Quick Facts

What exactly is Peterson House?

We are a place to gather people together to read the Bible. We are not a classroom kind of format where a participant is a consumer who is present to take in information. Your voice and imagination matter to us and the health of our programs. It is our way of helping us all pay attention to what God is saying to us through Scripture— through each other. We may not cover every historical or literary background of the text, but we will be deliberate with our pace honoring the text, what it is saying, and how the Spirit is speaking to each participant. We believe that though it is a good practice to read Scripture on your own for your own devotional life, we feel that reading Scripture with others can elevate the meaning of the text in new ways.

Why is Peterson House needed?

“Don’t worry. We will never oversaturate the world with too many opportunities to read Scripture.” This quote from a friend kind of sums up our owning that, yes, reading the Bible is happening in many ways already - in the church, small group settings, virtually, etc… The more the merrier, right? But what we think is unique to Peterson House is our commitment to keeping our groups small and paying close attention to the makeup and diversity of the people in each group.

Is Peterson House a church and/or have the hopes of becoming a church?

This is an interesting question because we can define "church" in so many ways. In its simplest form the church is the gathered people of God who are coming together to praise and grow closer to God. So in that sense, yes, we are. But in the sense of a Sunday morning chartered church under the banner of one denomination, well, probably not. Our hope is to be faithful to gathering whoever wants to come around the text often and with others and through it give thanks to what God is doing at Peterson House.

Don’t most churches spend time reading the Bible? If so then what is the purpose for a ministry like Peterson House?

Many churches hunger for space like this, but often the spaces that are created in each church are groups that often look, think, act, and believe similarly to the person sitting beside you. We see our ministry as a companion who walks beside the church to support a priority of knowing Scripture. Our hope is to complement the church’s commitment to teaching, preaching, and living into this holy word.

What is the value of reading the Bible together with a group of diverse Christians?

God is at work in this world and speaking through creation, the church, all of it! If we never tap into the gift of listening to others, in some way we are saying we would rather not know what God is at work doing outside of our own context. The value of reading the Bible together with others from other Christian traditions offers a larger lens where the text has a way of coming to life in new and unexpected ways.

Are there other ministries out there doing something similar?

Part of the vision of Peterson House began with researching the work of Francis and Edith Schaeffer and L’Abri - the community they started in the 1950’s in Switzerland for the purpose of gathering people for theological reflection. Though Peterson House is not a residential community like L’Abri, we have a similar desire to create a community of depth where substantive conversations can be had that deepen people's discipleship and understanding of what God is doing in this world.

When did Peterson House get started with its programs?

We completed our pilot groups in 2021. We formally launched our programming/small groups in the Fall of 2021 with one in person Square One group and an in person Ministry Leaders group. We also facilitated one virtual group that fall. Currently (2024), we have 5 different groups with three meeting in person and two meeting virtually. Our groups have ranged from being designed for ministry leaders, laity, college students, and military chaplains.

Where does Peterson House get its support?

We receive support from individual donors. We hope to foster relationships and partnerships with charitable foundations, churches, and individuals who would like to support our commitment to bringing people together to read and reflect on Scripture.

Does it cost anything to participate in the ministry of Peterson House?

Participating in our small groups is free of charge. We may eventually charge for retreats or a more immersive individual experience, but our model is one like the church where it costs nothing to walk in the door and expereince the power of the gospel without any required financial transaction. Yes, people understand that it costs something to offer this service and if they would like to donate we would love to have their support, but it is not a requirment. Our funding comes from individual donors, grants, and foundations who all want to help make these experiences available where time in the biblical text can transform lives.

Is Peterson House connected to any one Christian denomination?

No. Peterson House is an ecumenical ministry. Our hope is to tap into the diversity of our Christian tradition where in our space a rich and meaningful lens on Scripture will be fostered.

How will Peterson House mark “success”?

We would be honored if a diverse group of people say that their walk with Jesus is more vivid as a result of joining in the reflecting on Scripture with their friends at Peterson House.

How will an eventual space for Peterson House shape its ministry?

Anyone who knows our Executive Director John knows that space is key to how he views ministry. From designing the right space to meet or a trip in a beautiful part of the world that evokes a quick feeling of awe and glory, space can be a powerful tool to accomplish the vision for a program like this. Whereas many churches design this into their worship space to evoke a humbling posture praising God through the Word read and proclaimed, the Peterson House space will aim to evoke a warmth of space that says, "welcome.” Imagining the space we can see beautiful bookshelves with plenty of good resources as well as big tables to spread out to study, journal, and eat together. And it must have good light where it feels less like a dark, cool, subterranean wine cellar, and more like an Upper Room that models the light that Christ brings to the world. We have plenty of dreams for what our space/land/etc… might look like. Mostly though, we are praying a lot about how to match up our dreams with a space God is leading us to settle in that will first and foremost be accessible to a community we are trying to create.

What is, “Uncovered Word Ministries”?

This is the name of our overarching nonprofit— you know… the incorporated name that we use to file with the IRS as a ministry like this when you apply for legal nonprofit status. The name came to John as he was praying about what the purpose of a ministry like this can be. John kept returning to the 2 Kings 22 text where Josiah is having some people dig through the rubble in the Temple in Jerusalem and Hilkiah the high priest found the Scroll/Book of the Low. Josiah is painted in a very good light as a King of Judah and this is probably one of the reasons why- God’s people returning to the text/scroll of the Law where it is placed at the center of Israel’s identity again. Josiah’s high priest “uncovers” what had been lost/forgotten. Not only does it remind Josiah who the people are supposed to be as the radiance of God to the world, but it speaks clearly about the role and leadership of the king. Our hope is that Peterson House can help honor the placement of the text at the center of who we are, who God is, and that having our sacred text at the center, uncovered, is key.