Bethany Baptist Church sits along Old Hollow Road on the north side of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and has long been known in the Forsyth County area as a congregation built on two straightforward commitments: prayer and Christ-centeredness. Those twin foundations shape everything from the two Sunday morning worship services to the way students, women, men, and senior adults gather during the week. The church is a voluntary participant with the Southern Baptist Convention and affirms the Baptist Faith and Message.
One Church with Two Sunday Services
The Sunday schedule at Bethany is built around the idea that one congregation can worship in two musical styles. At 8:30 a.m., the Bethany Choir leads the congregation in the Sanctuary with organ, piano, and the standard hymns of the faith. At 11:00 a.m., the worship team takes over in the Family Life Center, filling the room with guitars, drums, and keyboards and a varied repertoire of contemporary Christian worship music. The same message is preached at both hours.
Between the two services, at 9:45 a.m., the church pauses for Life Groups - the Sunday morning Bible study hour for all ages. Off-campus Life Groups also meet during the week in the homes of church members, keeping the small-group rhythm going for those who cannot make it to the building on Sunday morning.
What to Expect on a First Visit
Visitors are greeted at the Welcome Center, located at the back of the church near the covered drop-off. Greeters help newcomers find their way around and locate a Life Group that fits. Children in grades 1 through 5 have their own Life Group at 9:45 a.m., and during the 11:00 a.m. service the church provides an age-appropriate children's worship experience along with nursery childcare. The church's invitation to guests is simple: come as you are. People dress however they feel comfortable.
Midweek, the church gathers again on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. in the Family Life Center for an evening study, a recurring series that walks through core doctrines of the Christian faith in a way that is accessible to newer believers and longtime members alike.
What Bethany Believes
The statement of faith at Bethany Baptist Church begins with the triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - holy, perfect, and self-revealing in Scripture. The Bible is described as truth without error, the full and final authority for faith and life. Because of the fall, every person stands in need of forgiveness, and that forgiveness is accomplished through the work of Christ on the cross.
Salvation is offered freely to all who repent of sin and receive Christ by faith. The church uses a careful cluster of New Testament words to describe the result: election, regeneration, justification, reconciliation, adoption, sanctification, and one day glorification. The church is understood as the body of Christ and the family of God, and Bethany practices the two ordinances given to the church - baptism and the Lord's Supper.
The congregation also holds to a missionary reading of the Christian life. Members are committed to personal evangelism and to supporting the work of the local church at home and around the world, while growing as disciples through the daily application of Scripture. Looking forward, the church teaches the personal return of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, final judgment, and the eternal destiny of both believers and unbelievers.
Children's Ministry
Children are a central part of life at Bethany. The children's ministry serves kids from birth through fifth grade and is designed to help each child accept Jesus as Savior and build a personal relationship with Him in a safe and loving environment.
On Sunday mornings, children in first through fifth grade attend their own Life Group at 9:45 a.m. During the 11:00 a.m. service, children ages three through fifth grade are invited to children's worship, an interactive experience built around singing, prayer, a Bible lesson, and hands-on activities and crafts.
On Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m., the boys and girls in first through fifth grade learn about missions through two well-known Baptist organizations: Royal Ambassadors for boys and Girls in Action for girls. At 7:00 p.m., the children come together for Children's Choir practice. Throughout the year, the ministry also runs Vacation Bible School and participates in the church's Christmas and Easter dramas.
UNBOUND Student Ministry
The student ministry at Bethany is called UNBOUND, a name that captures the group's desire to see the impact of faith break through every territorial limit. UNBOUND is open to students in grades 6 through 12 and meets in the third floor of the church, where the middle school group gathers in the Coffee Shop and the high school group meets in the large youth room.
Students meet on Sunday mornings for Life Group and on Wednesday nights for a joint time of fellowship and teaching. In addition, the youth often come together on Sunday afternoons at 4:30 p.m. for basketball or volleyball in the Family Life Center. When conditions allow, UNBOUND also travels to New Hope and Skyline Apartments every other Sunday for Bible lessons and recreation with school-aged kids from the surrounding community.
At least once a week during the summer, UNBOUND serves the wider community. Past projects have included yard work for elderly members of the church and goody bags delivered to the staff at a local nursing home. The group also takes at least two trips each year, combining recreation and missions.
Women on Mission
Women on Mission (WOM) is a ministry for every woman in the church, organized around three commitments: connecting with the community, cultivating faith, and communicating the gospel. The group funds much of its mission work through the annual sale of homemade chicken pies and hosts a popular Ladies Night Out each year, a kid-free evening of food, crafts, and fellowship that welcomes friends and coworkers from beyond the church.
WOM also reaches the next generation by sponsoring Girls in Action for girls in fifth grade and younger, and the women support a long-running quilt ministry that puts their handwork to use in service to others.
Bethany Men
Bethany Men is organized around a simple goal: helping men lead meaningful lives under the lordship of Jesus Christ. The ministry develops men who are grounded in the Word of God, equipped to lead their families in worship, prepared to share the gospel in the community, and committed to holding one another accountable.
Throughout the year, Bethany Men sponsor breakfast fellowships, Bible studies, father-daughter dances, disaster relief projects, and service opportunities such as building ramps for neighbors in need. Men of all ages are welcome to join in.
The JOY Group for Senior Adults
Bethany's Senior Adult Ministry is known as the JOY Group, and its name signals exactly what it offers - joy in the best years of life. The senior adults of the church stay active in the life of the congregation, providing food and flowers for members recovering from illness or surgery and pitching in on fundraising efforts around the church.
The JOY Group also hosts monthly gatherings throughout the year. Recent meetings have featured guest speakers, performing groups, and day trips to nearby live theater and museums. The events are open to people of all ages.
Music and Worship
The Music Ministry at Bethany is made up of volunteers who serve in two ensembles. The Bethany Choir, a group of fifteen to twenty singers, leads the 8:30 a.m. traditional service and sings a mix of standard hymns, eclectic anthems, and seasonal gospel numbers, supported each week by the church's pianist and organist. Singers with a passion for choral music are welcome.
The contemporary worship team is also fifteen to twenty musicians and vocalists who serve on a rotating schedule. Each week, the band includes a combination of keyboard, rhythm and lead guitar, bass guitar, drums, and several vocalists, leading the 11:00 a.m. service in a varied repertoire of contemporary worship music. The team is intended for experienced musicians and vocalists who are comfortable leading high-energy congregational worship.
Life Groups
Life Groups are the small-group backbone of Bethany. A Life Group is a small group of people who meet regularly to study God's Word, share life's struggles and triumphs, and live out the Christian life together. They focus both inward - on prayer and fellowship - and outward - on evangelism and service.
On-campus Life Groups meet at 9:45 a.m. on Sunday mornings and provide a way for newcomers and longtime members alike to connect, form relationships, and get involved in hands-on missions and service projects. Off-campus Life Groups are made up of three to fifteen people who meet weekly in homes throughout the week for evangelism, encouragement, prayer, and Bible study, offering community for those who cannot make it to the church building.
Missions: Local and Global
Missions are woven into the identity of Bethany Baptist Church. The congregation describes its calling in three directions: locally, nationally, and globally, with a long history of active participation.
International mission trips in recent years have taken members of Bethany to Russia, Honduras, Haiti, Cuba, and Nicaragua. In North America, efforts have focused on West Virginia and eastern North Carolina, with teams regularly seeking God's direction for new fields of witness, discipleship, and church planting.
Closer to home, the Prison Ministry partners with Forsyth Jail and Prison Ministries to lead worship services for inmates at the Forsyth County Jail throughout the year. The goal is to show Christ's love and forgiveness in a place where transformation is most needed. The church also partners with Baptists on Mission for disaster relief, sending volunteers into hurricane recovery and other efforts to help people displaced or injured by disasters.
The Neighborhoods Ministry, largely carried out by UNBOUND, reaches into two nearby apartment communities - New Hope and Skyline Apartments - every other Sunday with Bible lessons and recreational activities for school-aged children, intentionally taking the church beyond its own walls.
Leadership
Dr. Brad Stamey has served as Senior Pastor of Bethany for ten years and is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, Southern Seminary, and Golden Gate Seminary. Before coming to Bethany, Brad and his wife Lori served as IMB missionaries in Moscow, Russia for fifteen years, and that missionary background continues to shape the church's approach to disciple-making and small groups.
Brian Alverson, a native North Carolinian, serves as Minister of Discipleship with a Master of Divinity from Gardner-Webb University. David Hooker leads the youth ministry as Minister to Youth, and April Alverson serves as Minister of Worship. Together, the pastoral team focuses on presenting God's Word, motivating growth in faith, and creating space for every generation at Bethany to follow Christ.
Bethany Baptist Church gathers on Old Hollow Road each week around a simple conviction: that a church grounded in prayer and centered on Christ will keep finding new ways to worship, teach, serve, and send. From the organ at 8:30 to the drums at 11:00, from the children's choir on Wednesday nights to mission teams abroad, the life of the church is built for the long work of making disciples at home and to the ends of the earth.