Acts 2:46a "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts."

We believe in celebrating the glory of God together in big gatherings.  From the earliest days in the Christian movement, believers met regularly in the temple courts with numbers of 3000 to 5000.  Like the early church, we emphasize the necessity of corporate preaching, teaching, worship, prayer and communion to encounter God together, as HIS PEOPLE.  The things we do when gathered as His church help to spur us on as we follow Jesus with our lives.  We are called to celebrate the goodness of God together - in a big way - regardless of each of our personal circumstances.  

Acts 2:46b "They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts".

The early church gathered in big groups in the temple courts, but they were also meeting in smaller settings regularly.  They were doing life together: eating, praying, sharing, helping, and having close spiritual friendships with one another.  We want you to be a part of a life group or other 'Hillcrest Discipleship Group' - a place where someone notices your spiritual growth and cares about you.   When we CONNECT SMALL, it is all about authentic relationship - trusting others as we learn how to live out our faith. We all need support as we learn to submit our lives to God's truth, and take our next steps of obedience in discipleship.

We can see that the early church devoted themselves to the teachings of Jesus and the apostles.  While Hillcrest Church can provide opportunity for corporate worship, teaching, prayer and connections, we cannot coerce you to personally spend time with Jesus.  We all have to take personal responsibility for our own relationship with Christ.  We believe that through spiritual disciplines like bible reading, solitude and prayer, you will encounter Jesus.  When you regularly walk with Jesus, it may not always be an emotional experience, but through prioritizing time in your day or week to intentionally meet with Jesus, we know He will be with you and change you in small and large ways by the Holy Spirit.  We seek to know God for ourselves so that we can give to others out of an overflow of our own growing relationship with Jesus.

Psalm 23:1-3  "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.  He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul.  He guides me along the right paths, for His name's sake."

1 Peter 4:10 "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms."

We believe that God has uniquely given every Christian spiritual gifts that help advance His continuing work in this world. Since these gifts are Holy Spirit given, He will empower you to use them and you will likely feel joy when you do.  When we're working in our spiritual giftings, people will be in awe of how well we work together in unity.  This helps us avoid any temptation of comparison - I don't have to be you, you don't have to be me - we get to joyfully serve in what God has assigned us to do.  Sharing the work is not independence, nor dependence, but INTERDEPENDENCE - understanding how the Spirit has uniquely given us gifts to SHARE THE WORK together.

Matthew 28:18-20  Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

All of us are called to take the Good News to the world, letting it influence our families, workplaces, schools, friendships and neighborhoods.  The Good News of Jesus changes our motivations and gives us a new perspective on what truly matters in life.  We are invited to give our time and our money, that we would invest in Kingdom initiatives that last, at the local level and beyond.  Hillcrest Church has established local and global partnerships focusing on affecting communities for the good of the people and the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The call to "live a life on mission with God" is God's strategic design to bring us to maturity in our journey as disciples - not as a final step, but as CENTRAL to our identity as followers of Jesus!