Hey Hawaii Mission Team – make sure you complete your release form and bring it to church on Sunday. We need these before May 24 so that we can have all paperwork processed before leaving on the 25th!

Email nic@rollinghillscommunity.org if you have questions.

Click here to download the Hawaii Team Release

Posted in Hawaii Mission Team, Missions, Student Pastor - Nic AllenTags: Hawaii Team | by Nic Allen No Comments

Remember when you were a kid and you heard/read the story of Jonah and the whale? Remember the pictures of the   smiley caucasian man in the mouth of the equally smiley ocean mammal? Well, growing up in faith means growing past the G-ratings we censor scripture into becomming. The real deal about Jonah is far from a story about God rescuing a man from drowning a-la the belly of a big fish. It’s a story about God’s relentless love for wicked people and about how delayed obedience isn’t really obedience at all.

Take chapter 1. Jonah, instruced by God to journey to Ninevah (sin city of his day) to proclaim God’s wrath on the wickedness of the people instead flees toward Tarshish via boat. God sends crazy storm. Men throw Jonah overboard. Jonah is rescued from the waves by being swallowed by a big fish (note: the Bible never tells us it’s a whale).

So in response to disobedience, God gets his man.

In chapter 2, Jonah prays to God and the story peeks when the fish “vomits” Jonah safely on a shore. In chapter 3, God once again sets Jonah’s sights on Ninevah and Jonah complies. Wouldn’t you? If I knew everytime I ignored the word of the Lord I would nearly drown and be digested by a large animal, I’d be inclined to obey too. Jonah journeys to Ninevah and proclaims God’s wrath. And in a shocking twist, the people repent and God spares his judgement. Per his word in Jeremiah 18, God withholds punishment from those who admit the error of their ways and return to God.

Finally, we get to chapter 4 (incidentally the chapter never glanced at in the childhood fairytale Bible version we learn as kiddos). Jonah expresses his anger at God for showing mercy to the Ninevites. He admits the reason for his initial disobedience; he feared the merciful character of the Lord would prevail and allow the God of the universe to spare the wicked city. Jonah didn’t want God to show the Ninevites love. He didn’t want to warn them. He didn’t want God to spare them. So God gives Jonah a word picture. It was all about shade, a worm, and scortching heat but ultimately about God caring passionately about the 120,000 populus. And the story of Jonah just ends…

I like Lost. The ABC phenom. This week, we’ll watch the final episode of the series and my fear is that I’ll be left with unresolved character issues. The writers leaving me with unanswered questions is my biggest dread. Unresolved character issues is the story of Jonah. According to Jonah, we don’t know if the prophet got it or not. The story ends in suicidal anger. He wanted to just die. The good news however is that God got to display his righteous anger and gracious mercy all in just one chapter.

There is a cool miracle in Jonah…but it’s not a guy surviving a midweek in a fish’s belly. It’s the miracle of salvation…salvation that comes from repentance, salvation offered by the grace of a God who loves people [even and especially wicked people]…salvation that warrants immediate obedience, not delayed obedience…and salvation that begs us understand that the same God who saved the wicked Ninevites is the same God who wants to save the wicked us!

Posted in dock@1810, Student Pastor - Nic Allen by Nic Allen No Comments

Check out the video of this years graduating class (2010) that played at the senior luncheon!

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Yesterday, we celebrated the high school graduating class of 2010.

Aubrey Denton, Nicholas Nierste, Austin Campbell, David Large, Mitchell Westerfield, Molly Bevels,  Olivia Greenway, Carolyn Buehler, Benjamin Higdon, Alexis Butts, Jordan Hartley, Matthew Zaloba, Matthew Melton, Bri Lutes, and Will Holloway are this year’s grads.

Every year, it’s bitter sweet to celebrate our outgoing seniors. On one hand, I’m extremely proud of the students. On the other, I’m incredibly sad to see them graduate high school because that means they graduate my ministry.

Life is a series of experiences in sequence and while everyone’s life is different, some experiences are common and shared like high school graduation. Not everyone marries. Not everyone goes on to college. Some people move to new states and even countries and others live just a few miles from where they grew up their entire life. Everything on that end of the spectrum is relative. There is one experience, however, that isn’t. Some choose to recognize Jesus as Lord and others don’t. And unfortunately, some believers who choose to recognize Jesus as Lord choose seasons of life to dishonor him.

My prayer for this class, and every student we encounter in ministry, is that they will not only make the choice to trust and believe in Jesus but that they will choose daily to follow and honor Him in life. Big important changes are coming follow high school. In the next 5 years, graduates choose whether or not to finish school and pursue other education. They’ll likely decide how to live life in relationship to someone else and if marriage and family are on the radar screen. They’ll decide on a career path and objectives. These are all so important but honestly, any path  might be just right. My hope is that while these decisions are big they won’t overshadow the most important…to love God and follow Him daily. In fact, I know without doubt that making that choice first and foremost in life will have a profound impact on everything else. Life apart from Christ isn’t really life.

Graduation is a milestone. It’s a rite of passage. Something about a student changes as they accept that diploma. What we do post graduation counts in ways only years help us understand. My hope for this years seniors is simply this:

Hold firm to Jesus. Seek out godly friendships. Make pursuing Christ your aim as an adult. See the world through Christ’s lens. Make the choice to follow Him in all you do and wherever that leads, you won’t go wrong.

Blessings to all our grads and their families. Graduation is much less about the end of something and much more about the beginning of everything! Follow Christ and enjoy life in Him!

Posted in Student Pastor - Nic Allen, Summer 2010Tags: class of 2010, graduation | by Nic Allen No Comments

In the world of all things horticultural, spring is heralded as the season for optimal growth. In the world of student ministry, however, there ain’t no time like summer time!

Here’s how we’re focusing on growth this summer…

1. Dock@1810 two really fantastic series this summer. SUMMER SOLSTICE in June is all about how close we can get to Jesus and BOGO FREE: A Series about Freedom where something is free every week runs in July and August.

2. Summer Studies – Thursdays over lunch @ the WareHouse. Students will have 5 electives to choose from. They’re will be a girls study, a guys study, a middle school study, a character study, and a hard core know the Bible study.  Students can each choose 2 electives. It’s bring your own lunch and enjoy studying God’s word together time backstage@1810 style!

3. Middle School Community Groups and VBS…this summer is also all about getting middle schoolers connected to student ministry @ Rolling Hills. In addition to Sunday Morning Community Groups – we’ll be doing Middle School Matinee Tuesdays where we see 4 great movies together this summer and also middle school VBS (quite possibly one of our best weeks in the summer) the end of July along with RHCC Kids Ministry.

The summer can be a great time of growth for students. Lots of middle and high schoolers will hit the physical spurts this summer. Their feet will get bigger and their pants seemingly shorter as they grow. Voices  will get deeper but we hope that isn’t all. We hope it’s a time for spiritual growth too. For that to happen, it takes intentional parents, intentional students, and an intentional ministry all working together to see growth happen and fruit born.

Let’s partner together and see real growth this summer!

Posted in Student Pastor - Nic AllenTags: community group, dock@1810, growth, Information, middle school, students, summer | by Nic Allen No Comments