Next Gen Now

Is there a move of God happening in the next generation? Auburn University sophomore and former Hills' student Jackson Brownlow shares about the September 12th event when hundreds of students were baptized after a worship service. He reflects on how God was already at work on campus weeks before this event and how he sees hunger for King Jesus rising in his generation. With Baptism Sunday coming up October 8, this is a great listen for anyone considering baptism for the first time or desiring onging immersion into the real life found in the kingdom of God. ALL HAIL KING JESUS!

Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org.

We keep hearing that there is no junior Holy Spirit. What does that mean? Ali Lowry and her 11-year old daughter Ella talk about being activated in the Spirit at a young age. You'll hear Ella share how she's been taught to align herself with God's heart for people and how to pray and bless people. This will bless you so you can bless others!

Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org.

How do you keep the fire burning after a moment of transformation with God? Join Student Minister Emmanuel Dominguez as he sits down with students Ella Carder, Imari Washington, and Josh Richards to share stories of transformation and steps that anyone can take to grow as disciples of Jesus!

Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org.

Chris Covington and Scott Gauldon from the Keller campus share about the importance of community for Special Needs families.

Sunday Morning Class Schedule

• Keller: 10:45 am
• North Richland Hills: Kids & Adults: 10 am, Kids Only: 11:30
• West Fort Worth: 9 & 10:45 am

https://thehills.org/serveothers - Click here to learn how to volunteer in Special Needs ministry.

https://thehills.org/specialneeds - Click here to find out more about Special Needs ministry

Want to talk to someone at Special Needs ministry? Reach out to:

• Keller - Stacy Barnes at [email protected]
• North Richland Hills - Amber Baze at [email protected]
• West Fort Worth - Amy Leith at [email protected]

Looking to be encouraged the next generation of young women? You'll find it here as our four female student interns share their summer journey serving in Student Ministry at The Hills.

Learn more and register here for our Womens Wonder Conference.

Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org.

Want to hear a real kids staff member share her own vulnerable story of family discipleship and her hopes for families at The Hills? You won't want to miss this one! West Fort Worth Kids Family Engager Amy Leith shares how her new role in Kids Ministry actually set the trajectory for what discipleship looks like in her own home. You'll be encouraged and inspired by this one!

Family Discipleship by Matt Chandler

Amy Leith - [email protected]

KIDStory at Home

Family Worship - September 3, 2023 - FAMILY WORSHIP

In Deuteronomy 6:4-9 we read, "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

One of the amazing things about this text is that it's completely exhaustive! It leaves very little wiggle room for us to sidestep our responsibilities as parents in the spiritual development, training, and discipleship of our kids. There is no greater responsibility in your life than spiritually equipping your children. It is not always easy nor convenient. It is demanding and sometimes there is little fruit to show for your labors. Nonetheless, it is our call as the primary disciples of our kids to be active in bringing the gospel to bear on their hearts and minds each and every day.

Our aim for Family Worship services here at The Hills Church is to engage, equip, and encourage parents in the daily task of discipling their children toward a lifetime of following Jesus. We want all that we do to come alongside you. We never want to replace you, and biblically, don't see that as an option. But we want all that we do to serve and equip you for the daily task of discipleship!

We sometimes think the production of fruit in our kids' lives is our responsibility. It's not. It is simply our responsibility to faithfully live out and teach these amazing truths to our kids. We must leave the fruit to God. In applying these verses to the weekly worship service as believers gather on Sunday mornings, it is vitally important that you model a life and heart of worship in front of your kids as you lead them into worship.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you prepare to and are in worship with your kids:

• More is caught than taught. Your children will learn more about the value of worship by how you model it than what you simply say about it.
• Talk with your children ahead of time about what worship is and why it matters, what behavioral expectations are for the worship service, and ask and answer questions they have.
• Encourage and praise them when they meet expectations and correct when needed.
• Make corporate worship gatherings and church involvement a family priority every week.
• Look for ways to involve your children in the various aspects of the worship service as the different aspects are happening: prayer, Scripture reading, offering, communion, etc.
• Arrive early and sit where you can see clearly and hear effectively during the service.
• Pray, pray, pray! Pray with your children on Saturday evenings before bed, during breakfast, on the way to church as a family, and during the service. Plead with God to move in your own heart and life as well as your children's.
• Encourage your child to listen for familiar names, songs, words, or events during the service.
• Worship with your child throughout the week through everyday conversations, meal times, family devotions and worship, singing in the car, and expressing gratitude for all God has done regularly.

On the reverse side, there are some ways for you to talk through, explain, engage, and equip your children at various points throughout the worship service. There is also some space provided for them to take notes during the sermon as well. What an incredible opportunity for you to teach, model, train, and equip your children during worship. You're not in this alone!

How to prepare your children for and equip them during worship:

• Announcements/Host Moment: This is when we learn about what is going on in the community of our church, ways to be involved or volunteer, as well as things to do be more connected to others in our congregation.
• Music: This is the time that most people think of when we say, "worship," though all of life really is worship. Music is simply the time that we sing praises to God for all that He has done for us through Jesus. It is done corporately as a way of demonstrating unity in what we believe and sing about.
• Prayer: This is a time when we approach God and speak to Him. Sometimes there are components of:
  • confessing
  • honoring Him as God
  • asking God for various things in our lives or the lives of others, and
  • thanking Him for His grace, mercy, and patience with us through Jesus.
• Missions Moment: This is an occasional time that we hear from a missionary or someone who has gone a mission trip and what they saw God doing in various parts of our country or the world.
• Testimony: This is an occasional time that we hear from someone in our church about what God has done or is doing in their life as well as what they are learning about God through their experiences.
• Baptism: This is an occasional time when we see people respond in obedience to Jesus' command to make disciples and baptize them. There's nothing magical about the water. It is simply a picture that everyone watching gets to see that reflects what God has done in that person's heart and life.
• Scripture Reading: This is the time when we read through a selected portion of the Bible, which is God's breathed-out word to us. There are 66 individual books with one main message: God's love for a sinful people and everything that He has done throughout history to redeem and love them in Jesus.
• Sermon: This is the time when the preacher takes what the Bible says and explains what it meant when it was written and also what it means to us today. This is a very important time to pay attention, listen, pray, follow along in your own Bible, and see what needs to change in your life to live obediently.
• Offering: This is the time in the service when we are reminded about God's faithfulness to us and that everything we have ultimately belongs to Him. He doesn't need our money. It is simply a time for us to generously give to advancing the gospel in our own church and the ministries it is involved in.
• Communion: This is an event that takes place every Sunday. It is a reminder for us of Jesus' death for us as we eat the bread, which reminds us that His body was broken for us, and when we drink the cup, which reminds us that His blood was spilled in order to reconcile us to God.

As a father, do you ever feel like…you might lost your son to the teenage world pressures? You want to disciple him but don't know how? You wish there was a community of men running alongside you but you don't know where to find them? You hope your son will grow up to be a man among boys in his early adulthood? You desire help for your son and yourself in the process? That's where the Primal Path Discipleship Program comes in!

Lead Student Minister Adam Herndon, Family Engagement Minister Tquan Moore, and a Hills' Church parent Joe Don Ridgell discuss a beta program called Primal Path set to launch at The Hills this year. An interest meeting will be held at each campus on Saturday, Sept. 16 at 9 am. More details to come.

The Intentional Father: A Practical Guide to Raise Sons of Courage and Character

Primal Path Website

Have more questions about Primal Path? Email Tquan at [email protected]

Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org.

What can you expect this year in Next Gen Ministry? West Fort Worth Kids and Student Minister -- Erin Nix and Jackson Sanford -- spend time on the podcast sharing some discipleship stories from the summer and preview what to expect this new year. They'll answer questions like, "What's KIDStory?" "What are the primary discipleship moments in Next Gen Ministry?" "How can I get involved?"

Want to serve in Next Gen? Click here: https://thehills.org/serveothers

Description - Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org

Welcome to Season 3 of the Next Gen Now Podcast! Are you ready to hear what's next in Next Gen Ministry? Join Next Gen Minister Jill Shelby and Lead Student Minister Adam Herndon as they review Seasons 1 & 2 and preview Season 3 of the podcast. The next generation needs you now! But, you also need the next generation and what God is doing among them.

Want to serve in Next Gen? Click here: https://thehills.org/serveothers

Register for Next Gen Activate on August 13 here: Keller Next Gen Activate - 2:00-4:30 pm North Richland Hills Next Gen Activate - 3:00-6:00 pm West Fort Worth Next Gen Activate - 2:30-5:00 pm

Check out our Next Gen Ministers who spoke about the next generation on Communicators Weekend.

Jill Shelby | Meet The Moment | Communicators Weekend 2023 - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSSVOTVZPSM&t=593s

Adam Herndon | The Overflow | Communicators Weekend 2023 - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBcQGCZDO0k

Susan Conway | Anticipating God's Voice | Communicators Weekend 2023 - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGL8WsCR1Tg

Jackson Sanford | Carry The Fire | Communicators Weekend 2023 - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hki_f7mD1fE&t=687s

Tquan Moore | Identified | Communicators Weekend 2023 - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXaJoieQR0w

Next Gen Manifesto

We are an army.

We have a leader. Our leader is Jesus. We will follow him anywhere. He is our king and our friend. We know Him, we trust His voice, we obey His calling. He tells us who we are. He has all power and authority and he shares it with us.

We are an army.

We have an enemy.

Our enemy is real. We know his tactics are lies, confusion, chaos, destruction and death. We are aware of his activity when we see it. We are not deceived by his lesser stories of materialism, secularism, consumerism, and individualism. Our armor and weapons include truth, Scripture, worship, and prayer. We practice using these every day.

We are an army.

We have a purpose. Our purpose is loving God and loving others as we pursue the Kingdom of God. The world needs us. They have been deceived. They need light, revelation, insight, healing, and breakthrough. They need to discover the Way, the Truth and the Life. We're on assignment and living our calling. We are not self-actualizing, we are self-emptying following in the footsteps of Jesus.

We are an army.

We are equipped and activated. Our training is constant. We know where the battle is--in the heavenly realms. We lock arms with brothers and sisters, gaining ground for the good king and leaving his good kingdom in our wake. We have the armor of God, the word of God as truth, and the Holy Spirit as our constant companion.

We are an army.

We have a story. It's the best story and the only true, beautiful story there is so we will keep re-telling it for all generations so each generation can set its heart anew on God. This is how we meet the moment. We tell stories. We pray hungry. We lay down our lives. We rise up to meet the moment in the power of the Holy Spirit to fulfill his purposes for us in these times.

We are an army!

Hear the plans for the podcast over the summer and what's in store for Season 3 this fall!

Reach out to us at [email protected] and find more information about The Hills Church at www.thehills.org.