This was our first regular Sunday service attended at Shadow Mountain Community Church. We've…read morevisited during their Christmas Nativity service, their 4th of July patriotic event, law enforcement funerals/celebration of life ceremonies, etc. Dr Jeremiah, his staff, their volunteers, and their congregation have always impressed us beyond our expectations. They are so welcoming to guests/first timers! They have a free gift (book) which they gift newcomers to their church. Their church, event center, cafeteria, bookstore, are all very well run! Their church campus isn't brand new yet it's maintained so well that it looks new. Smiles can be seen by everyone. We wish we lived a little closer to their main campus in El Cajon. It's evident that the leadership led by Dr Jeremiah trickles down all the way to their Sunday volunteers which can be felt by all those in attendance. We love coming here every time we have chance.

I am posting this review here because of Shadow Mountain affiliation with Christian Unified…read moreSchools. After having two children at Christian Unified South campus for several years, my greatest disappointment is how leadership handled repeated concerns involving staff, bullying, communication, and accountability. My wife witnessed and recorded an interaction on campus involving another student, a staff member who also served in a security role, and Principal Brenda Sniff that she found concerning. She reported what she witnessed to school leadership, including Superintendent Bob Ruhlman and Principal Sniff, and the other child's parent was informed about what my wife had witnessed. Afterward, our family was presented with a written contract stating that "in order to continue at Christian Unified Schools," we had to agree to additional conditions. Among them, we were told we would "not go to another teacher, student, or parent" with concerns and instead communicate with the classroom teacher first or the principal. The contract also stated that Christian Unified had "sole and absolute discretion" to determine whether we violated its terms, with possible probation, suspension, or dismissal. Another part noted was the portion noted about videotaping .To our knowledge, this was not a standard condition required of other parents. Given the timing, we found it troubling that videotaping became part of an agreement. The contract also specifically stated that we would "gladly celebrate Christmas." Our family has sincerely held convictions about how we observe this season. We do not participate in many of the traditional or festive aspects of Christmas; instead, during December we intentionally focus on Christ and His birth. We found it uncomfortable that an agreement concerning our children's continued enrollment included language telling our family how we were expected to celebrate a religious holiday. It felt unrelated to the concerns that had led to the contract. Taken together--the restrictions on whom we could speak with, the videotaping provision, the religious language, and the consequences attached to the agreement--the contract felt intimidating to our family. This was not our only concern. We repeatedly raised concerns regarding a staff aide, Miss Lisa, including what we understood to be a pattern of negative language toward the fifth-grade class throughout the previous school year. We felt her interactions with students could be unnecessarily hostile. Another student also told us that Miss Lisa had made comments about the way Julian dressed in a negative way which is unprofessional. Toward the end of our time at Christian Unified, several incidents became the final straw for our family. We had concerns about repeated comments and interactions involving Mrs. Warners son and both of our children. We followed the communication process the school itself had required of us and emailed Mrs. Warner that Monday. We received no response. On the morning of September 3, Mrs. Warner had time to prepare a written account of a classroom incident that had just occurred earlier that morning and came down to sit in a meeting with us, yet our email remained about concerning interactions with one of her children remained unanswered. During that meeting, I personally witnessed her interaction with my wife and found her demeanor dismissive and disrespectful. When my wife addressed the unanswered email, Mrs. Warner turned toward me rather than addressing her directly. The lack of response, followed by her treatment of my wife during the meeting, felt retaliatory to us. Communication with leadership was also a frustration. Principal Sniff told us that she was not receiving our emails because of network issues something we have been told over the years . Around this same time, another incident involving the new PE teacher, Mr. Figueroa, added to our concerns. Julian told us that Mr. Figueroa was telling two other students that he felt he always had to babysit them. Julian said he became uncomfortable with the way the teacher was speaking to those students and walked away. According to Julian, Mr. Figueroa then asked him, "Are you a boy or a girl?" We found that reported comment inappropriate and humiliating. By that point, these were no longer isolated incidents to us. Superintendent Bob Ruhlman and Principal Brenda Sniff had been made aware of multiple concerns during our family's years at the school. Ultimately, we did not feel there was sufficient or responsiveness or accountability of the adults. Accountability should work in both directions. Despite these disappointments, we want to acknowledge Mr. Rheam, who is no longer at the school. Throughout the previous school year, he took the concerns we brought to him seriously, investigated, and responded promptly. We were thankful for his leadership and follow-through. We ultimately lost confidence in how leadership was handling our concerns and withdrew both of our children.

I've been attending for 10 years, and one thing that has consistently stood out is the phenomenal…read moreleadership at this church. If you're looking to get connected, there are so many small groups to choose from, no matter what season of life you're in. I also appreciate the flexibility of having three different weekend service times, which has been especially helpful as a parent of two young children. Foothills truly invests in its kids and youth ministries, and as a mom, that means so much to me. I always feel confident that my children are being cared for by people who genuinely love and support them. Another thing I appreciate is how safe and welcoming the campus feels. It gives me peace of mind knowing that my family can attend and be part of a community where safety, integrity, and care for others are clearly a priority. After 10 years, I can honestly say Foothills has been a wonderful place for my family to grow in faith, build meaningful relationships, and feel at home.

Amazing people. It may be a big church but it's definitely family oriented. This is the church…read morewhere I was saved. There's kids and middle schoolers nights on Fridays. High school nights on Thursdays. Young adults on Tuesday. There's also smaller homegroups based on age, with prayer and worship and short message to grow together through life. Small groups for high schoolers as well. A lot of opportunities to serve. There's women's activities and men's activities. A great community filled with love and prayer. There's VBS for kids, Future Quest and camps for middle schoolers and camps for high schoolers and so much more!!!

I came to Hope City about 7 months ago. I had been through a very difficult couple of years. I was…read moreso nervous to walk into a church again after several years of being out of fellowship. What I found at Hope City is a gathering of people who genuinely care. The atmosphere is casual and welcoming. It's truly a "come as you are" environment. The worship is dynamic and helps me to lay aside the things of the previous week and focus on the Lord. But the best thing of all is that sitting under and applying Pastor Eric's teaching has changed my life. Every week I am encouraged, corrected and empowered to live my life as Christ would without feeling judged or condemned. I'm so grateful to have found this church. If you're looking for a church home I highly recommend Hope City.

Our 1st time looking for a new church, the worship and the word were very good. We're trying other…read morechurches in our area but this one is in the lead.

My husband and I regularly have a babysitter on Saturday nights and we decided to look for a church…read morethat we could attend together as part of our "date nights". We found Kaleo church and decided to check it out. I am always nervous when checking out a new church, but we were welcomed right away! There was no time to feel awkward as everyone was so warm and inviting - something that is hard to find in your larger churches. I didn't realize how much I had missed actually being noticed and not feeling like "just another face in the crowd." Besides feeling extremely welcomed, I also very much appreciated the praise and worship and sermon-style. The message was deep and thoughtful. I left feeling filled and blessed. We will definitely be back for future "date nights."

I am biased - I attend Kaleo Church and have for over two years. We are a church of people who…read morerealize our great need for Jesus; we aren't perfect and often times fail each other, but the grace we receive through our precious Savior Jesus Christ, is BIGGER than our failures and reminds us that grace abounds and covers a multitude of sins. Daily we repent and thank our heavenly Father for ushering us into His presence by the blood of Christ so we can commune with a holy God who loves us perfectly and deeply. Our pastor, Tim Cain, brings the gospel every week! This is not a church where there is a pushing aside or sugar coating of truth - God has gifted Pastor Tim with great passion to share the gospel to ALL walks of life at no expense. It is a costly call, but worth it to him. We are blessed to have been given a pastor who desires to shepherd his flock well and care for us first spiritually. The people at Kaleo have big hearts for the El Cajon community and the homeless. We don't dress very fancy, the homeless join us for Saturday service and at our Missional Communities, and you will often see beards and tattoos. There is a big college-age community as well. We have a group of people with hearts for the SDCC students. A lot of the students and graduates attend our church. It's awesome the dynamic God has allowed our church to have. God has graciously allowed us to realize the truth of being all part of one body (without preference), with the Christ as our head through the diversity He has brought into this congregation. Kaleo church is more than a name and a building. It is a community of people who adore Jesus, who are learning to surrender their lives wholly to live according to His ways, and who delight in sharing the Good News with anyone who wants to listen...even those who may not.

I can't say enough good things about our experience at Grace Church! I was visiting San Diego and…read morewent with my son Brandon, who has lived in San Diego his entire adult life but had never been to a church there. The entire experience was amazing, and the message was so beautiful and honestly felt perfect for Brandon and where he is in his life right now. It truly felt like God was showing off that day! Everyone was so welcoming, and I'm just so grateful that we were able to share that experience together. We will definitely be back!

While visiting San Diego, we attended a Sunday service at this local church near our hotel. The…read morestreets were packed with cars, and we were worried about finding a spot for our rental, but luckily, they had a designated visitor parking area. We stopped by the welcome booth, where a friendly couple gave us a brief overview of the church and answered our questions with a smile. They even gave us coupons for free coffee! After the service, we enjoyed a delicious coffee (worth over $5) at the on-site cafe right next to the church.

Awaken El Cajon! Is a family church! It has saved me and my 3 sons from this world! This church…read moreloves hard and accepts all ways/walks in life! They have a beautiful restore program for anyone who needs that extra hand in their healing journey! You walk into this church and feel nothing but love and friendliness! Their messages are always scripture based! If you know your Bible and read the word you would hear the Bible in their messages and all pastors quote bible verses in their messages! As an example today Pastor Michael quoted at least 7 or more verses! Pastor Michael and Pastor Lisa are the most fun and loving pastors! They bring joy and realness and power to the house of God! I cannot say enough awesome things about this church and the people who serve/attend in this house!

I am looking for a 'home church' and attended the El Cajon campus a few times. I must say it was…read morewelcoming but the sermons were political. After this past year, which was all about politics I do not want to hear it in church or rehash 'the past four years'.... It was a total turn off for me and I'll keep searching for a church in which I will hear about love, God, kindness, uplifting. Politics does NOT belong in church.

Our family was attracted to Sonrise for its amazing kids and youth programs. We have stayed at…read moreSonrise for about five years now because of the bible based teaching and relational discipleship.

I went to this church from 2007-2013, and this establishment DOES NOT preach love!…read more Case in point, whenever an exciting event would open up, I was ALWAYS told that "all spots have been taken" DESPITE the fact that after I left, they would still be accepting sign ups. 2) the young adults ministry was not welcoming- I mostly hung out with four or five people, and it wasn't until 2014/2015 that I discovered they were only friends with me because they felt sorry for me.

God is working in this place! I love the fact you can just show up and be your authentic self!…read moregreat people & great sermon everytime

This place is amazing. Such a heartfelt message from the pastor. The scripture based message is…read moreworth applying to my daily life.

I actually understood with the sermon was about.. Direct and…read morepowerful.. He kept me engaged, which is a miracle..

I had high hopes for this church . I accompanied a friend and the cameras and all the extras really…read moredidn't bother me at first . Once the pastor started preaching something seemed off . Then he flew into a political message and how we need to vote republican . Isn't there a separation of church and state ? Think I'm lying see the screen shot of the IG page . I've reported them. It's fine to discuss that but then you need to tax the church . Very disappointed in Pastor Jeremy ... this church is an CULT. Also if you notice there are no black people at this church . All you need to know !!!!

Great people, very warm and welcoming. James Claus teaches the Bible and just the Bible. Very…read morerefreshing

When I arrived my thought was that it's a Calvary Chapel Church should be great. The message of our…read moreLord is spoken here and this should be enough. Unfortunately, when I found out that they have included any politics in the church, that was enough for me to walk away. Jesus said, give unto to Caesar what is his as a sign that he would not get involved in the political activities of His time. He told us to obey authority figures but there was nothing about pushing the people's political opinions. No, His Word is about how well we treat others. His laws are centered around how to behave towards all people. Most of all He wanted us to remember to Love God above all other things and second to that was to love our neighbors. Politics is far from this idea and the church should consider focusing on Love and Faith in the one true God. Just sad...