STAY CONNECTED WITH FUMC HURST ||CLICK HERE FOR UPCOMING EVENTS

Blog

Rooted Young Adults in 2022

by Rev. Johnru Villamor on March 02, 2023

I wanted to share what God has been doing with the Rooted Young Adult ministries at First United Methodist Church of Hurst. But before we get to that, I thought it is worth talking about how it all started. Not long ago after I got appointed as one of the associate pastors at FUMC Hurst, I saw a young man in the pews when I was at the pulpit serving at worship. And I was like, “Wait, what? There’s a young adult at this church?” I mean, one of my ministries at my former church in the Philippines was with young adults. So, with the passion and experience that I have, you can just imagine how excited I was to see that young adult man! Right after the service, I reached out to him and asked him if we could have coffee sometime and maybe invite other young people too. And he said yes! I guess I needed that affirmation to start moving.

The following day, I asked Rev. Donna McKee and Rev. Sarah Garza if FUMC Hurst has something ongoing for our young adults. And they told me about what Rev. Holly Dittrich started that Sarah continued, as well as Donna’s group of young adult women meeting online. Also, I did not know that one of our church members, Cynthia Rodriguez, a young adult herself, had her internship at FUMC Hurst last summer (when I was still serving at a different church), and she had a proposal to have a young adult ministry. It seemed like the timing was just perfect!

I prayed about it and asked Donna if maybe I can help rebuild our Young Adult ministries. To cut the long story short, our senior pastor, Rev. Yvonne Coon approved of it and assigned me to help with the rebirth of the Young Adult ministries.

Rooted Young Adults in 2022

And so, I started having coffee individually with the young adults I met at church to see if they would be interested to be part of a group of young people. And they all said yes! And what's been happening since?

We know that the Holy Spirit has been guiding our every step. An affirmation of that is the support we are receiving not just from the clergy and staff of FUMC Hurst, but also from the congregation and our neighbors.

And so, on behalf of Rooted Young Adults, thank you so much! We are grateful for y’all’s (being a true Texan now) support and partnership with us!

As we stay committed to our core values—discipleship, neighboring, and leadership, we are excited to witness what God has in store for us as we continue to connect with people, connect with purpose, and connect with God!

Rooted Young Adults in 2022

What God has been doing with the newly formed Rooted Young Adult Ministry

  • Left: Top- For our very first small gathering, we watched a free outdoor concert in Fort Worth in October and planned for what could be a possible next event for our group.
  • Left: Middle - Rooted Young Adults Sunday Morning Group, 9-10 AM in Wesley 103 (across the Connect Desk)
  • Left: Bottom - Meet our newly formed Rooted Young Adult Core Leadership Team (L-R: Yours truly, Joanna Jolley, Dillon Cannon, Brian Farrell, Madalyn Rodriguez, Cynthia Rodriguez, and Hannah Barlow) including Jorden Martz and Vince Rodriguez (not in photo).
  • Center: Top - First meeting of Rooted Men's Small Group
  • Center: Bottom - Rooted Young Adult Men’s Small Group, Wednesdays at 6:45 PM at Starbucks at 1498 Precinct Line in Hurst
  • Right: Top - Madalyn and Cynthia Rodriguez welcomed us to their home for our Friendsgiving potluck. It was truly a night of fun, food, and fellowship!
  • Right: Center - Donna opened her lovely home to us for our Christmas Sweater Party. It was another potluck, and each one of us went home with gifts donated by a few church members.
  • Right Bottom: Rooted Young Adult Women’s Small Group, Thursdays at 6:45 PM at Starbucks at 1234 W. Pipeline Road in Hurst
About the Author
Rev. Johnru Villamor

Johnru, short for John Rudolph, was born and raised in the Philippines. He served as a youth director in his late teens at their church in his home country and has always believed that God is calling him for church ministry. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering in 2006 and used to work as a telecommunications engineer in Manila while leading various ministries as a church volunteer.

God brought him to a point when he felt a stronger desire to serve the church on a full-time capacity. So, he responded to God’s call to leave his corporate job and work as one of his church’s administrative staff, up until the time he decided to move to the U.S. in 2016. Shortly after he moved, Johnru became a member of Davis Memorial United Methodist Church (North Richland Hills, TX) where God provided opportunities for him to serve through preaching in services and leading discipleship programs. At that point, with the guidance of his family and mentors, God’s calling for him for ordained ministry in the United Methodist Church has been more discernable, hence he started attending seminary in 2018.

In 2020, Johnru began his pastoral internship at Smithfield United Methodist Church where he eventually was appointed as their associate pastor. He graduated in May 2022 with a Master of Divinity from Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University. In the same year, he got commissioned as a provisional elder in the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and was appointed as one of the associate pastors at First United Methodist Church of Hurst.

Johnru is a beach lover who grew up in a close-knit family. His parents, Carmelo and Jocelyn, have recently joined FUMC Hurst. His older sister, Joice, is a campus missionary in the Philippines who will join the family in the U.S. soon. Johnru loves to have meaningful conversations (preferably over good food)! He is passionate about building relationships and sharing Jesus’s love with people, especially in the community.

Previous Page