Brussels and Beyond is the current name for the ministries of Carlton and Shannon Deal.
Pray: We believe that the foundation for all the work that God will do to change Europe begins with prayer and dependence upon him.
- Brussels: The European Prayer Breakfast invites political leaders from all over the continent to pray together in the European Parliament once a year, but it is much more than an annual event. Each week they are in Brussels, a small group of Members of European Parliament gather for prayer and fellowship, seeking God as they seek to lead. Carlton coordinates the yearly event, and also facilitates the weekly gathering and other opportunities for friendship and discipleship among political leaders.
- Beyond: Prayer Breakfast events and groups have become a growing movement in the national governments of Europe as well. In his role as coordinator of the EU Prayer Breakfast, Carlton seeks to support existing national prayer breakfasts, and to facilitate the foundation of new ones. In addition, Carlton and Shannon help to host visiting Europeans at the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington D.C.
Plow: We believe that the soil for change must be prepared by paying attention to “the least of these” in our cities, and that as people learn to see the image of God in their fellow man as they serve him, God will also reveal himself. We believe that addressing issues of justice and compassion creates change that softens people’s hearts.
- Brussels: Carlton and Shannon started Serve the City Brussels in 2005 as a means of engaging people in the city in service to the poor. Now, STC Brussels engages local volunteers in many weekly projects and offers monthly opportunities for people to try volunteering for themselves. In addition, STC Brussels organizes employer-sponsored service projects for corporate volunteers and for government employees, as well as hosting international volunteers through the IVHQ program. Carlton acts as the Executive Director for STC Brussels, and Shannon is on its Core Team, investing in church volunteer groups and training.
- Beyond: The movement of Serve the City has spread throughout Europe and the world to become Serve the City International. Carlton serves as the CEO of the STC International NGO, leading the team coordinating efforts in new and existing cities. He also speaks about volunteering and service in conferences, and visits cities in the movement to encourage and learn from them. Shannon supports the Operations Team by producing resources to help STC cities get started and grow, and theological and devotional resources to feed the spiritual side of the movement.
Plant: We believe that local churches form the basis for change in our cities, through discipling individuals who belong to them, through sending out those individuals on mission in their neighborhoods, and through cooperating in prayer and service with other churches with a missional outlook. We want to see more expressions of church planted in the neighborhoods of our city and others, and networked together for maximum impact.
- Brussels: The Well was planted by the Deals in 2005, as a missional church community based in multiple neighborhoods of Brussels. An international church, the congregation has welcomed and sent out many people from many parts of the world. Carlton has served as senior pastor of The Well since its inception, and has been the visionary behind a decidedly original model of church. Shannon works to train teachers, and to develop interactive and creative teaching resources for adults and children. In 2018, Carlton has also begun efforts to connect like-minded missional church groups in the city to have a closer connection, in order to create a city-wide church movement that will make a powerful difference in Brussels.
- Beyond:
- In addition to church planting in Brussels, Carlton has recently taken on a liaison role with Communitas (the Deals’ sending organization) to help facilitate church planting efforts in the Balkans—an area of the world where he has had a long-term interest. He has also become active in Movement Day, which encourages city-wide gospel movements in cities throughout the world.
- While Carlton focuses on the big picture of global movements, Shannon seeks to speak to individual discipleship through writing practical theological resources. She has published two books: “Rest: Living Sabbath Every Day” and “Risk: Living by Faith the Face of Fear”; she also speaks on these topics in various settings where she is invited.
brussels+beyond 