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
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
New School Year at Bethany
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.
“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.
Monday, August 9, 2010
A Look Forward for Bethany Bible Training Center
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.”
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.”
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Welcome to Our New Website!
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.
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.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
2010 Pinecrest Graduation
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.
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.
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.
Monday, May 10, 2010
A Great Victory
“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).”
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
Thursday, May 6, 2010
My Father's House
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!
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