Hill city news revival issue

Vol.2 Issue 2

May 2015 Newsletter

Special Edition

HILL CITY

NEWS

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Letter from the Editor P.2 Reach Revival P.3 Here’s my Testimony p.4 Creative Corner P.5

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Letter from the Editor

Hi Hill City!

I want to welcome you to this special edition issue of Hill City News (HCN). I can’t believe that we’re already publishing the revival issue of HCN, time definitely has flown by this past month. I must say that I’m super excited about the “Reach” revival that’s going to be happening at Hill City next week. I want to encourage everyone to come out to the revival, it’s going to be packed with so much useful/helpful information from the evangelism training workshops to the topics on how to remove the shame from our lives, and how to live totally free from our past sins to living a life in freedom with Christ. I know for me, some days it gets hard not looking back at my past and letting my past sins dictate the way that I view God and my life. You know, sometimes although we say that we have given our sins over to Christ and we’re never going to look back at our sins, we usually do I’ll be praying for you!

Nikeya Williams

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look back at our sins, and we see life through the broken lens that sin has given us. Believe me it’s hard to not look back, and each day I’m learning with God’s help that I can trust Him to heal my past and I can move forward by not looking at my past, and by looking to Christ to find my worth, meaning and direction in life. For a long time, all I did was look back, and allowed my past to define me and my relationship with God. I can still remember blaming God for a lot of the bad decisions that I made, and getting mad at God because I couldn’t have things my way. But through the power of the Holy Spirit, God helps me everyday to trust Him and walk closer to Him. As I walk closer to God, I have no need to look back anymore, what I’ve done in the past is behind me, but the future awaits me with endless possibilities to experience God’s everlasting love. Before I end this letter to you, I want to leave you with one of my favorite scripture verses that I read frequently.

Romans 8:35 “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall Tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?” ( Quoted from the ESV Version)

By: Nikeya Williams HCN Editor

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n a week, Hill City Church will kick off the “Reach” revival with guest speaker Rahul Agarwal, Director of Tampa Area Baptist Collegiate Ministries (BCM) at the University of South Florida. The revival is schedule to start on Friday, May 15- Saturday, May 16, at Hill City Church.

The first night of the revival will start with Agarwal touching on how to remove the shame from our lives, and how to completely give ourselves fully to God, so that we can live with the peace that surpasses all understanding.

“We have to leave the past in the past,” Agarwal said.

“The hurt and the shame that sins puts on us affects the way that we look at the future, and so many times we let sin dictate our future instead of trusting in God to show us our new future and our new creation in Christ.”

Then on the Saturday afternoon, Agarwal will give helpful tips/techniques on what it truly means to share the gospel, how to share the gospel, and then what it looks like to have a heart for people around us that God has placed in our lives. This part of the revival will be more of a hands on/discussion training workshop.

excited about hearing about how Pastor Rahul will take a [regular] conversation and turn it into [evangelizing] to a [non-believer].”

The topics for the revival came from a discussion that Agarwal had with Pastor Han a few months ago. “ I was talking to Pastor Han and we both started talking about how society teaches us that it’s all about us,” Agarwal said. “ When we focus about us we say ‘I do what I want’, we may never say it like that, but we mean it because we’re so prideful, but when we dig deeper, it comes from the sin that says that I deserve better.”

Agarwal hopes that the revival will create a movement of God in the city of Tampa through Hill City Church.“ For the Christians, I hoping that it starts a catalyst in their hearts that creates a movement of God through Hill City,” Agarwal said. “ That reaches their neighbors, and the places that God has called them to be missionaries.”

For additional information about the “Reach” Revival, please contact Pastor Han at the following email address: pastorhanoh@gmail.com

On Saturday evening, Agarwal will continue talking about what it looks like when you have given your shame to God, and how to use your past to live a life of freedom that shows people that God is real.

Hill City is excited about the revival, and all the topics that will be covered for each night, but some members seem to have a real interest in the evangelism training workshop segment of the revival. “I’m very excited about the revival, “Michael Jones said. “ I’m Pg.3 HCN

Creative Corner Here’s My Testimony...

By: John Yo Han Jun

I guess

it’s finally time to share a testimony that I never though I would share before. I can probably write a whole book about my life and what I went through that is good/bad, but I’ll keep it short and simple for this.

As you all probably know, I am probably one of the wackiest dudes out there that’s something else. I am what you call a “fresh-christian” that actually hated God before and wanted nothing to do with him because he was so “invisible”. I always believed that being a Christian was something that only weak-people relied on. I denied God, denied everything that seemed supernatural, and kicked out so many Christian friends from my life because I was in a denial. Not getting into specific details about my hatred for Christianity before, but people could understand why I didn’t want to be a Christian. Getting baptized last March and actually becoming a disciple of a pastor that i called an enemy one time...it’s really funny and amazing how much a year’s worth of legit Christian living can do. It is tough, gritty, sad, and sometimes downright hopeless. But it’s worth it in the long run because i never knew I could grow so much from it. For some reason my pastor actually wanted to take a disciple picture with us today. I just thought it wasn’t a big deal at first...but then I realized later on how much it was valuable to us. Let me share my fellow disciples and my pastor that I can call band of brothers and walking this path together. I wanna share my brother’s basic story from left and right and give a shoutout to God and them to see how beautiful a Christian life is.

Daniel JinHyuk Chung we became so close in a matter of few weeks. I actually look at him as my life mentor also besides being a brother in christ.

I admit at first, i never knew we’d get along together. I thought he was arrogant and a meanie to me. But as we opened up through some weird circumstances, he is one of the bravest and strong brother that I ever have in my life. He is the sword of the brotherhood.

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Julius An. I dont even know where to start with this guy. He is my pastor, my mentor, and I call once my enemy. But now...I don’t know how to live without him. He was one of the very few that stood by my side despite me leaving, being a horrible person, and during my struggles. He has devoted himself to God so that he can serve others without a return investment. He has been by my side through hell and back. He is the brain of the brotherhood.

Christian Yang he is definitely something special.

For a young age, you would never expect him to be so wise and grown up for a age. Even though I just got to know him a couple months ago, we already consider him as a brother and the man that has a gentle heart. I am able to learn so much from this guy despite the age gap and proud to say that I wouldnt know what to do without him to hold me back during angry times. So many times where someone would do me wrong and I would want to fight them, but he has actually taught me the value of turning the other cheek and praying for them. He is the shield of the brotherhood.

This is only the tip of the iceberg that our discipleship goes through. there is so much bond and love that I could literally write a whole novel about this. Praise God. Praise the everlasting leader for such awesome brothers and tear-wrecking friends I can proudly call them brothers. I love them and Hill City Church so much and I would take a bullet for them in a heartbeat. I dont know how long this will last or when the time where we get sent off to separate paths will come, but all I know is that,

they’re are my band of brothers.

“A Psalm of Hill City Church” Heavenly Father, I pray only to You And give thanks for each day Your mercies come anew Because without You, I really have no clue Your word reminds me to always be true That no worries come upon me, in all that I do.

For us You gave Your only Son In the wrong direction, I shall not run Without You, we wouldn’t have won So we pray, may Your kingdom come Let Your will be done, and to You alone I run.

But You, Lord, are a shield around me That may guide me where I am, may this be my plea Open my eyes so I can see And may Your shield always keep me.

Written by: Jonathan, Joelle, Christian, Matthew, James, Mike, Idiali, Hana, Sorhee, Sophan, and Nikeya

“My Valentine” My father tells me to trust in Him: He will find my way.

My father tells me to believe He’s good even when I cannot see it.

My father tells me to have faith, be strong, even when I feel like straying.

My father tells me to hold on tight even when I feel I’m falling.

My father tells me to grab His hand and trust that He will find me the one for me the pair I’ll be a part of until He meets me.

It’s hard to trust in the unseensometimes I’ll feel like breaking.

But until the day He says okay, my heart is His for the taking.

Written by: Kyuyon Yo

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Attention Hill City!!!!

Hill City News (HCN) needs you if you are a person that loves to write, design fun things, and taking cool pics! We need more volunteers, so if you’re looking for a place to serve, you don’t need to look any further HCN needs your creative gifts. If you are interested in helping out with HCN, please contact Nikeya Williams at nikeyaw07@gmail.com Remember we need you!