United We Stand: Put It On | Clare Thompson at 11am | 1 November 2020

1 November 2020 - 11am Service

United We Stand: Put It On

This Sunday we continue our preaching series United We Stand with a message from Clare Thompson on ‘Put It On’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Remember, our 7pm service is also looking at this topic, and Amy Viner will be sharing with us. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

INTRODUCTION | Read Ephesians 4:24-26 and Colossians 3:10-15

Unity begins at home! It’s also not a passive thing, it is an active way of life that needs to be embraced and pursued, particularly in our closest relationships. New testament teaching often lands on household relationships. It encourages pro-active Christian living (so pro-active it might feel we are just ‘putting it on’). 

STUDY QUESTIONS

1. These bible passages emphasis the power of speech in guarding unity or creating disunity. What part does speech and other communication (like social media) have in guarding or hurting unity?

2. What are the tensions between being ‘real’ and living with integrity, and the choices to speak well of others, even when you have felt hurt by them or critical of them?

3. What particular discipleship challenges are there for you in your household or family?

4. How do you define the kind of ‘love’ that you ‘put on’?

5. Greg Boyd said ‘It’s more important to treat people right than be right’ What does he mean? Do you agree?

Woodies Kids | Old Testament Characters Week 7 - Jonah

Welcome to the Woodies Kids blog.

this week we focus on…

Jonah

You can find the story in

Time to Think

· Why did Jonah not go to Nineveh when God asked him too?

(Jonah wanted to see the Ninevites punished as they were Israel's enemies)

Why did God send Jonah to Nineveh?

(The Ninevites were doing wicked things and God needed that to change – He is a just (fair) God. However, God's love and compassion is so great He wanted the Ninevites to have chance to change their ways so they could be forgiven).

What did Jonah learn from his experience of going to Nineveh (including being inside the fish)?

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Service of Lament

Watch our Service of Lament online as we looked at how we can walk with God through disappointment, loss and suffering.

As we invite God to bring healing and hope to our troubled world, we take the opportunity to spend time in reflection and prayer bringing our experiences to God. It is a time to remember loved ones, to grieve, and to be comforted. A time to lament. 

"Nothing can separate us from the love of God."  - Romans 8

We hope this service brings you hope and healing. You can use this ‘Restored, Refreshed’ reflective meditation in your own time - thanks to Jane Reeves for putting it together.

United We Stand: A House Divided | Nigel Savage at 11am | 25 October 2020

25 October 2020 - 11am Service

United We Stand: A House Divided

This Sunday we continue our preaching series United We Stand with a message from Nigel Savage on ‘A House Divided’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Remember, our 7pm service is also looking at this topic, and Jon Wilcox will be sharing with us. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

INTRODUCTION | Read Luke 11:17

Jesus taught that division weakens and destroys a ‘household’ or organisation, and that it will lose power through division. Has todays Church lost power through its divisions? Historically the Church has divided over apparently trivial things, and theological niceties (e.g. Do we baptise in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit, or in the name of Jesus?). Churches divide most over passionately held beliefs- which is a challenge to zealous Christians!

STUDY QUESTIONS

How can Church celebrate diversity and mutual respect of others, especially when people believe passionately on a particular issue?

1. What things do Churches divide on? Which of these are vulnerabilities for us? (Check out 3 John 1:9, 1 Corinthians 3, 1 Cor 11:22, James 2, Galatians 2:11, Acts 6:1)

2. Why do you think it is said ‘the biggest enemy of revival is the revival that preceded it’? How open are we to the new and fresh?

3. What are the particular problems that Churches face as they grow large around divisions?

4. What does Luke 9:48/Luke 22:24 tell us about division and how to avoid it?

5. How much was the power of the early Church in Acts 4 onwards linked to their unity?

United We Stand: A House Divided | Jon Wilcox at 7pm | 25 October 2020

25 October 2020 - 7pm Service

United We Stand: A House Divided

This Sunday we continue our preaching series United We Stand with a message from Jon Wilcox on ‘A House Divided’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Remember, earlier today at the 11am service we heard Nigel Savage speak on the same topic. Go check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

INTRODUCTION | Read Luke 11:17

Jesus taught that division weakens and destroys a ‘household’ or organisation, and that it will lose power through division. Has todays Church lost power through its divisions? Historically the Church has divided over apparently trivial things, and theological niceties (e.g. Do we baptise in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit, or in the name of Jesus?). Churches divide most over passionately held beliefs- which is a challenge to zealous Christians!

STUDY QUESTIONS

How can Church celebrate diversity and mutual respect of others, especially when people believe passionately on a particular issue?

1. What things do Churches divide on? Which of these are vulnerabilities for us? (Check out 3 John 1:9, 1 Corinthians 3, 1 Cor 11:22, James 2, Galatians 2:11, Acts 6:1)

2. Why do you think it is said ‘the biggest enemy of revival is the revival that preceded it’? How open are we to the new and fresh?

3. What are the particular problems that Churches face as they grow large around divisions?

4. What does Luke 9:48/Luke 22:24 tell us about division and how to avoid it?

5. How much was the power of the early Church in Acts 4 onwards linked to their unity?

Woodies Kids | Old Testament Characters Week 6 - Daniel

Welcome to the Woodies Kids blog.

this week we focus on…

Daniel

You can find the story in

Daniel was a humble, hardworking, Godly man from Israel that was captured when Jerusalem was defeated by the Babylonians. God knew that Daniel had a very strong faith and belief in Him; God also knew that Daniel would give all of the glory to Him for whatever happened in his life.

Time to Think

· Who did Daniel love more than anyone?

· How did that get him into trouble on two occasions?

· How did Daniel respond to being in trouble?

· What did God do in each situation?

· Have you ever done something different because you knew it was what God wanted you to do?  What happened?  (Your own stories might be encouraging for the children to hear here.)

· Why was Daniel not hurt?

· Do you think believing in God made Daniel any less scared?

· Do you think God will look after us and protect us if we have to make scary choices for Him?

· What sort of choices might we have to make?

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Response

Ask the children to suggest why Daniel was able to be different.  Explain that Daniel's heart totally belonged to God.  Ask them to suggest what kind of things might be found in Daniel's heart – for instance, love for God, loyalty, courage.

Ask the children to think about their own hearts.  Get them to write down things (qualities) that they would like to have in their hearts.

Ask the children to think about whether they would like to be different for God like Daniel was.  Ask them to think about where and how they need to be different.  If you could give them some examples for your own life, so much the better – for example: ‘I want to be different in the way that I talk to my friends – I don't want to join in with their gossiping any more'.

Lorraine's Story

Lorraine tells her story of following Jesus.

Spirit Filled with Dave Mitchell is online

Did you miss our Spirit Filled refreshing evening at Woodlands? Don’t worry! You can watch it online.

It's always good to be reminded of our Holy Spirit 'DNA'. Dave Mitchell shared inspirational teaching on the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and ministries. We looked at Who is Holy Spirit is?  How do we get filled?  Who gets to minister in power? 

This is an opportunity to listen to Dave teach and to experience the filling and refreshing of the Holy Spirit again.  Many of us are increasingly aware of our need of the Spirit's power for life and witness in these times, and we want to invite all who are part of the Woodies family to be refreshed.

The service starts with some prayer and worship followed by some teaching and ministry time. Enjoy!

United We Stand: Welcome and Inclusion | Matt Dobson at 7pm | 18 October 2020

18 October 2020 - 7pm Service

United We Stand: Welcome and Inculsion

This Sunday we continue our preaching series United We Stand with a message from Matt Dobson on ‘Welcome and Inclusion’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Remember, earlier today at the 11am service we heard Rachel Riddall speak on the same topic. Go heck it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

INTRODUCTION | Read Acts 15

Much of the New Testament wrestles with issues around inclusion- of the Gentiles becoming part of the (Jewish heritage) people of God. 

Acts 15 is a key chapter exploring how the early Church managed to incorporate the Gentiles into the Christian family and how they were willing to modify deeply held and cherished practices in the light of what God was doing and deeper revelation and understanding of their mission and calling.

STUDY QUESTIONS

1. What is the difference between ‘welcome’ and ‘inclusion’?

2. What inclusion issues are there for the Church today?

3. What principles guided practices towards inclusion in Chapter 15 of Acts?

4. How do we in our small groups make space for and include people? What is our strategy for this? How central to our purpose is growth, welcome and inclusion?

5. What biblical guidelines are there for inclusion while holding on to key non negotiables? What might ‘non-negotiables’ be in your understanding? 

United We Stand: Welcome and Inclusion | Rachel Riddall at 11am | 18 October 2020

18 October 2020 - 11am Service

United We Stand: Welcome and Inculsion

This Sunday we continue our preaching series United We Stand with a message from Rachel Riddall on ‘Welcome and Inclusion’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Remember, our 7pm service is also looking at this topic, and Matt Dobson will be sharing with us. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

INTRODUCTION | Read Acts 15

Much of the New Testament wrestles with issues around inclusion- of the Gentiles becoming part of the (Jewish heritage) people of God. 

Acts 15 is a key chapter exploring how the early Church managed to incorporate the Gentiles into the Christian family and how they were willing to modify deeply held and cherished practices in the light of what God was doing and deeper revelation and understanding of their mission and calling.

STUDY QUESTIONS

1. What is the difference between ‘welcome’ and ‘inclusion’?

2. What inclusion issues are there for the Church today?

3. What principles guided practices towards inclusion in Chapter 15 of Acts?

4. How do we in our small groups make space for and include people? What is our strategy for this? How central to our purpose is growth, welcome and inclusion?

5. What biblical guidelines are there for inclusion while holding on to key non negotiables? What might ‘non-negotiables’ be in your understanding? 

Prayer Ministry after Church on Sundays

Throughout lockdown, we have been doing prayer ministry online using Zoom. Now that we are gathering again for services on Sundays at 11am and 7pm, we are able to offer socially distanced prayer ministry in person. From 18 October, we will no longer be offering prayer ministry via Zoom after our services.

If you would like prayer, please request it directly from your mid-week group leader. If you aren’t in a group and would like to join one, contact Tim Dobson and he’ll link you into one.

Otherwise, you can email our Pastoral Care team at any time, or you can post prayer requests in our private Church Family group on Facebook. 

Woodies Kids | Old Testament Characters Week 5 - David

Welcome to the Woodies Kids blog.

this week we focus on…

David

You can find the story of David here:

The story of David and Goliath to help the children understand, no matter how small they are, with God's help they can do BIG things. After the story you can point out to the children that David believed God would help him defeat Goliath.

Message:

It doesn't matter how big we are, we can be like David if we remember that we are on God's team and that he wants to help us. God is bigger than any giant, the Boogie man, or a monster on TV.

Time to Think

What made David so brave? (He knew what the Israelites had forgotten: with God's help little people can do big things too!)

Was King Saul brave? (No. He looked good in his armour but inside he was too scared to face Goliath.)

Why didn't David use King Saul's armour? (David knew he was not big enough to wear the heavy armour. He wisely chose to use tools he was familiar with.)

Can everyone who trusts in God do big things, or was David special?

Response:

Is there anything that is a Goliath to you today? Can you share that with us? We can always come to God with our Goliaths. Shall we pray now?

This week we learn about David, have a song from Sarah and we hear from Ruth about ways we can pray and hear from God.

Bible School: Making Disciples of All Nations

BIBLE SCHOOL

Making Disciples of All Nations | 19th October 2020 at 7.30
Join in from home on Facebook Live

We run a monthly Bible School which focuses on helping people to go deeper with God, study and understand the Bible. We often have special guest speakers and theologians join us to share their knowledge. This month, we are very excited to have the session be led by two of our Global Partners living and working in the Middle East.

Making Disciples of All Nations:
A theological exploration of the risk and reward of living cross-culturally for Jesus.
Monday, 19th October from 7.30pm to 8pm on Facebook Live

To take part, simply visit our Woodlands Church Facebook page (not the Church Family group)

If you have any questions, please email tim.dobson@woodlandschurch.net.

Woodies Celebrates 25 Years

In October 2020, we celebrated 25 years since our very first church service was held in our building - so much has happened in that time! We hope our church family enjoy this montage of memories from over the years.

We marked the occasion on the 11th October at both of our Sunday services - so if you missed them, watch online to hear special stories from the team, plus some great messages from Dave in the morning and Rob in the evening as they spoke about unity.

We have a lot to be thankful to God for over these last 25 years. Thanks to everyone who has been part of the Woodies story!

United We Stand: Body Image | Rob Scott-Cook at 7pm | 11 October 2020

11 October 2020 - 7pm Service

United We Stand - Body Image

This Sunday we celebrated Woodies’ 25th birthday! We also started our new preaching series United We Stand with a message from Rob Scott-Cook on ‘Body Image’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Earlier today Dave Mitchell also spoke about this topic. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

Introduction:

The apostle Paul loves to compare the Church with the human body made up of different parts. In 1st Corinthians he challenges the Church which is ‘the body of Christ’ about its disunity. He reflects on the physical sickness among the Church as a sign of its spiritual sickness because of disunity, especially when it meets to share communion which should be a sign of unity (11:17-34). He says ‘your meetings do more harm than good’ and calls the Church to recognise how the different parts need one another. He challenges disunity on the basis of personalities, race and socio-economic factors.

Questions:

Read 1 Corinthians 11-14.

1. In the individualistic culture of the C21 what attitudes to Church and community would Paul challenge if he was speaking directly to us today?

2. In what ways do you think your attitudes and lifestyle contribute to the health or sickness of the whole Church?

3. How important is ou runity to God (John17).
   Why?
   How does it affect the mission and message of the Church?

4. It’s one thing for a local Church to be united - it’s another thing for a group of Churches or the Church in a city or region to be united. How would you assess our unity as Church in the City? Is there competition and rivalry? Is competition among churches ever healthy?

5. This Sunday we celebrate 25 years of Woodlands Central Church as a place of worship. A core value of Woodlands is ‘unity’ both as a group of Churches and within the City. How would you assess the legacy of Woodies and what would your prayer be for the future?

United We Stand: Body Image | Dave Mitchell at 11am | 11 October 2020

11 October 2020 - 11am Service

United We Stand - Body Image

This Sunday we celebrated Woodies’ 25th birthday! We also started our new preaching series United We Stand with a message from Tim Mitchell on ‘Body Image’.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

Remember, our 7pm service is also looking at this topic, and Rob Scott Cook will be sharing with us. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

Introduction:

The apostle Paul loves to compare the Church with the human body made up of different parts. In 1st Corinthians he challenges the Church which is ‘the body of Christ’ about its disunity. He reflects on the physical sickness among the Church as a sign of its spiritual sickness because of disunity, especially when it meets to share communion which should be a sign of unity (11:17-34). He says ‘your meetings do more harm than good’ and calls the Church to recognise how the different parts need one another. He challenges disunity on the basis of personalities, race and socio-economic factors.

Questions:

Read 1 Corinthians 11-14.

1. In the individualistic culture of the C21 what attitudes to Church and community would Paul challenge if he was speaking directly to us today?

2. In what ways do you think your attitudes and lifestyle contribute to the health or sickness of the whole Church?

3. How important is ou runity to God (John17).
   Why?
   How does it affect the mission and message of the Church?

4. It’s one thing for a local Church to be united - it’s another thing for a group of Churches or the Church in a city or region to be united. How would you assess our unity as Church in the City? Is there competition and rivalry? Is competition among churches ever healthy?

5. This Sunday we celebrate 25 years of Woodlands Central Church as a place of worship. A core value of Woodlands is ‘unity’ both as a group of Churches and within the City. How would you assess the legacy of Woodies and what would your prayer be for the future?

United We Stand

How can we seek unity and be a blessing to our city?

This October and November, we’re starting a new preaching series on unity called United We Stand.

As a Church, unity is one of our defining values. Without unity, we are unlikely to see our city transformed. In practice, there can be a ‘drag’ away from unity into parochial mindsets and divisions. As a body of believers, we want to actively seek to be unified, and in doing so, see positive transformation.

We'll be examining a variety of scripture during this series. For instance, Jesus prayed for our unity in John 17. It’s His priority for His Church, but key to seeing the mission accomplished is shared in John 13: 35.

Our preaching topics during this series are:

• Body Image - 11 Oct

• Welcome & Inclusion - 18 Oct

• A House Divided - 25 Oct

• Put It On - 1 Nov

• Equipping the Saints - 8 Nov

You can go deeper with the topics at home by using our simple study notes:

Watch our short video from Senior Pastor Dave Mitchell as he shares his vision for this series.

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TALKS FROM OUR UNITED WE STAND SERIES

Woodies Kids | Old Testament Characters Week 4 - Samuel

Welcome to the Woodies Kids blog.

this week we focus on…

Samuel

You can find the story of Samuel here

Samuel was a young boy when he went to live at the Temple with the priests.

Samuel hears God in the middle of the night. What can we learn from this story about God choosing to speak, even to children. Can they hear God? Does He speak even now?

Time to Think

How can we know what God is asking us?

Have you ever “heard” from God? What ways can we hear from God?

What would you have done if you were Samuel?

Have you ever felt like you can’t really do much yet, because you’re just a child?

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Join Lydia as we start our new series of videos. This week we learn about Samuel.

Dear God,

Help me to listen out for your voice. Thankyou for always being there to listen to me,

Amen

Journeys: Destination Heaven | Dave Mitchell at 7pm | 4 October 2020

4th of October 2020 - 7pm Service

Journeys: Destination Heaven

This Sunday we continue our preaching series Journeys: People of the Way with a message from Dave Mitchell on ‘Destination Heaven’.

The Christian life is a journey. It has a beginning, a destination, and things to do, accomplish, and grow in on the way. The early Church was called ‘The Way’ - it implies a way of life, not just a once in a lifetime decision. What does The Way look like?

Earlier today Tim Dobson also spoke about this topic. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

Read: Revelation 21v1-8 and 22v1-5

As we come to the close of our Journeys series we are looking at our final destination. Where will this journey following Jesus finally take us?

What is our personal destiny and what is the destiny of our planet?

1. What do you understand by the word "heaven?

2. When Jesus returns there will be a judgement that will put all the things that are wrong with our world, right. What do you understand this judgement to look like?

3. The book of Revelation seems to indicate that in the end there will be a "new heaven and a new earth" which those who have followed Jesus ("names in the Lamb's book of life" Rev 21v27) will enjoy with God for ever. In the end, Heaven will come to earth rather than us going to heaven. What do you think about that? And how should it make us live our lives now?

4. Why do you think we will need a "new heaven" as well as a "new earth"?

5. Knowing the end of the story should give us HOPE to live in the present. Read these verses Colossians 3v1-4, 1 Corinthians 15v42-44 and Philippians 3v20-21. How do these verses inspire hope in you?

6. As with the resurrection of Jesus, there is continuity with his body as well as something brand new (He could be recognised, eat, be touched etc, but he also appeared and disappeared and could walk through walls!) Do you think there will be continuity between the present earth and the renewed earth? If so how should that affect the way we treat our planet?

7. The book of Revelation contains lots of suffering and trouble. Through all this, believers are described in this way "They follow the Lamb wherever he went" Revelation 14v4. In the light of our final destination, how are you following Jesus the Lamb this week?

Journeys: Destination Heaven | Tim Dobson at 11am | 4 October 2020

4th of October 2020 - 11am Service

Journeys: Destination Heaven

This Sunday we continue our preaching series Journeys: People of the Way with a message from Tim Dobson on ‘Destination Heaven’.

The Christian life is a journey. It has a beginning, a destination, and things to do, accomplish, and grow in on the way. The early Church was called ‘The Way’ - it implies a way of life, not just a once in a lifetime decision. What does The Way look like?

Remember, our 7pm service is also looking at this topic, and Dave Mitchell will be sharing with us. Check it out!

You will find discussion notes below to help you go deeper with this topic during the week.

DISCUSSION NOTES

Read: Revelation 21v1-8 and 22v1-5

As we come to the close of our Journeys series we are looking at our final destination. Where will this journey following Jesus finally take us?

What is our personal destiny and what is the destiny of our planet?

1. What do you understand by the word "heaven?

2. When Jesus returns there will be a judgement that will put all the things that are wrong with our world, right. What do you understand this judgement to look like?

3. The book of Revelation seems to indicate that in the end there will be a "new heaven and a new earth" which those who have followed Jesus ("names in the Lamb's book of life" Rev 21v27) will enjoy with God for ever. In the end, Heaven will come to earth rather than us going to heaven. What do you think about that? And how should it make us live our lives now?

4. Why do you think we will need a "new heaven" as well as a "new earth"?

5. Knowing the end of the story should give us HOPE to live in the present. Read these verses Colossians 3v1-4, 1 Corinthians 15v42-44 and Philippians 3v20-21. How do these verses inspire hope in you?

6. As with the resurrection of Jesus, there is continuity with his body as well as something brand new (He could be recognised, eat, be touched etc, but he also appeared and disappeared and could walk through walls!) Do you think there will be continuity between the present earth and the renewed earth? If so how should that affect the way we treat our planet?

7. The book of Revelation contains lots of suffering and trouble. Through all this, believers are described in this way "They follow the Lamb wherever he went" Revelation 14v4. In the light of our final destination, how are you following Jesus the Lamb this week?