Bay Hills Community Church began as the Evangelical Church of El Sobrante, on the eve of the Second World War. In 1985, church leadership decided to make sustainable growth its primary goal. In 1992, they hired a young seminary graduate as the Senior Pastor as part of the plan to reach new families and the growing population of the area. The next two and a half decades, Bay Hills maintained and achieved growth at a steady pace by focusing on reaching the surrounding communities, maintaining quality staff, and providing its congregation with a meaningful and relevant place to worship and connect.

By 2006, with the sanctuary at capacity for each of three services, Bay Hills made an agreement with El Sobrante Christian High School and began services there. In 2012, they repurposed an abandoned Circuit City retail space and had church there for 5 years. In 2017, they moved next door to a Barnes Noble retail location where they have remained since.

In August of 2015, Bay Hills sold its older facility to First Baptist of El Sobrante and in turn bought theirs. They are intentionally and proactively working toward a master plan that would include renovation of the existing property as well as new construction on the 5 acres of land.

From 2019 to 2022 (like many other churches during the Pandemic) some major changes took place on the staff. Pastor Allen Coleman joined Bay Hills as Senior Pastor in August of 2022 and hit the ground running. He has been a true blessing to Bay Hills Church. As the church moves forward with Pastor Allen's vision for the future, this NextGen Pastor position is a final puzzle piece in what is sure to be an exciting season of fresh-life and momentum.

NEXTGEN MINISTRY APPROACH

All about Connection

Bay Hills Next Gen Ministries (birth through young adult) exist to connect children, teens and young adults to God, to each other, and to adults who are passionate about making a Godly impact on their lives.

All about Kids

The kids ministry is the fastest growing area of Bay Hills. Each week new families are showing up at BH and the kids ministry has been named as one of the primary reasons for return visits. In addition to weekly programming on Sundays, the special events (like the "Eggstravaganza") are drawing hundreds, if not thousands in the community.

All about Students

Elevate Youth seeks to create engaging and relational environments for those in junior high and high school. It focuses on creating large and small group settings for all ages through activities, worship, teaching and relationships. The Student Ministries Pastor gives oversight to all of the ministries from 6th through 12th grade.

Position Specific Focus

The Next Gen Pastor will oversee the staff associated with those aged birth through young adults, but their direct ministry will be focused on the youth (grades 6-12). The following information is specific to those aspects.

Outward Faced

The goal for Bay Hills is to create a place where all students (whether coming from a church background or not) are loved and cared for by staff and leaders who express Christ’s love to them and help them to better understand the Gospel. The ministry is always seeking to evangelize and help teens grow in Jesus.

Resourced Well

Bay Hills Church places high value on the Student Ministry. The church is equipped with ample resources to create environments for all to have a blast. The church meets in a large storefront on Sunday morning whereas the new Student Center is in a newly renovated space of a church Bay Hills renovated for offices, meetings and Student Ministry.

The youth ministry has a fantastic history to build upon and is primed for growth moving forward. Currently there are about 20 Jr. High students and 20 High School students who are present on Wednesday with a solid core (7-10) of adult leaders in relationship with students each week.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Bay Hills Community Church unapologetically identifies and places utmost priority on four key areas of ministry. They believe that if they get these right they'll be on the way to fulfilling God's plan for the church:

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  Small Groups – Bay Hills believes that Small Group fellowship follows the Biblical model for growing life-long followers of Christ. They do not believe this is a fad, but rather, they are committed to developing a healthy ministry to assist the whole congregation in taking their next step closer to Jesus.
• Children's Ministries – Bay Hills feels a powerful calling to invest in the congregation's youngest generation. They know this ministry has a tremendous impact on the health of their families.
• Student Ministries – Bay Hills is serious about evangelism and is, therefore, committed to a vibrant student ministry. Since this age group is statistically the most open to receiving Christ, they know they must do everything possible to help them give their lives to Jesus.
• Sunday Worship Service – Sunday service is the primary channel for spiritually feeding their congregation and remains their best approach to introduce newcomers to the church. Having the best possible sermon and music are high on their priority list.

It is because of the emphasis they place on their Sunday services that they are prayerfully seeking a great leader who can step into this new season of ministry and propel their NextGen ministry forward. The position not only oversees the NextGen team, but also is responsible for the direct oversite of the Student Ministry.

Currently some of the challenges and opportunities would include...

DIVERSITY IN EVERY WAY

Bay Hills Community Church is a very diverse congregation and the youth ministry is very much reflective of this value. Students are diverse in terms of ethnicity, socio-economics and backgrounds. Any given week in the youth ministry the group may have a third (or more) of the group come from a non-churched background, a low economic neighborhood a specific ethnic group or the private schools. The new leader should have not only a heart for continuing to grow with these qualities, but similar experiences in their past.

BUILDING BLOCKS

Create, recreate, and expand the ministry to junior high and high school students— very few traditions (if any) exist — the new pastor will need to have the ability to build a foundation and establish creative ways to minister to the preteens, teens and families. The students are hungry for community and desire a leader who will be approachable and fun, yet will have organizational skills which leads to great communication about the vision and direction of the ministry.

NEW AND CREATIVE

The ministry is in need of fresh ideas that still lead back to solid relationships. Because of the differences in the students who attend, the new leader should program in such a way that athletes, non-athletes, gamers and non-gamers, churched and non-churched are all drawn to aspects of the ministry.

VOLUNTEER LEADERSHIP

As Bay Hills grows, it is imperative that the new Next Gen Pastor designs a ministry structure that is scalable to grow with the church. The youth ministry has a strong group of volunteers, but this must grow. The leaders desire to be trained with effective tools and methods to meet students where they are, partner with parents through the teen years and equip students to love Jesus and others well.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

ABOUT BAY HILLS CHURCH

The church is unique with its ethnic, cultural, and economical diversity. In a recent Barna Study the San Francisco/ Oakland Bay Area was ranked #1 as the most "un-churched" and “de-churched” context in the country. From a statistical standpoint, it is unmatched as the most challenging mission-field in America. We believe that the person who serves in this role will be a pivotal part of continuing to build a thriving ministry of connection and life transformation within this challenging context.

ABOUT THIS JOB

The Next Gen Pastor exists to develop ministries where the newt generation is being reached with Gospel, connected to others and grown in their maturity and equipping. The Next Gen Pastor will work closely with the Kids Ministry Director to ensure a cohesive tone and strategy across all next gen ministries

Qualifications:

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  A demonstrated ability to communicate the Gospel to the next generation, lead teams effectively and execute engaging programs.
• A demonstrated capability to engage with and reach a diverse range of the unchurched and dechurched.
• A demonstrated affinity for collaboration with other leaders, ministries, staff, and volunteers.
• A demonstrated competency in planning, organizing and executing both small and large scale events.
• A demonstrated ability to collaborate with all kinds of people, build effective relationships, and communicate both interpersonally and corporately.

HOW DOES THIS JOB HELP THE MISSION?

At Bay Hills, we exist to help each person their next steps closer to Jesus. The Next Gen Pastor ensures that our mission extends strategically to Students within our church and community. Further, the Next Gen Pastor will collaborate across all ministries at Bay Hills to ensure that the next generation is actively engaged in a thriving church community.

WHAT IS A WIN FOR THIS POSITION?

Establishing a culture where the next generation actively participates in the church body, not just spectates; a culture where they are connected to peers and developing as leaders that are passionately following Jesus; a culture where those from any background are reached, connected and grown.

CHARACTER

All employees are expected to adhere to and operate within the church’s code of conduct, policies, and procedures. Further, this position must meet the Biblical qualifications outlined in 1 Timothy 3:6-13* :

• Must not be a new believer.

• Must be well respected and have integrity.

• Must not be a heavy drinker.

• Must not be dishonest with money.

• Must be committed to their faith with a clear conscience. • Must be faithful to their spouse and family.

• Must be self-controlled and faithful in character.