Hey Friends,
The photo above shows my wife and me being prayed for by the pastors and elders as we were released to pursue what the Lord has placed on our hearts: to start house churches.
It was a moment full of mixed emotions. I’ve been a member of this church for the past four years and served as a teaching elder for two of them. I’ve built deep friendships here. Beyond that, I’ve been part of the traditional church structure for over 20 years—many of those in leadership.
Yet the conviction in my heart compels me to obey the heavenly vision and, like Moses, to “build exactly as shown on the mountain.”
Why Geneva, and Why Now?
“God settles the solitary in a family; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.” — Psalm 68:6
“Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel.” — 2 Timothy 2:8
I believe the Lord is doing a “work of Isaac” in Europe (Genesis 26:18), that is, re-digging the ancient wells of the fathers. He is calling His Church back to its original apostolic foundations and practices, allowing a greater flow of the Spirit among and through His people.
Why Geneva?
This city holds historic spiritual significance. Geneva played a central role in the Great Reformation of the 1500s under John Calvin. That movement profoundly shaped not only Europe but also the Americas and beyond spiritually, politically, and economically.
And yet today, despite this rich heritage, Jesus Christ is barely remembered in the fabric of everyday life. At the same time, Geneva suffers from a subtler crisis: chronic loneliness and relational poverty, even amidst prosperity.
The Lord intends to touch both these broken areas—spiritual forgetfulness and social isolation—through spiritual renewal.
One way He will do this is by re-digging the well of apostolic understanding and restoring the church as a spiritual family, royal families, expressed through house churches, just like the first-century church.
In these homes, people will:
- Experience deep community that counters loneliness.
- Encounter the living Jesus through His presence, His Word, and His power that counters spiritual forgetfulness.
This strategy of family-based gatherings is the same one that accelerated the spread of Christianity across the Roman Empire.
We’re calling this family of house churches The House of Bethany (more on that next week).
A Biblical Foundation for House Church
For the first 300 years, Christians met in homes. These gatherings were open, participatory, and deeply relational.
“When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation…” — 1 Corinthians 14:26
“…to the church that meets in your house…” — Philemon 1:2, Romans 16:5, Colossians 4:15
“They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts.” — Acts 2:46
These weren’t formal services. They were family gatherings. While more monologue-style moments existed from time to time with visiting apostles (Acts 20:9, Acts 3:11–13), the weekly rhythm of church life centered around mutual sharing, over meals.
The house isn’t magical—it simply symbolizes the church as family. The goal is not novelty but a return to a biblical pattern of spiritual life that reflects the relational nature of the Trinity.
Six Reasons We’re Pursuing This Path
While our first motivation is obedience to Jesus, here are six convictions driving this transition:
1. Presence
We want to be more attentive to the Spirit of Jesus among us—giving Him space to move, lead, and reveal Himself through His people rather than relying heavily on structured programs.
2. Priesthood
We believe in the priesthood of all believers. It’s time to move beyond the clergy-laity divide that exhausts leaders and sidelines members to spectators and consumers.
3. Participation
We long for gatherings where everyone contributes—whether it’s a psalm, a teaching, a question, or even just an amen. Church should feel more like a family meal than a performance.
4. People
House churches create space to truly know and be known. They help shift from “watching church” to being the church, living out the “one anothers” of Scripture.
5. Prophetic Community
They enable a corporate expression of the Kingdom, a spiritual family actively serving the wider community and “the least of these” together.
6. Persecution-Readiness
House churches are more nimble and resilient in times of pressure or persecution—something Scripture and history assure us will come.
This isn’t a critique of traditional churches—I’m a product of that model, and I thank God for it. But we do sense the Lord calling for a fresh expression of His Church that more closely resembles the early Church.
You’re Invited
If you live in the Geneva area and are curious about what it looks like to live as a royal family, we’d love to welcome you. We begin gathering in homes with family meals this August.
Please keep us in your prayers—and stay tuned for next week’s article, where I’ll share why we’ve chosen the name The House of Bethany.
