By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry Last Sunday, my family spent the morning at Peninsula High School. We were there for Serve Day, picking up trash and cleaning up the campus. I had been to that school many times before, dropping off and picking up kids, attending events. But serving there was different. As we […]
Author: Pastor Julie Hawkins
When Worship Walks Out the Door
By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry Some of the moments I remember most clearly from my years in outreach ministry didn’t happen inside a church building. They happened while serving alongside someone, hearing a story I might never otherwise have heard, or watching a volunteer discover that a need they had thought about from a […]
The Most Important Room in the Building
By Julie Hawkins, Associate Pastor of Ministry I grew up in the church, this church. Chapel Hill was the place where my faith came alive. It was in Sunday school classrooms and Wednesday night programs, in the care of adults who showed up week after week to teach, to pray, to notice me. Somewhere in […]
When the Plan Changes
By Julie Hawkins, Associate Pastor of Ministry Summer changes the rhythm. For some of us the school year ends and the whole household reorganizes around weekly camps and planned time away. For others the calendar may not shift, but something in the air feels different anyway from longer days to a slower pace, the sense […]
Who’s In Your Neighborhood This Summer?
By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry The garage doors are open. The sprinklers are running next door. The mountain is out! This is summer in the Pacific Northwest, and for a few warm months, the walls between our lives come down just a little. We’re outside. Our neighbors are outside. Kids appear from houses you […]
The Spiritual Discipline of Paying Attention
By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry This time of year has a way of scattering us. The school schedule feels like a sprint to the finish line. Summer plans begin filling the calendar. Sports, vacations, end-of-year events, and longer evenings slowly change the rhythm of life. Before we realize it, our attention becomes fragmented. And […]
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More than a Moment
By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry Easter Sunday has come and gone, but what we witnessed here at Chapel Hill last week is not something that fades with the calendar. Over the course of our Easter services, more than 100 people raised their hands to commit their lives to Jesus. Each one of those hands […]
Come and Search
By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry This week, the Church enters a season called Lent. For some of you, that word is familiar. For others, it may feel mysterious or unnecessary. So let’s begin simply. Lent is the 40 days leading up to Easter. Just like Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness before he […]
What Are You Waiting For?
By Julie Hawkins, Pastor of Ministry The day after Thanksgiving always feels like a crossroads. Half of us are still in a turkey haze, grazing through Tupperware full of leftovers. The other half are already hauling boxes of Christmas decor out of the garage, decking halls like it’s our job. Half of us are hesitant […]
Why 100% of Us Should Be on a Serve Team
By Julie Hawkins, Associate Pastor of Ministry When I was a kid, church was never just a place we went on Sundays. It was a place where my parents showed me what it meant to live a life of service. My mom was part of a prayer team, taught Sunday School, and led Bible studies. […]