Youth Ministry
We were tired after a week in the Valley doing home repair and community service and sunburned from a day at the beach celebrating all that God had done that week…but we had Whataburger and each other and we were happy and so full.
The best way to stay up to date on youth happenings is to subscribe to our weekly email newsletter, The Rundown, where we detail all of our upcoming events for the week and beyond. (Also, registration is LIVE for MidWinter 2026 Jan. 9th – 11th at T-Bar-M Camps in New Braunfels! Also also, registration is LIVE for our Spring Break Youth and Family Mission Trip to the Valley! (Scroll down to learn more.)
We’re working on our schedule for a Confirmation Class to take place during the Spring of 2026. If you are the parent of a youth, or a youth yourself, who has not been confirmed in the United Methodist Church, please take the below survey to help us figure out what days and times will work best for Confirmation Class.
| United Methodists use the term “confirmation” to mark the first time a baptized Christian publicly “confirms” their intention to live the vows of the baptismal and membership covenant and so becomes a professing member of the local congregation and The United Methodist Church. |
Weekly Bible Studies and After School Program
Weekly Bible Study
Well, the time has changed, the weather is getting colder, the days are short and the nights are long, so what better book to read to fight off the seasonal depression than *checks notes* the book of Ecclesiastes? wait that doesn’t sound right…
Ok, so I get it, the words of the Qohelet may feel depressing, but this valuable piece of wisdom literature helps us grapple with an age-old question: What defines a life worth living?
Gather at Epoch on Mondays at 5pm.
Sunday School
This Week in Sunday School: Ghost Hand Says What?
As we continue our read-through of the first 6 chapters of Daniel, we’ll pick up this week in the middle of chapter 5.
Last we met, new (to us) King Belshazzar was holding a banquet for thousands of his nobles, (sound familiar?), when he, in a display of his kingly power, ordered his servants to bring out all those dope gold and silver goblets King Nebuchadnezzar, (rest in power), looted from the Temple in Jerusalem, so that he and his nobles could drink from them.
These goblets were holy and consecrated — made sacred — for worship, and Belshazzar decided to use them instead for his own vanity and glory.
Suddenly, a ghost hand (big yikes) appears, and begins writing something in the plaster of the walls. Belshazzar, reasonably, completely freaks out, and eventually Daniel is summoned to interpret the writing and give guidance to the King.
We’ll see what happens next this Sunday.
Gather in the Youth Center at 10am.
Wednesday After School Program
Every Wednesday, we’re opening up our Youth Center from 3:50 – 5:30pm to give youth a place to hang out, do homework, play games, and build community.
If you’re interested in volunteering at the After School Program, click here to contact Tyler Steele.
Sunday Nights and Other Activities
Puzzle Night
SUNDAY, Nov. 16th, 5-7 PM
If we learned anything during our game night last week, it’s that competition can be fun, but Christ calls us to greater unity than that — so let’s put aside our residual Coup-related animosity and join forces to see if we can complete a 500 piece puzzle together in two hours.
We’ll have Pizza this week, so youth do not need to eat dinner before or after our Sunday night gathering.
Friendsgiving Feast-tacular!
SUNDAY, Nov. 22nd, 5-7 PM
Come one, come all, for a feast of feasts! We’ll be practicing some life-skills by working together to create a breakfast smorgasbord of deliciousness which we will share. Come! Cook with your friends and share your gratitude!
MidWinter Retreat 2026
This year’s MidWinter Retreat is set to be our biggest one yet as we welcome churches from all across the newly formed North District of the Rio Texas Conference to gather for a weekend of rest, worship, and fun! This year, we’re returning to T-Bar-M Camp in New Braunfels, (home of the 2023 and 2024 MidWinter Retreats), which has some pretty sweet amenities for all to enjoy. Longtime friend of Northwest Hills UMC youth and former Northwest Hills UMC Office Manager, Rev. Anna Shipley, will also be returning as one of our worship leaders this year (which totally rules).
MidWinter is a great opportunity to unplug and unwind in the middle of the school year — it’s like if summer camp was one weekend in January. It’s going to be both sick and dope or whatever it is that the young people say these days (6, 7?)
Scholarships are available. Reach out to Tyler at tsteele@nwhillsumc.org to request more info.
Spring Break Youth and Family Mission Trip
If you are a youth, (grades 6-12), or an adult of any age, you are invited to join our team heading down to Weslaco, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley, from Sunday, March 15th – Thursday, March 19th, for a half-week of service over Spring Break.
Jesus may have been a carpenter, but you don’t have to be one to make a difference on our team — we’ll have skilled and experienced leaders guiding our work. There are many ways to serve and we welcome people of all experience and ability levels.
Want to learn more? Check out the registration page below.
Sunday, March 23rd, 2025 – A DAY OF DOMINATION
After a Sunday of PURE DOMINATION, our youth are the REIGNING CHAMPIONS of the Greater Austin Area United Methodist Youth Annual Scavenger Hunt!
Tasked with completing a myriad of absolutely insane, and dare I say, at times, unhinged, challenges around the Domain and documenting them via photo and video, our youth stepped up to the plate and knocked the ball out of the flipping park!
We got makeovers for the Lord, we got our ears pierced for the Lord, some of us even begged for sushi from strangers for the Lord but no amount of public shame can tarnish the fact that WE ARE CHAMPIONS!!!
Congrats to Northwest Hills UMC Youth on being quantifiably THE BEST! Check out a few more pictures from this year’s Scavenger Hunt below.
