Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry - Chicagoland
General Information
The Vision
BSSM-Chicagoland is committed to the truth that God loves people, gave Himself for them and has given His Church supernatural power to bring individuals and nations into wholeness. God is in a good mood! The school emphasizes that believers need to return to the ministry of signs and wonders—to minister in love, truth and the power of God. Our Vision is to see thousands of Kingdom Worldview Revivalists dominating all 7 Mountains of Society producing regional and national revival and transforming society. However, our passion is to train students who enjoy the presence of God and minister like Jesus--saying what He is saying and doing what He is doing.
The Atmosphere
BSSM-C is a Holy Spirit driven ministry school where students of all ages come to learn how to live in the Kingdom of God and extend it’s borders through a supernatural lifestyle. It is important to note that although many young people come, the school is multi-generational with participants ranging from the ages of 17 to 70+. One of our core values is honor, which manifests through joining the generations and teaching every age group to value and serve one another.
The school emphasizes hands on training and experience along with academic understanding. This creates a do and teach culture where all of the students are expected to take risks to stretch their faith and grow in their understanding of God. We believe that each verse of the Bible is an invitation into an experience with the Lord, therefore the students are challenged to live the Bible. This produces a class environment that often feels very much like a laboratory where disciples practice the things they are being taught while instructors coach the process and all this takes places in a setting of passionate worship.
As the year progresses and the students begin to gain confidence and experience within the safety of the classroom, they are sent on outreaches into the community. These exploits include ministry to neighborhoods, after-school programs, and street & service evangelism. When the students take their supernatural ministry into the community, it gets pretty wild and exciting! They return to class to share testimonies, give thanks and debrief, always cheering each other on as they share.
While the school has the same teachings, flavor and genetics of our parent school in Redding, California, our smaller class size promotes increased intimacy and a sense of “being known”. Long before the school year is over, the relational bonds that develop between students and with the staff take on the feel of being a “family”.
Student Life
The school is designed to equip students to live a supernatural lifestyle, not just minister in the gifts of the Spirit. They are encouraged to be naturally supernatural by bringing heaven to earth wherever they go. Therefore BSSM-C by design, does not have dorms. Instead we encourage students to live in the community and get jobs in the local area so that they can practice bringing Jesus to the market place as a part of their learning experience. Most of our students work part-time jobs while they attend school.
Though in-class hours are Tuesday through Friday from 12:30 to 5:00 pm, the school is full-time, five-days a week - minimum. The class hours are learning opportunities with the instructors but they are just a small part of the learning experience. The rest comes from the Holy Spirit as the students read the Word, attend services, serve on ministry teams, spend time soaking and in prayer, and live out the supernatural lifestyle in an honorable way at home and at work. BSSM-C is not for the faint of heart or lazy. It is an extremely fast paced season of schooling, but the training is pivotal and strategic. We believe the intensity soon translates into “becoming”. Things that are at first foreign and done out of duty gradually become second nature and students move from merely echoing a message to becoming a message.
The school culture is more adept to meeting God as you “do life.” One example of this is that the school has no general restriction on dating for our single people, which is so common to most ministry schools. Rather, we have chosen to teach our students how to have healthy relationships and live in purity. Of course, learning without a lot of external restrictions creates a need for a high level of discipleship, personal responsibility and accountability in the lives of our students. This is accomplished through small group interaction and a covenant community which embraces honesty, transparency and confrontation.
BSSM-C is not for those who are looking for a place to rehab or people who are coming out of lifestyle sins. The school is designed to be a ministry training center where our students encounter their royal identity, learn the attributes of the Kingdom and walk in the authority and power of the King.
Additional Info:Childcare: Bethel School of Supernatural Ministr--Chicagoland does not provide childcare.
Housing: Each student is responsible for their own living expenses and arrangements. You may contact Janet King at janet.king@bethelvalpo.com for assistance in locating housing.
Information on the Valparaiso Area: You may visit the Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce at www.valparaisochamber.org.
Visitors: Those wishing to visit classes for a day must first be approved by the school staff. Please contact the school office for more information.