Do you feel called to be part of our disciple making journey in Almere?
Help us work towards the launch of Celebration Church Almere!
The Story So Far
In 2020, Celebration Church’s Lead Pastor Sebastiaan van Wessem and his family moved to Almere. Early 2023 the Lord started to break his heart for this city. Around 225.000 people live in Almere, but only a small percentage of these people attend church.
In light of this huge need, the Lord began to stir his heart to pioneer a new Celebration Church in Almere that would focus on discipleship and life transformation. Supernaturally, God connected him with people in the city who have a similar passion to see God break through in revival in Almere.
So in May 2023 pastor Sebastiaan, together with Sebastiaan Boonstra and a few other people, started their first Bible study group in Almere (Nobelhorst), patterned after the way the early church studied the Bible. This method is used successfully in countries where there is severe persecution of Christians.
Besides the Bible studies, a few interest nights have been held to share Celebration Church’s vision for the city of Almere. Also, we have done a few outreaches in the center of Almere, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom and spreading a sound of praise and worship in the streets of Almere and the central station. And this is only the start of the amazing things God has in store for us and the city!
Are you ready to join us on this journey of life and city transformation?
Are you ready to join us on this journey of transformation?
Discipleship
Focus
Even though we love powerful weekend services with great worship and dynamic preaching, we believe that a Bible study with a focus on discipleship is the place where true life change takes place. We don’t only want to learn what God’s Word says, but obey it and put it into practice.
So in May 2023 we started our first Bible study group. We call the approach we are using a “Shema Bible Study” (SBS). A Shema Bible Study is the same as a Discovery Bible Study (DBS), but just a different title (the Hebrew word “shema” means hearing and obeying). These SBSes / DBSes are the core ingredient of some of the most effective Disciple Making Movements (DMMs) around the globe, even in countries such as Iran.
In September 2023 this one group that meets on Wednesdays in Sebastiaan Boonstra’s home in Nobelhorst will continue. But we will be starting several new groups on different nights of the week so more people are able to join. These groups are all led by facilitators rather than leaders or teachers, as we feel that the Lord uses the input of everyone in the group to grow to a deeper understanding of the Word.
Passionate About Praise and Worship
The team that is developing in Celebration Church Almere is passionate about praise and worship in a way that reflects the multicultural diversity of the people in the city. So in our future services we love to see the passion and freedom in praise and worship as the Holy Spirit works it out through the diversity of the cultures in our church.
Here is a taste of what worship will be like at Celebration Church Almere:
The Calendar
Shema Bible Studies
One key (almost weekly) activity are the Shema Bible Studies. We have one in Nobelhorst on Wednesdays. There will be another starting on Mondays in Oosterwold. And we are looking to start even more in different neighborhoods and different weeknights.
Outreaches
On September 23, between 13:00 and 14.30, we will do another outreach in the Almere city center with a march for Jesus, worship & praise, testimonies, encouragement from the Bible and a freestyle gospel service in the hall of the central station.
Monthly praise & worship celebrations
On the following Sunday afternoons starting at 16:00 all our Bible study groups and everyone else who is interested in joining our future Almere location will gather for worship and praise, a message straight from the Bible and fellowship:
- October 1
- November 5 (with a guest speaker from Frontier Alliance)
- December 3 (with Ps Casey Henagan from the US)
During each celebration we will also highlight the vision of Celebration Church Almere. They will be in English with translation to Dutch.
Location is still to be determined!
Interest Nights
We also love to take the vision of Celebration Church Almere to your home. Organize an Interest Night in your home, invite your friends and let a few of the Almere team members come to explain the vision to them.
Other activities
The other activities are also open to attend for anyone interested in helping Celebration Church Almere to get started:
When will we start
Sunday services?
At the moment, our plan is to start weekly services in March 2024. Please pray with us for a strong team and a good location. These services will be bilingual, English-Dutch, so we can cater to both Dutch nationals and the growing international community in Almere.
In the meantime, we would love for you to join our English service in Hilversum, which starts at 11:30. That’s the service which most of our Almere members are joining. Click here for more information.
More information
Be sure to reach out to either Ps Sebastiaan van Wessem or Sebastiaan Boonstra if this vision excites you! Feel free to also check out Ps Sebastiaan’s blog, which has more information about our discipleship approach: https://hearingandobeying.org/category/discipleship-resources/ Also, you can fill out the contact form below!