May 2, 2011: One Month Later, North Hills Baptist Church

Having now completed the first full month of ministry in Round Rock, Texas, North Hills Baptist Church is taking the next step. Our Sunday attendance seems to have stabilized just under 50, but we have about 60-70 people to whom we are regularly ministering.

One thing that came up in the course of sitting down and talking with people was that we were just a service on Sunday and not a community of believers. Not having your own building or established networks of people had made it easy for this to become the case. So, we decided to try and make the service a little more personable, which went well. That being said, we have seen a great need to start our small group-type fellowship and discipleship program outside of those hours on Sunday morning. Last night was the first monthly "Pizza @ the Pastor's Place." Roughly 20 people were in attendance and it was a great time to enjoy fellowship and get to know one another better. I felt like people were actually making personal connections for the first time. Many there are also taking part in the Inquirer's Bible Study, and just want more time to study God's Word and fellowship together. We are planning to begin small group networks for fellowship and discipleship within the next month. That requires a lot of planning and wise thought, something I am unfortunately short on.

Some specific prayer requests:

• Praise for everything God is doing through His church here in Round Rock!
• Praise for the many people now getting involved in helping in our ministry.
• The many people getting into their Inquirer's Bible Study. Those will expose people to the Gospel, either bringing them to a point of decision or confirming the knowledge of that in their hearts.
• The 60-70 people we are ministering to. Many, if not most, are going through tough times in their lives and desperately crave to know God more and the fellowship of believers.
• Those who are going through tough times right now. From new babies to deaths in the family with estates to sort through to serious diseases and injury, there are many people who need prayer in North Hills. I am not going to get into specific names or issues, but just lift them up in prayer as a group.
• The pastoral staff. We have a lot of planning to do now as we have this growing body of people that need discipleship and fellowship. We don't get to set the timeline for ministry, and things have happened on a little different schedule than we had guessed. We need wisdom as we plan and make decisions, especially as everything we do sets a precedent in this new church.