A Church Plant, a Classroom, and a Calling

I knew in college that God was calling me to give my life to ministry in the Church as well as to teaching students. With determination and the excitement that only a 20-year-old, new Christian girl can have, I said yes and got truckin.’

A few years later, I met my husband at a church plant in Northeast Texas. We continued volunteering there for two years, got married in 2012, and within three months were hired as youth pastors in Beaumont. While we pastored, I also taught at a local middle school. My students began inviting classmates to youth group, and soon we were busing kids to church.

Despite the success, something in us was stirring. Texas was flat, Southeast Texas was humid, and we didn’t sense a long-term call to the Bible Belt. We’d always wanted to visit the Pacific Northwest, so one summer we took a two-week trip, visiting cities from Seattle to San Francisco. One thing stood out immediately: the lack of churches.

As we continued driving, something radical happened. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was home—even though I didn’t know a soul in the entire state. We felt a pull to be somewhere that desperately needed Jesus. We wanted sun and mountains, and for me, it had to be Oregon. When we returned home, the dreams began.

After research, prayer, more trips, and a vivid nighttime dream from God, we knew Bend, Oregon, was our destination. There are no “cultural” Christians here. Most of the population wants nothing to do with Jesus. We felt called to live as faithful followers of Jesus in this place and eventually to help plant a church.

Within three and a half years of moving to Bend, we took a youth ministry position with an Open Bible church in Redmond, about twenty-five minutes away. It was a meaningful season, but God continued to remind us why He had brought us west. Six months into that role, COVID shut everything down. During that time, our lead pastor, Chuck Gustafson, invited us to attend a church-planting conference and asked whether we had ever considered planting a church. Many conversations later, we found ourselves flying to an “assessment center” to determine whether we were fit to be church planters. Joke’s on us—they said yes.

That confirmation aligned with what we already sensed. We knew the specific area of southeast Bend where we felt God calling us, and we began taking “dream drives.” The moment we entered one particular new-build community, I knew: this was our neighborhood.

On September 10, 2023, Pine Hills Church held its first gathering at Silver Rail Elementary. That same year, I began teaching at a middle school on the affluent side of Bend. The school was progressive and open to nearly everything except Christianity. Though nervous, I chose to be honest about who I was. I put our church sticker on my water bottles and added to our “Tell Your Story” bulletin board that I was a co-pastor of a new church. My openness led to questions that I had to tiptoe around or answer privately.

I quickly felt more observed by both students and staff. Students shared fears that I would judge them or that I would stop caring for them if they were honest. They had all heard stories about “Christians.” I became even more intentional about being a nonjudgmental, nonanxious presence. I was determined not to be another example of an angry, condemning Christian, but instead a listener and a questioner. For some of my students, I was the first Christian they had ever truly known. By simply being honest about my faith, walls built by misinformation and fear began to fall.

Over that first year, I built trust with fellow staff members, my students, and their parents. Near the end of the year, I received an email from Ashley, the mother of my student Carter. Ashley had been deeply involved in New Age spirituality. She intentionally introduced her son to many belief systems, everything except Christianity. But Carter had begun asking questions and had mentioned “Mrs. Contreras’s church.” I hadn’t realized how closely he’d been listening, but he had. That June, Ashley asked if they could visit our church.

The very next Sunday, they walked in, observed quietly, and listened. After the service, Carter approached me, eyes gleaming. He loved it! Then weeks passed with no return. A month later, they were back.

Ashley told me she had felt compelled to begin reading the Bible. Within months, she was on a quest to discover everything within it; she was hungry, and she was finding answers. Carter gave his life to Jesus, and so did Ashley. On Sunday, July 27, 2025, we got to baptize them both in the Deschutes River. That moment was a powerful reminder that God had called me not only to ministry in the Church, but also in the classroom. His Spirit empowers us to live boldly and wisely wherever He places us.

All of us are called to ministry. Jesus’ command in Matthew 28 to go into all the world wasn’t just for pastors or church planters; it was for everyone. Teachers, lawyers, parents, janitors, coaches—anyone with breath in their lungs is called to make much of Jesus. The calling is simple: listen well, build trust, and love faithfully. When we do, we become the hands and feet of Jesus, right where we are.

About the Author

Nicole Contreras is a full-time wife, mom, pastor, and teacher living in Bend, Oregon. Her hobbies include reading, writing, shopping, snuggling with her daughters and her dogs, and being with family! Originally from Texas, Nicole and her husband, Aaron, moved to Oregon in August 2016, then planted Pine Hills Church with their two daughters, Aubree and Ellee, in September 2023. Nicole and Aaron are typical Bendites who love coffee, hikes, camping, mountains, snow, and being outside.