When a Church Becomes Part of the Neighborhood

Bethel United Methodist Church, Peoria, Illinois, and Becoming a Community That Matters

When people think about community engagement, they may picture an event, a food pantry, a holiday giveaway, or a neighborhood block party. Those things matter.  Rev. Tyson Parks of Bethel United Methodist Church in Peoria, Illinois, believes that authentic community engagement begins somewhere deeper. It begins when a church decides that it isn't just located in a neighborhood but belongs to it. That view shapes how Bethel United Methodist Church connects to its community.

In 2024, Bethel received the “One Matters Award,” which celebrates congregations that have moved from zero professions of faith and baptisms to one or more. Over the past year, the congregation welcomed a family of eight into faith, along with two additional new disciples, a reminder that behind every "one" is a story of transformation. Bethel’s story isn't primarily about church growth. It's about mattering.

Journalist and author Jennifer Breheny Wallace writes that people flourish when they know they are valued and they have opportunities to make meaningful contributions. Communities flourish in the same way. Bethel helps its neighborhood do both.

Becoming a Church the Community Knows

One effective way to be present in the community is to build community partnerships.  Rev. Parks stresses the importance of these connections. He serves as chaplain for the Peoria police and fire departments. The church featured a local college leader during its Black History Month celebrations, and it partners with another congregation and community organizations to distribute Thanksgiving turkeys. In addition, the church participates in training opportunities with other United Methodist churches. These aren’t isolated events; they are all connected relationally. Community engagement isn't measured by how many programs a church offers. It is measured by whether the community knows the church is present before a crisis arrives. Long before people walk through Bethel's sanctuary doors, they may already know someone from Bethel was present at a city event, standing beside first responders, partnering with another congregation, or helping to provide food for neighbors. Trust is built long before people are invited to Bethel.

Presence Creates Belonging

Jennifer Breheny Wallace argues in Mattering: The Secret to a Life of Deep Connection and Purpose that one of the deepest human needs is knowing that we matter, that our presence is noticed, and our absence would be felt. Churches often ask, "How do we get people to come?" Perhaps a better question is, "If our church disappeared tomorrow, who in our community would notice?" Bethel offers one possible answer. The church has intentionally woven itself into the life of Peoria, not to gain recognition but to demonstrate that God's people care about what happens beyond Sunday morning.

Pastor Parks describes this using the acronym TOWER:

Teaching
Outreach
Worship
Evangelism
Relationship

Notice that relationship isn't the reward at the end of ministry. It is ministry. That simple insight changes everything. Relationships are not a strategy to grow the church. Relationships are how the church reflects the heart of Christ.

Hope Has a Face

Pastor Parks describes Bethel as becoming "the eyes, ears, hands, and feet of Jesus." That language is reminiscent of Wallace’s writing in Mattering. People don't simply need services; they need to know someone notices them, sees them, and believes they are worth showing up for. Hope almost always arrives through another person. Whether serving as a police chaplain, partnering with neighborhood organizations, or listening to someone in crisis, Bethel makes hope visible. Instead of asking, "What programs should we offer?" Bethel asks, "Where is hope needed, and how can we be present there?"

Formation That Flows Outward

Bethel's story illustrates that community engagement is a vital part of disciple formation. Worship, children’s ministry, Bible study, and Sunday school are aspects of formation. However, Bethel recognizes that mission and community engagement go hand in hand with these other aspects of the faith community. Through their interactions with Bethel,  people begin to believe they matter. People who know they matter to God naturally begin helping others discover that they, too, matter.

One Matters

It's easy to celebrate the numbers: ten new members; a family of eight discovering faith; recognition from Discipleship Ministries through the “One Matters Award.”

However, these wonderful milestones are not the whole story. Behind every baptism is someone who encountered a community that cared enough to know their name. Behind every profession of faith is a relationship patiently cultivated over time. Behind every "one" is a church that decides to become woven into the everyday life of its neighborhood. That may be Bethel's greatest lesson. Evangelism rarely begins with convincing. Instead, it begins with consistency and presence that lead to trust.

What Other Congregations Can Learn

Bethel reminds us that community engagement doesn't require a large budget or a complicated strategy. It begins with asking different questions:

• Where are trusted community partners already serving?
• Instead of creating everything ourselves, how might we join what is already bringing life to our neighborhood?
• Who needs to know that the church is present? Sometimes ministry begins with simply showing up consistently where people already gather.
• How are we equipping disciples for everyday ministry? Formation isn't separate from mission. It prepares people to become ambassadors of hope wherever they live and work.
• Would our neighborhood miss us if we were gone? Perhaps that is one of the most important community engagement questions a church can ask.

Becoming Heralds of Hope

Pastor Parks describes Bethel as a community called to be "heralds of hope." Heralds don't create hope. They announce it, embody it, and carry it into the world to share it. People long to know they matter. The gospel has been proclaiming that truth from the beginning. Every person bears the image of God. Every person has gifts. Every person is worthy of love. When a church consistently lives as though those things are true not only inside its sanctuary but also throughout its neighborhood, it becomes more than a church in a community. It becomes part of the community's story. That is what the One Matters Award celebrates--not just that one more person came to church, but that one more person encountered a community that helps individuals discover they matter, to God, to neighbors, and to the world.