A SHORT HISTORY OF BETHANIE

Bill & Liz Gordon gave their lives to the Lord in the 80s and God took them into the Catholic Church. After they had suffered serious illnesses in the early 90s, God began to increase within them the ‘feeling’ that He had instigated some five years before. This was a vision to establish a Christian place of hospitality, where visitors would come to know and respond to the love of God in their lives. For eight years, they searched for a property in England but unable to find one and on the point of giving up, they decided to go on holiday to Normandy and seek God’s will for their future.

Shortly after arriving in France, they shared the idea with their English host, who suggested they should establish the place of hospitality right there. Bill and Liz knew that God had just given them His answer - in a country where they didn’t speak the language and knew nothing of the culture! Two days later they visited a nearby farm for sale, where the owners were about to retire and therefore needed nine months to settle their affairs - this suited Bill and Liz, and confirmed to them that this was God’s timing! At the end of 1993, the former farm took the name of ‘Béthanie’, the village where Jesus loved to spend time with Mary, Martha and Lazarus, resting away from the crowds and His busy life of ministry. After having sold all they had in England, Bill and Liz moved to Béthanie to oversee the renovation work of the farmhouse and at Pentecost 1994, they welcomed their first visitors. Things were not easy at first and Liz returned periodically to work in England during 1994 and both of them returned to England to work during the winter of ‘94 /’95 in order to keep the centre going. The summer of ‘95 saw things improving, but in September of that year, it became evident that once again Liz had become seriously ill. At that point they both returned to England, where Liz subsequently died in May ’96, happy in the knowledge that she had completed the work the Lord had asked of her.

Bill remained in England, seeking God’s will for Béthanie and for his own future and during this time a French couple came with their family to look after the house. Two prayer groups, one Catholic, the other Protestant, had started to meet together at Béthanie and a group from a church in the UK had started to travel over one weekend a month to give them Bible teaching. From this was born the group ‘Unissons-Nous’ (Let’s Unite) and the annual conference of the same name.

In January ‘97, Jan went to Béthanie for a teaching weekend, where she met Bill again, having first met him with Liz in September ‘95, just prior to their return to England. An English-born Protestant, married to a Frenchman and mother of three, she had been widowed in ‘89. An English teacher, she had lived in France for almost thirty years and was a member of .an Anglican Church in Paris where God, in His love and grace, had given her a prophecy that she would one day remarry. In November ‘96 she felt God tell her that Bill was to be her husband. It was only in May ’97 that they were able to share with each other and knew immediately that it was God’s will they should marry. They were married in Paris in February ‘98 by Pastor Charlie Cleverly and Brother Zacharie from the town of Livarot, close to Béthanie. In July ‘98 they returned there to take up the work.

In September ‘99, Melissa came to join them. A Protestant of English origin, she had worked for Christian missions in Cyprus and the Falklands, then near Lille in the north of France, where she spent three years before feeling God’s call to Béthanie. Fifteen months later, she and Thierry, a Catholic who attended teaching weekends at Béthanie, realised that the Lord was calling them together; in June 2001 they were married by Brother Zacharie in Livarot and Melissa continued to help at Béthanie until the end of 2004.

November 2002 saw the arrival of Simon & Suzanne, a British couple who felt the Lord’s leading to France. They have been a great blessing, Simon leading worship, Suzanne catering and offering hospitality.

In 2003, the Lord called Ingrid, an American lady with YWAM to spend a year at Béthanie. She led a ‘School of Reconciliation’ and was part of the ministry team on other courses, before returning to the States to marry in 2004.

After coming to Béthanie for several years, Gérard & Jacqueline felt the Lord’s calling to leave Amiens and in 2004, they moved close by and continue to faithfully serve the Lord here.

Christine first came to Béthanie in 1998 and in 2004 the Lord asked her to leave her home in another part of Normandy... within two weeks she had found a job and a flat in Lisieux.

Little by little, Christians are sensing the Lord's calling to come and settle in the region... both French & English speaking, Catholics & Protestants - the Lord is calling us to live in unity together.

BETHANIE TODAY

The activities at Béthanie are varied:

• At Teaching Seminars, Christians of various denominations come from different regions of France to find fellowship, worship the Lord, study the Bible, receive healing and allow God to work in their lives.

• The Béthanie community are wholehearted supporters of the Alpha course, hosting Alpha Holy Spirit weekends here.

• Fellowship Breaks are varied and seek to answer the diverse needs of Christians of all denominations – in French or English, for the young and not so young, active or meditative, traditional or more charismatic; the desire is that each person will leave knowing God more intimately, rested and renewed by His Holy Spirit.

• In a world where the pace and stresses of life are growing, it is increasingly difficult to find the time and place to seek God’s face. At Béthanie, the beauty of the countryside, the silence, the peace and the presence of God allow those who so wish to spend a time of Personal Retreat with the Lord.

• We extend a warm welcome to full time Christian workers who need a place to rest from their busy lives and the demands of ministry.

• Visitors come for Holidays and Short Breaks – including British Francophiles looking for Christian fellowship, who may not have a good command of the French language. Normandy is a beautiful region, well known for its cuisine, with many places of interest to visit - including the D-day landing beaches. A holiday in a French Christian environment works wonders!

• Béthanie’s ministries extend beyond the centre itself. The first Unissons-Nous Conference took place at Béthanie in ’96. The conference continued to grow and in ‘99 moved to the Exhibition Centre in Lisieux, where French and British, Catholics and Protestants continue to gather together. In 2005 this became ‘Jour J Normandie’...

The Lord has called Bill and Jan to a Ministry of Reconciliation and a major aspect of this is Christian unity. This takes them to different parts of Great Britain, the Channel Islands and France to share their testimony of God’s love, grace and provision and to network with other Christians. It is felt that this is an important part of the ministry.

BETHANIE TOMORROW?

Planning permission has been granted for the whole centre and work continues to advance little by little.

WHAT HAS BEEN DONE

• The farmhouse has been renovated to provide accommodation.

• The building originally used to make the local cheese has been converted into a good-sized chapel seating up to forty people.

• The small outhouse next to the main house has been converted to provide a storeroom.

• The barn at the entrance to Béthanie has been renovated to become Bill and Jan’s home and offers extra guest rooms, one of which is situated on the ground floor and has an en-suite bathroom designed for those with mobility difficulties.

• Work has been done to install the services of gas, water, electricity and sewage for all future building conversions.

• The Dutch Barn, now ‘La Remise’, has been renovated to create a meeting room, kitchenette and toilets.

WHAT IS BEING DONE

• The new project is the present workshop which will become a one bedroom flat, to be used as extra accommodation for seminars, for speakers, short-term workers and also as a ‘gîte’ when it’s free.

WHAT REMAINS TO BE DONE

• The other barns will be converted to provide further accommodation.

• The landscaping of the grounds and provision of outdoor facilities.

Please pray - for the community to follow God’s plan for their own lives and for the ministries of Béthanie; for the centre itself and for God’s provision to continue its development; for all those who come to Béthanie – that they may find a place of safety and be challenged in their walk with God; for France - that people will come to know God as their Father, Jesus as their Lord and the Holy Spirit as the one who lives in them.

Bill & Jan GORDON

Ministry supported by Béthanie Christian Ministries: