When my pastor announced they were visiting Pinecrest to lead worship, I heard a voice tell me to go too. I thought it was my conscience telling me to be nice to my parents. I didn’t realize until later that it was God.

While I was at Pinecrest, I heard the Lord tell me to ask about being a student, and my mom suggested I talk to the Dean. I walked over to Joanne Picataggi to ask about school and said, “Hi.” She looked at me and said, “Do you want to go to school here? You’re accepted.” My stunned answer was, “OK.”

I applied and was accepted, but I didn’t know how I would pay for tuition. The day before I left for school, I received confirmation of my approved funding for Pinecrest from the VA (Veteran’s Administration). Now, I’m graduating from my third year at Pinecrest.

There I was—defeated. I was discharged from the Air Force. I had drunk away what little savings I did have and was stumbling around blind with no direction, when God set my path and took complete victory over my life.

I want to encourage you, especially if you’re going through rough times, if you feel blind and lost and don’t know where to go or what to do next: trust the Lord. He has a great victory planned. I didn’t think getting discharged was a great victory, but look what the Lord has done. Have faith in what the Lord can do for you.

- Chris Hannan, Third Year graduate

Chris and Hannah Hannan

My Father's House

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 06 May 2010 15:55:00 +0000

My father takes down barns for a living, and he built the house where I was raised. I grew up with 200-year-old beams over my head and wood floors under my feet that my dad laid himself. He used such detail in everything. It was a perfect setting amidst a forest of white birch overlooking a pond.

I know what it means to build a house, the work it took. My dad’s hands and face bear the marks of his years spent building. He built a place where we could rest and be ourselves. After all, isn’t that what makes a house a home? It is a place of freedom—to come as you are.

Much like my dad, we too are building a house, but one for the Lord. Haggai 1:8 says, “Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified.” God is calling us up, away from our own personal building projects, into the hidden mountains of our hearts to build Him a home where He can rest and come as He is.

He asks us to bring only our humanity and recognize the magnitude of what He accomplished on the cross for us. Because those two things—who He is, and who God has made us to be—bring Him glory.

Let us be meticulous in our caring for this house. The Scripture doesn’t say, “Let God come and build,” it says, “You build.” The Lord is glorified through the labor we invest into building our lives as a habitation for Him. Just as the house my dad built was beautiful in its completion, so too will our lives be. He is worth it all!

- Laura Swift, Second Year Student

2010 Class Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 12:26:00 +0000

Pinecrest's annual class trip was held this year from April 23-24. The class trip is a special time for fun and fellowship among the Second and Third Year students, as many of them will be graduating and moving on from Pinecrest in May.

Friday, the group visited the beach at Long Island Sound and had a barbeque at student Evan Bolton's house. The night ended with worship around a bonfire.

"It was nice to have some time away from the campus, but to still meet God in the same way," said Third Year student Ashley Dedee, who was also excited about tasting salt water for the first time at the beach.

The group then headed out bright and early Saturday morning for a day in Boston. The bulk of their time was spent doing a photo scavenger hunt throughout the city. The students broke into three groups and were sent off to get pictures of the teams performing tasks such as "sitting on a fire truck," "getting handcuffed by the police" and "fitting everyone into a phone booth." The scavenger hunt proved a great way to see the city and mingle with the locals.

"Boston is easily one of the friendliest cities in America," stated Third Year student Chris Hannan. "I'm glad I got to visit it with this group; they really made the trip worthwhile."

Second Year student Stephanie Polivka said it was the most fun she has had in the last two years: "We got to meet so many people and pour out what God has poured into us."

Internship Report

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 18:32:00 +0000

During this previous summer and fall, I was able to do an international internship to Kenya, Africa for five months to help teach and work with local churches. It was such a blessing for me to be able to take what I have learned here at Pinecrest and my own previous experiences and go out and bless others.

While in Africa, I worked mainly with the PEFA Organization (Pentecostal Evangelistic Fellowship of Africa) and their local churches in the Southern Nynzia Region of Kenya. I travelled around speaking and participating in different churches, open air meetings and crusades.

I was also given the privilege of teaching math and science at Pinecrest alumnus Peter Midodo's primary school, Joy Schools International, and I was able to start an introductory computer class that will continue to give the children an opportunity to use and learn about computers.

I would say that the greatest thing I received from my internship experience was an increase in my own faith in God's faithfulness. He was faithful in so many practical things, such as giving me the words for preaching even 10 minutes before I was to speak, keeping me healthy and safe throughout my travels, and connecting me with and providing for me through the people there. There were times of hardship, trials and difficulty, though which God was always with me, but there were also many times in which God moved in miraculous ways that could only have been attributed to Him.

- James Culver, Third Year student

James and Pinecrest alumnus Peter Midodo

Coffeehouse

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:15:00 +0000

Pinecrest held its annual coffeehouse on April 1, with students, staff and faculty enjoying desserts, music by Emily ('09) and Gabriel Whittaker...and of course, coffee!

Anahi and Mayumi

Tori

Benson

James and Evan

Rebecca and Christa

Emily Whittaker

What is Your Resolve?

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 13:36:00 +0000

Daniel 1:8--"But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way."

I started participating in a weekly prayer group a few months ago, and the book of Daniel was what we began studying. That particular season in my life was very hard for me. God was prodding at a lot of things that He wanted to get rid of. I was a mess. Everything was just too hard for me and I was done with it. I felt as if God could never get me through all the things that were going on in my heart and life. I was about to give up on it all and even the prayer group I had just started.

Then one day in prayer group, we were reading through Daniel and something struck me. Daniel made a resolve. A resolve is a decision that is purposed in your heart. That night, I resolved in my heart that I would press through and get through this with God. I decided right then that no matter what came against me or how much it cost, I would let God have all of me.

In Daniel 3, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego made a similar resolve when they were faced with being thrown in the fire. These men were going to be killed; even the guards who were heating the fire were burned. Despite this, these men made a resolve in their hearts that they would serve God only and not back down.

After reading this, I began to see how the Lord was working in my heart. It started with a resolve and a decision to press through, then my coming to a place where I decided, "God, even if you completely mess with everything in my life, I know You are faithful. You are faithful."

The question burning in my heart is, "Are you going to make a resolve before God?" I don't know what fire or issues you're being faced with, but there is one thing I know: pressing into God is the only way. The only way is straight. We have to press through. We have to resolve. There is something that God wants to do in you that can only be done if you press in and determine to be obedient to Him. Let go, and let God be God.

Ashley Dedee is a Third Year student from Albany, NY.

Challenge 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 16:08:00 +0000

Teens from as far away as California, Florida, Canada and Virginia packed Pinecrest for Challenge 2010, Pinecrest’s youth conference for ages 14-20 from February 18-21.

The Orange, Hot Pink, Black and Purple teams competed for points in icebreakers and games throughout the weekend, with the Orange Umpa Lumpas winning first place and the “Think Pink” team claiming the team spirit award. Activities included sledding, Wii bowling and tennis tournaments, The Amazing Race, and Balloon-a-Pallooza-Rama.

As fun as the games were, though, the important thing was that God really met the youth in a personal way. On the first night, speaker Pravash Mukherjee, from Norfolk, Virginia, challenged each person to write one thing they were expecting from God during the weekend. As the conference concluded on Sunday, many of them testified that God had met them in ways they hadn’t even expected.

Here are a few of their testimonies:

The minute I walked in the doors here on Thursday, I felt God really strongly, and I was like, “Oh boy,” because I knew God wasn’t thrilled with the way that I was leading my life, and I didn’t really want to change. On Friday, we were singing, “I don’t want to talk about You like You’re not in the room,” and I really realized, God, I want to feel Your presence again, I want to open up to You again. And I confessed a bunch of things to God, and I made a commitment I was going to totally turn my life around and I was going to repent. I feel like God’s really changed my heart this week towards Him and helped me to start again and live a new life in Him.

These past couple years that I’ve been coming to Youth Week and Challenge and all these other youth conferences, I’ve always been struggling. I’d come, I’d meet God, and I’d go back home, and I’d be around friends, and I’d just go back into my life. I was always struggling to stay with God. I realized for the first time in my life, probably about a month after this past Youth Week, that I can’t just come and meet God just for a week or just for a weekend, I have to come, and I have to stay with Him, 24/7, all the time. It can’t just be for Youth Week, it can’t just be for Challenge, it can’t just be every Sunday, just normal life—I have to be with Him all the time in order to stay on track.

Before this week, I was kind of feeling like I couldn’t feel God, like I didn’t know His voice, and I was really longing for that. I was praying in Chapel, and I was like, “Oh, I just want to hear Your voice.” And I realized that I wasn’t listening. He’s been talking; I just haven’t been listening to Him. And also that I have the key to His heart, and it’s not someone else who needs to come tell me what God’s going to do for my life and how my path’s going to go—God is going to tell me. Someone else doesn’t have to tell me what He’s going to do for me because I’m going to know. I just think that’s really awesome.

These last four months have been such a pain for me. I was just frustrated and depressed all the time. These last two months, I wasn’t praying at all, I kind of gave up on God. I felt like I didn’t have anyone by my side, even if I had a bunch of people, I felt like I didn’t have friends. I really felt alone.

I tried to find myself in every possible way, everywhere. In school, I tried for sports, I just tried to be the best, but I couldn’t be the best. Then I tried to do the same thing in my studies. And then the college stuff came, and I was just going crazy, because I was trying to get the grades, I was trying to get applications, I was trying to get everything done. At the same time I was frustrated and depressed, I felt I had no friends. I turned my back to God.

Then, this Challenge, I just didn’t expect anything. I came here and I was like, ok, this is just a weekend, I’m going to have it and leave and be done with it.

[Friday night,] they started playing the “You Won’t Relent” song, and I love that song, and I just started breaking. I was there in the back, and I was just breaking and breaking. And then God told me, “You need Me. You don’t need anything else but Me.” And I found myself again with Him. Because He’s the one that completes me—nothing else but Him.

For two years now, I’ve been wanting to become a lawyer. I’ve been starting to save up money now. Well, God said, “Missionary,” and I was like, “What? You’ve got to be kidding me! No!” I’ve never thought about being a missionary, ever. And just right then, I was like, “Really? Are You sure? Me?” I didn’t know what I was saving up money for. I thought I was saving it up for college. Now I know that I’ve been saving it up for a missions trip, and it’s just amazing how God can change your plans drastically. He loves us so much. I’m so thankful. It’s just amazing.

I’m not like a very out-there person—I’m kind of shy and timid, but I was praying last night, and the Scripture came to mind: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power.” And, it really just kind of inspired me. I have the keys to the kingdom, I have the power—what am I so afraid of? I can go out there and reach out to people, and God’s got my back.

I didn’t know what to expect when I was going to come here, and I’m really glad I did, because I’ve just felt really passionate about God, but I never knew how to express it. I’m usually composed and try to keep my emotions concealed with regular life, so I’ve felt that I’ve had a heart full of passion for Christ but I was never able to let it out. I just wanted to cry out to God, I wanted to be able to shed tears for Him of joy and just rejoice in everything He’s given me, and I could never do that.

This weekend was amazing, because I was just on my knees, crying, and then after the baptism in the Holy Spirit, I just cracked, and my heart poured out to God in a way that was so passionate. It’s amazing, because I never thought that I’d be able to express my emotions to Him. He’s just given me that, and it’s amazing—through the music, through everything, I just want everything I do—every way I walk, talk, speak—I just want to show my emotions to Him. It’s amazing He’s given me the gift to actually be able to do that now.

God has met me in every way that I have sought Him. I was looking for healing, and He healed me. I was looking for answers, and He answered me. I was looking for the Spirit, and He came, and I was looking for truth, and I asked it to hit me in the heart. I was expecting something hard and something explosive. But you know what, it didn’t come like that. It descended so gently, and it overflowed, and it was so awesome, and it was so 100%, and it was so complete. It was the most content I’ve ever felt in my whole life.

I was looking for people to fill in places in my heart that only Jesus Christ could fill and only the Spirit could fill. I always look for people, and I’m insecure like that. I felt complete, and I wasn’t looking for people anymore. That was so cool.

I always struggled with worship, and I always get distracted with things. But just seeing you guys worship really ministered to me. And seeing everybody’s hands raised and everybody dancing and everybody giving their heart really made me give my heart to God because I saw you guys, and I saw how dedicated and how much you love God, and how hard and how deep you guys were worshipping. And I wanted to worship that deep, too. This is our generation, that we’re going to take back, and we’re going to go back to our homes. We all came from different places—we’re all going to go back to our homes, and we’re going to light our home towns on fire. We’re going to light our schools on fire. I want to go home and light my home on fire, light my church on fire again. I want to give it back to God—I want us, this is us—our time, and I want us all to give it back to God. And I love Him, and I want us all to love God.

My church at home is really falling apart, and that can be very discouraging to me, that my own church is falling apart. So, God said, “I want you to go home, and I want you to help your church.” I know that I’m only one person, but that one person in the Old Testament slayed 800 people at one time. So, if that guy can do that, then I’m sure that I can help my church and I can grow stronger in Him and I can read His Word more and help those in my school. I’m very happy I came to Pinecrest.

Youth Week 2010 will be held from July 18-24.

Serving for God's Glory

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:09:00 +0000

We are all familiar with the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:40. Well, nearly every Sunday for the past month I’ve been either travelling on outstations off-campus or working in the kitchen, and in some ways, I’ve felt like Martha—busy. As God has called me to serve, though, He has really met me in some new ways.

On January 17 we had an outstation to Hearts Ablaze, a church in Albany pastored by Pinecrest graduate Stephen Addo. During worship, God really gave us His joy, as we thanked Him for all He has done and made a proclamation that we would not stand by and watch our families or our situations be overcome by the enemy. God is bigger and greater than any obstacle we face. First Year student Job Wafulu from Kenya preached a sermon on allowing God to make us into the leaders He wants us to be.

More recently, I participated in an outstation to Faith Deliverance Tabernacle in Schenectady, NY on January 31. God met us there from the get-go. The church was absolutely beautiful, with a giant stained glass portrait of Mary Magdalene bowing at Jesus’ feet. As I was thinking of how beautiful the church was, the congregation started filtering in, and I realized that the people, too, were beautiful. They had hearts full of welcoming hugs and kisses towards strangers.

God truly met each one there that day through worship, and Third Year student James Culver preached a grounded sermon on Philippians 3:1-14, in which he challenged us to realize that all our achievements are counted as rubbish in comparison with knowing Christ. How true that statement is.

In all of this, God, in His goodness and in a way only He can, has been working something in me: humility—humility to realize who I am serving. Am I serving the people in these churches, or am I serving the God they worship? The answer is resoundingly the latter. God calls us to serve, then enables us to do it. And it always was, always is, and always should be all for His glory!

- Stephanie Polivka, Second Year Student

The Pinecrest outstation group with members of Faith Deliverance Tabernacle

Update from Haiti

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 19:07:00 +0000

We have received an updated report from First Year student Ernst, who pastors a church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, of God's miraculous protection of his family:

"This is the information that I have from Haiti. The church has collapsed with people inside and are still in. The ladies' group had a regular meeting when the earthquake hit the church; up to now, no one can count the number of dead people inside the church.

Concerning my family, I had the chance of talking to my family members today. The way it was explained, it was a miracle. My house collapsed with everyone inside, but God got them out at the right time.

My wife was inside the bedroom getting ready to go to church, but for some reason, there was a delay in looking for an item, which explains the reason she was not in the church at the time the church collapsed. At the moment she decided to leave the room to go outside, the roof caved in on her bed. She ran to help the others but could not.

The house collapsed with my children inside, but our God is the God of miracles. God created a way for the children that were upstairs. I cannot explain that. When the roof upstairs fell, it created a hole on the second floor and the kids fell inside the hole created by the roof of the second floor. Believe it or not, they fell right on their feet. Some of my children were hurt, but they are all fine. The house is gone, but God is going to do something different.

I have not been to Haiti to look at the damages, but based on what I was told, there is nothing left; we have to start from nothing to build. We will need all the help necessary to help the people." (Edited for grammar)

We continue to lift up the nation and people of Haiti in prayer.

Prayer for Haiti

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 17:33:00 +0000

Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti hits close to home for Pinecrest. Ernst, a first year student who pastors a church of 2,000 in Port-au-Prince, had returned from Haiti two days earlier for the start of Third Quarter. Now, with his family believed safe but his church and home destroyed, he is returning to Haiti.

Today, classes were postponed as students met in the Chapel to pray for Ernst and the nation of Haiti. They joined in singing “It Is Well with My Soul,” declaring the faithfulness of God in the midst of tragedy.

An offering was taken to support Ernst, his family and church. For those who would like to contribute to this fund, please contact the Business Office at 315-429-8521.

The Coming Year 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Bethany Bible Training Center) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 18:46:00 +0000

As the new year begins, I feel the Lord speaking loudly and clearly that we are approaching the time in our history when He is about to directly intervene in this earth. As darkness is on the increase, so too must God's light and glory begin to shine forth from His people. The Bible tells us that the earth is groaning for the manifestation of the sons of God. We witness to this Scripture, because within us there is a groaning not only to see God's sons manifested, but to be those sons who will bring God's deliverance in the earth.

My wife, Joanne, has said numerous times from the pulpit, "The leaders that you see are not the true leaders." We see in the political realm a cry for real leaders, yet I wonder if we realize that those who have been presented to us as the leaders in the church are, in the end, not going to be the true leaders as well. We have been following leaders of a social gospel, and quite frankly, it has not produced an overcoming people, but rather a people that are dependent, defeated and powerless.

God is looking for emerging leaders to present themselves before Him and to allow Him to prepare them for the hour ahead. It is time to abandon our excuses and fall upon the mercy of God, to repent for our cold hearts and let Him reignite the fire from Heaven that alone can produce true godliness and true holiness within us, for it is Christ in us who is the hope of glory.

Do you find you are so encumbered by the things of life that you have come to believe that you are too old, too young, too weak or too late to cast off the hindrances that weigh you down and sell out totally to God and His purposes?

It is time to make the decision to allow God to take you, deal with you and work within you what He has purposed for you. It is up to you. Break free and hear from God afresh and anew. You honestly have nothing to lose.

God has the answers for the coming day. He will have a people prepared to march at His orders and to go forth into a world literally dying for the knowledge of God and groaning to be set from from the kingdom of darkness and to be translated into the Kingdom of His Son.

Your place in this coming day is largely going to be determined by your choices.

This New Year, make your decision for God.

P.S. As a side note, Pinecrest is one place where God can prepare you for the times ahead. If you feel God calling you to lay aside distractions and abandon yourself to His purpose, consider coming to Pinecrest.

- Jack Picataggi, President