Renewal Project event will gather pastors, church leaders Monday

On Monday, Bethel Assembly of God will host a Missouri Renewal Project event that will gather church leaders from the surrounding areas.

Special guest at the event will be former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft along with other guests, such as Missouri's Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft and the voice of the American Renewal Project, Ken Graves. Bethel's lead pastor Phil Roop said the event is affiliated with American Renewal Project and their mission is "to encourage and empower the church to engage the culture instead of just sitting within the four walls" of the church.

Roop said one of the things the event encourages church leaders to do is get involved with their community on various levels.

"[The event is] encouraging pastors and leaders to be able to see the political arena through a biblical worldview," Roop said. "And it's really, honestly, it's probably what we see is to really allow even the church as a whole or at whatever part we can be involved in to engage the culture and to engage even the political culture, but through a biblical mindset."

Roop said he attended two of the events before in his 17 years of pastoring Bethel to get more involved in the community around Cape Girardeau.

"I'm involved in several community projects, I'm on the United Way board. I also serve as the president of EPIC [Early Preventions Impact Communities]," Roop said. "I'm on the corporate board for Teen Challenge and other areas, ABCToday, which is with the junior high and also Alma Schrader."

The event will go from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will include lunch and moments of prayer for the leaders of the state and nation and is open to church leaders and their spouses. For more information on the event, contact pastorphil@capebethel.org or office@capebethel.org.