On Sundays throughout May, we will be considering a series called ‘First Things First’, looking at our priorities in following Jesus.
8th May
Shifting Faith
FIRST sit down and estimate the cost | Rachel Riddall | 8th of May at 11am
On Sundays throughout May, we will be considering a series called ‘First Things First’, looking at our priorities in following Jesus.
8th May
Eating Disorders Course
Are you struggling with an eating disorder?
New ID is a 6-week Christian course for those who suffer from eating disorders but are ready to move on. Includes anorexia, bulimia and compulsive eating.
The starting premise is that complete freedom is possible. Confidentiality is key and time is given for prayer for participants.
We will be running the course at Alma Church starting on Monday, 6 June. Registration is essential, by 30 May.
To sign up, simply email the team and they will be in touch with more info:
Seek First the Kingdom | Tim Dobson | 1st of May at 11am
On Sundays throughout May, we will be considering a series called ‘First Things First’, looking at our priorities in following Jesus.
1st May
The gospel must be FIRST preached to all nations | Richard Pollard | 1st of May at 7pm
On Sundays throughout May, we will be considering a series called ‘First Things First’, looking at our priorities in following Jesus.
1st May
Comfort | Dave Mitchell | 24th of April at 7pm
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
April 24th
Commission | Clare Thompson | 24th of April at 11am
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
NOTES
April 24th Commission. Luke 24:47-49
The Journey continues beyond Jerusalem to ‘all nations’. That journey is to be in the power of the Spirit, so Jesus commands us to ‘go’ and ‘stay. We are not to go until we have received power.
As we look beyond Easter towards Pentecost what does it mean for us to ‘tarry’ or to start (like the first Sabbath in Genesis) from a place of rest before obeying that commission? How do we go on to live an empowered life?
Naturally Supernatural
How do we live lives that are naturally supernatural?
On April 23rd, we welcomed Mike Pilavachi - Senior Pastor of Soul Survivor Watford church and co-author of “Everyday Supernatural: Living A Spirit-Led Life Without Being Weird” - to share with us at Woodlands.
First Things First
Priorities in following Jesus
On Sundays throughout May, we will be considering a series called ‘First Things First’, looking at our priorities in following Jesus.
Rob Scott Cook shared during prayer week a prophetic word for the Woodlands Church Family. This centred around ‘first things’ or ‘priorities’ that God has on His heart for His people. During May we will be reflecting on these ‘first things’ as we seek to put ‘first things first’ into our lives.
The apostle Paul often spoke of things being of ‘first importance’ (1 Cor 15:3). In listening to what the Lord is saying we also want to honour the foundation that Rob has laid in the Church Family, in encouraging us to reproduce the life of Jesus.
Messages in this series will cover:
1st May:
AM: Seek First the Kingdom | Matthew 6:33
PM: The gospel must be First preached to all nations | Mark 13:108th May:
AM: First sit down and estimate the cost | Luke 14:28
PM: First seek the counsel of the Lord | 1 Kings 22:515th May:
AM: The First and greatest commandment, Love | Matthew 22:38
PM: They gave themselves First to the Lord | 2 Corinthians 8:522nd May:
AM: May they be brought to complete unity: The priority of Unity | John 17:20-23
PM: Why we worship: The priority of Worship | John 4:19-2429th May:
AM: Firebreak / Baptisms
PM: Firebreak / Baptisms
MESSAGES FROM THIS SERIES:
Featured
Kingdom | Tim Dobson | 17th of April at 11am
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
NOTES
April 17th Kingdom: Luke 23:42 onwards Easter Day.
‘Jesus remember me when you come into your Kingdom’
‘Today- you will be with me in paradise’.
The ‘coronation’ of Jesus is Good Friday, but the power of the Kingdom is expressed in freeing condemned sinners and giving them a place in paradise. That Kingdom power is expressed as inexhaustible life. The transformation of Cleopas and his companion on the road is a continuation of the power that touches the dying thief. It is taking us from despair to hope, so that like them ‘our hearts burn within us’ v 32.
Coronation | Rachel Riddall | 17th of April at 7pm
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
April 17th
May EcoChallenge: No Mow May
For our May EcoChallenge, Woodlands People & Planet are challenging you to put away your lawn mower!
At Woodlands People and Planet we love to recycle and people who have been following this series carefully might recognise this challenge from this time last year – however we think it is a good one so please read on!
Making space for nature in our cities and towns is really important – and we can all do our bit. Those of us lucky enough to have gardens can think about how we can use them as good habitats for insects, birds and other animals too which are often coming under pressure as a lot of their habitats are removed. Gardens can often be much richer in wildlife than farmland!
This month’s challenge is simple – all you have to do is leave your mower in the shed for the month. This will give the flowers naturally present in the lawn a chance to bloom, acting as a valuable source of nectar for hard-pressed bees and other pollinating insects. Did you know lawns mown just once a month can be a source of 10 times as much nectar as lawns mown weekly? At the end of the month you have a chance to do a bit of citizen science by counting the number of flowers present in a random square metre of your lawn. What could be easier?
If you want to take this further, you can always try #LetItBloomJune or #KneeHighJuly!
Plantlife, the organisation behind the NoMowMay campaign, have found that the optimum way to manage your lawn for pollinators is a ‘Mohican’ approach. Mowing about every four weeks is the best way to promote the growth flowers that like shorter lengths of grass, such as daisies and white clover. At the same time leaving some areas unmown for longer can allow a richer variety of flowers to flourish in your lawn.
If you would like to sign up to the campaign and take part in the flower count at the end of the month visit Plantlife.
This Lifestyle article gives a great summary of the Mohican approach to cutting your lawn.
GET INVOLVED WITH PEOPLE + PLANET
If you’d be interested in finding out more about the Woodlands People + Planet group, or have some feedback about the challenges, connect with us:
Morning Meditations Holy Week 2022
Here are the poems from our Morning Meditations.
Seven words is a series of poems for Holy Week. In one week, everything changed. All that we thought we knew about God would be challenged.
TUESDAY: PROPHESY
Martha…
I see the House
brimming with sound that night
music, voices, laughter
Your words floating in the air
I watched you.
My brothers chatter broke through my reverie
Four days dead -
yet he reclines with you here.
I am still stunned.
You called him from his sleep
and I have no other means by which
to thank you.
so, I busy myself with serving
What more can I give but this food to eat
At Lazarus tomb
I saw you weep.
These men come to witness you,
and the man you raised
Jostling with each other for a better view
Yet where you sit, lamps glow and motion seems to still
Lazarus’ eyes shine brightly
In reverent praise
And at your feet Mary takes her place
her hair falling in waves
Against you.
In her hand a bottle
of pure nard is cradled
In her eyes, adoration.
upon your feet, a pound of palest yellow oil seeps
Breaking the seal and gathering up her hair
She Washes your feet
with loose tendrils
The room that had been filled with words
Is now heavy with earthy aroma
And Displeasure and outrage.
Judas cries, “Three hundred denarii”
But his mouth betrays avaricious desire.
Your word a trenchant blade replies.
This is ointment for the day
Of my burial
Words that I failed to understand.
What gesture is this from Mary hands
What did it reveal to us
Of what you were about to suffer?
written by Ash Chambers
WEDNESDAY: PAUSE
You press pause...
And Bethany-town calls you back
A chance to draw breath
A heart full of quiet. (To quieten a full heart?)
Dust dances in the sunlight
You find a cool spot in the shade
And shut your eyes.
Events of recent days
Crystallise,
In this quiet borderland...
The before.
Is it the way the grave clothes fall
Or how your voice catches
When you call your friend up
And out
Before?
Maybe in this moments pause
You draw deep breaths of a heady scent...
a memory of sounds
The breaking of a vessel and a life,
herald of a sacrifice
Before?
You press pause and
A myriad of moments
Place you here, in this borderland
On this threshold,
A place of orientation
A finely tuned call.
Turning your thoughts
And setting your face
Silently crafting
A beautiful grace (lovely)
That changes everything
That changes it all.
And so I press pause.
Dust catches in the sunlight
Tiny specks of a parched life...
And I’m witness to a sound,
I hear the grave clothes fall.
Hold a broken jar with a heady scent
And I’m surprised by the challenge
Of everything it meant.
In the pause in this place
Your fragrance lingers near
Mingled with memories of braver moments
Strong hope meshed with urgent prayers...
And in the pause
My hand in yours.
This terrain, this holy landscape
The borderland
threshold of sacrifice…
Before
For ... Here I am free
To pour out my life.
And Lord as I pause in this borderland place
Quietly, quietly
You fill it with grace…
written by Jane Reeves
THURSDAY | LOVE
The Feast
You sent us to that upper room to remember that ancient Feast
To prepare our hearts and homes to remember that great deliverance from our enemies
To remember that ancient promise of a strong deliverer because of a Lamb
Not any lamb but each of us is to take an unblemished male lamb
The blood of that lamb will be the sign that we are to be rescued from our oppressors
You say you are eager to eat this meal, with us before your suffering
You will eat again but on the other side of that hill
We all gather, and you take the towel and wash our feet
Washing what is on the outside, but soon to wash what is inside
This ancient meal is to remember a story. A meal that tells your unending story
Outstretched arm of our Lamb upon the seder plate, mixed with bitter herbs
An egg telling of new life, but we dip it into salty water
Closest to you are the three unleavened breads.
Bread of heaven!
They kept us in that wilderness
You gaze at them then pull them close and tear them into pieces and tell us to do this to remember you.
You take the cup of wine and say it is a New Covenant in your blood.
I hear in part. I see in part.
But the story is still to unfold.
This is no longer a ritual or history lesson.
You are that bread. You are that cup.
You are that male unblemished lamb, that bitter water that gives new life.
All twelve of us you kept, from the beginning till the end, except the one who departs with head bowed low, avoiding your gaze of sacrificial love.
He looks away from mercy too deep.
To that garden of tears you now depart.
A second Adam, that Lion with a lamb’s heart.
A love so amazing so divine, demands my soul, my life my all.
written by Brad Askew
FRIDAY | DIE
On that Cross
What was it like Lord?
How could you forgive them after what they did?
You were about to die.
Not fun.
Didn’t you want to run?
Yet you still made sure.
John looked after your mum.
Still offering Salvation.
To the men crucified.
Either side.
Forgive them they know not what they do?
That’s Powerful.
Who are you?
Are you really the Son of Man?
With a plan.
To save the world.
The brokenness of man.
Is that why you came?
To set us captives free.
For Eternity.
Lord I wanna follow Thee.
My Saviour who died in Calvary.
Thank you for saving me.
As I see you on that cross.
Both Mary’s
Numb and lost.
Painful cost.
You took on all our sins Lord.
Didn’t you.
So when you died.
Our Life became new.
You did this.
Didn’t you.
Thank you.
written by Andy Eisentrager
SUNDAY | THE BEST VICTORY
The best victory
The biggest trophy
Pulling it back from the brink of defeat
Against all the odds
When all hope was lost
The bad guys had won
The end in sight, no happy twist
Or sudden intervention
The crowds dispersed
Spectators heading home
To beat the rush and avoid
Yet further disappointment
You couldn’t hear hope
As a pin drop
Not even for a moment
And the pattern seemed set:
No further disruptions
From here to eternity…
How silently
HOW SILENTLY
The wondrous gift is given
Waking in the garden
Unseen, unknown, unbidden
The kind of casual glory
That steps out of bed one morning
The kind of sweet relief
That splits your soul wide open
And when he said
“It is finished…”
Well,
this time he meant it.
written by Robin Mitchell
Cross | Tim Dobson | 10th of April at 7pm
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
April 10th
Jerusalem | Philip Jinadu | 10th of April at 11am
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
NOTES
Luke 19:28-21:37 (Palm Sunday)
The Triumphal entry inaugurates Holy Week- a week that the gospel writers devote a significant part of their narrative too. What begins with an extravagant welcome appropriate to the Messiah turns into a series of confrontations by Jesus with the religious, nationalistic, financial and political powers located in Jerusalem, and behind them the unseen spiritual powers of darkness. Prophecy flows from Jesus as each of the 6 days of Holy week increase the crisis that propels Jesus to the fulfilment of his ministry until the last ‘it is finished’ of the 7th day.
How do we welcome Jesus into our hearts, and what does he confront and challenge there?
Jericho | Clare Thompson | 3rd of April at 11am
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
NOTES
April 3rd Jericho. Luke 18:31-19:27.
Just as the Israelites had to go through Jericho to take possession of the land of Canaan, Jesus goes through Jericho on His way to Jerusalem.
Jesus meets people at Jericho. The blind man- who will not be silenced- ‘sees’ Jesus as ‘The Son of David’ and gets his physical sight in healing (a messianic sign e.g. Isaiah 35:5). He meets Zacchaeus – who is ‘saved’ (v 9). The Messiah is turning things upside down and his kingdom is breaking out in mercy and healing.
The parable of the talents speaks of what Jesus is looking for in terms of Spiritual fruit. What will Jesus find in Jerusalem? And what will he find in us?
Baptism | Matt Dobson | 3rd of April at 7pm
Before Easter we take a short break to talk about Baptism at our 7pm Service.
April 3rd
If you’re interested in getting Baptised, get in touch with your small group or pastorate leader.
Culture | Dave Roderick | 27th March at 7pm
On Sunday evenings in March, we begin a short series called ‘Living in Babylon’.
March 27th
Journey | Rachel Riddall | 27th of March at 11am
As we move closer to Easter we want to take a look at the journey Jesus took as he teaches, acts, and responds to questions that all prepare us as well as his disciples for the meaning behind the journey.
NOTES
Luke 13:31-35. 14:25-34
Luke 13 has threatening overtones. Pilate and Herod are both referenced in this chapter as having murderous intent and capacity. Jesus response is definitely not meek and mild. He commits to demonstrating a different kingdom coming (healing and deliverance) as he prepares for the final showdown in Jerusalem.
That sense of going to Jerusalem to die informs his teaching in Luke 14 of the cost of discipleship. That cost is framed in the language of ‘carry their cross’ v 27 and ‘’give up everything’ v33.
Our own journey of discipleship isn’t just a one off experience, but a considered life choice and lifestyle where we count the cost of commitment. Jesus words about ‘hating’ family members (v 26) are metaphors to demonstrate the overwhelming priority of God (it’s a how much more saying- even those we love, compared to the love of God it’s as if they were hated so much higher is our devotion to Him) as well as a non-emotional choice reminiscent of God’s election of Jacob -‘Jacob I loved, Esau I hated’.
The Journey is a narrow road of putting God first in all things, being ‘salty’ people, not losing our savour or backing off from our initial commitments whatever the cost.