Over the past eight years, Bay Presbyterian Church has been committed to coming alongside congregations on the west side of Cleveland and throughout northeast Ohio to make Christ known. These partnerships have involved incredible learning, hard work, and perseverance, and driven us deeper into our relationship with Christ and our dependence on Him. He truly is the Hope of the World!These partnerships have given us a chance to better appreciate the extensive ministry of Christ’s Body, the Church Universal. By working together, we have gained a greater understanding of one another and experienced a sense of unity in Christ.
Genesis Partners
“Genesis” – for many this is simply the title of the first book of the Old Testament. For some members of our congregation and for several churches in Northeast Ohio, this title has a different meaning. Genesis is the name of an exciting ministry to churches in Northeastern Ohio that are small and mighty and ministering to the urban communities in which they are located. Genesis started eight years ago as an outreach program from Promise and while most of the Genesis team members are still Promise members, many others have joined the teams to help in ministering in the city.
Each of the five current Genesis teams has developed a long-term relationship with one inner city church. The teams attend worship once a month at their home Genesis church, often providing music and other worship support services. Over the years, they have also gotten involved in a wide variety of other programs and efforts at these small churches. Involvement in Genesis has given BPC members a chance to really understand urban ministry and Christ’s call to minister to the poor.
Click here to learn more about each of the Genesis Partner Churches.
Isaiah Project Partner Church
Calvary Reformed Church serves as host to the first Kids Church and BPC has been the suburban partner since the founding in 1999. Kids Church meets the first three Saturday mornings of the month, and includes a high energy, praise worship service, games, Bible study based on grade in school and gender, and weekly home visits by the leaders. It is a relational ministry where God shows reveals as much about ourselves as he does about those He calls us to come alongside.
On Tuesday evenings, the neighborhood teens have an opportunity to participate in Calvary’s Teen Angels, a dynamic discipleship program that is relevant to the needs, challenges and opportunities for urban teens. BPC has taken a key leadership role in leading this ministry since its inception.
For either one of these opportunities contact Laurie Weigelt, the BPC Advocate for the Calvary Isaiah Project Partnership at weigelt@oh.rr.com.
Click here to find out more about Kids Church/Teen Disciples at Calvary.
Additional Key Urban Church Relationships
Through Project SERVE, a partnership with Youth for Christ, Bay Presbyterian Church has had the opportunity to partner with a variety of urban and suburban churches as urban and suburban teens live and serve together in the city for a week.
Jobs Partnership, a Christ-centered, Bible-based job training ministry, Bay Presbyterian Church has also been privileged to serve alongside churches on the east and west side of Cleveland as youth and adults have gone from being unemployed or underemployed to serving in jobs with livings wages and benefits, knowing that God is the one they truly work for.
BPC also has ongoing relationships with:
Antioch Christian Fellowship
Metro Alliance Church
Scranton Road Bible Church
For information on any of these partnerships contact:
Julie Jones, Director of Urban Outreach, Bay Presbyterian Church at jjones@baypres.org
