WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

NOVEMBER 2016 NEWSLETTER

SUNDAY SERVICES 9:00 & 10:30 am Nursery care available

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IN THIS ISSUE

From Our Pastor

November Prayer Guide

WCC Events & Info

Student Life Ministry

Children’s Ministry

November Calendar

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

From Our Pastor

Dear WCC Family, What an amazing fall we have been having at Woodbury Community Church! My heart is excited about what lies ahead as we move into November. God always gives us reasons to be grateful. This season of Thanksgiving allows us to step back and practice the spiritual discipline of gratitude. Several years ago the students in our School of Discipleship read Ann Voskamp’s book, One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are. In the book, Voskamp challenges her readers to look for gifts that God gives to us every day. When you look you will see God’s fingerprints all over the place. I want to challenge you to be intentional about looking for God’s blessings in your life this month. Maybe you and your family could take a gratitude challenge. Each day, use your phone to take picture of something that reminds you of God’s goodness. Share that picture at the dinner table each night. Pictures not your thing? Then maybe you could just write down one thing each day that God has given you to be thankful for. There are four things that I’d like to ask our church body to be in prayer for this month.

First, on Sunday, November 20th, we are going to have a Missions Conference. We’ll get updates from several of our missionaries including our guest speakers for the morn-ing, Tim and Chris Gilmore.

We will also hear from some missionaries that are new to Woodbury Community Church, but doing great things with Youth For Christ in Ireland and at Rift Valley Academy in Kenya. All of our youth and adult Sunday morning classes will feature mission-ary speakers that day as well.

Second, our elders will be taking their annual retreat on November 18-19. Throughout the summer and fall months, our elders have been in prayer and communication about the direction that we feel that

God may be calling our church into over the next five years. This retreat is an opportunity to catalyze the conversations that have been taking place and put together a new vision. Please be in prayer for this process. We do not want to move in any direction that God is not calling us to move into. We also do not want to let fear stop us from moving in a direction that God may be calling us to go. I can’t wait to see how God continues to use WCC in the years ahead. Third, I’m very excited about our Advent Devotional called, A Disciple Making Christmas, that will be available for purchase on Sunday, November 20. This devotional is the work of over a dozen talented writ-ers from Woodbury Community Church. I hope that every individual from WCC will take the 30 days leading up to Christmas Day to join us for a spiritual adventure. The devotional will include a short reading, discussion questions and a prayer for each of the 30 days. The devotions will center around strategic relationships that God has placed in our lives and spiritual disciplines that will help us to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ. Finally, be in prayer for our nation. On Tuesday, Nov. 8, we will elect dozens of leaders who will govern at the local, state and national levels. We are as divided as we have ever been as a nation. My prayer is that the church of Jesus Christ will shine bright. Where political rhetoric has ruined friendships and divided families, Christ can restore. No matter who is elected, our leaders will need our prayers. Remember, politics will never be the cure for the spiritual needs in ours or any other nation. Let’s be grateful that God has placed us on the planet and in this place for such a time as this! Let’s be the church! Let’s live like Christ! Let’s lift high the name of Jesus by the way that we live our lives and by pursuing Christ and His Kingdom. In His Service, Pastor Brian

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

Prayer Guide

Woodbury Community Church – November Prayer Guide By Drew Mattison

It is the desire of our church to be unified in prayer. There are many references in scrip-ture that point to the priority of prayer, and how we as the body of Christ are called to pray. We are to be diligent, honest and expectant in our prayer lives. Prayer is both about speaking to and hearing from God. Also, when we as a body pray, we can expect Him to respond. During November, please bring these ideas for prayer to your small groups, your families, and your individual times of prayer to help facilitate unity and power in prayer from Woodbury Community Church. This month, with November upon us and preparations for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays approaching, our lives get very busy. There are parties and travelling and baking and kids’ programs and shopping and all sorts of other things that grab the priority of our time. For prayer this month,

let our priority be on that of listening. Make room for God to speak to the tender areas of your heart by slowing down and without putting an agenda before him. In the life of Jesus, he had many demands and stresses. He helped keep his focus on the eternal things by taking time away to hear from God. Prayerfully look at each of the following sections of scripture this month: Matthew 4:1-11, Luke 4:42, Luke 6:12, Matthew 14:23, Mark 1:35, Mark 6:31, Luke 5:16, and Matthew 26:36-46. As you review these, reflect on what was happening in the life of Jesus, what he was trying to incorporate through the discipline of solitude, and ask how God might be calling you into solitude during this busy season of the year. I bet he will give you exactly what you need.

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

SHARE BECAUSE YOU CARE In November, Share Because You Care will be distributing the personal care items donated to Oak Ridge Assisted Living in Hastings. Thank you for the items and cash donations, we would not be able to bless these sweet senior citizens without the kindness of this church. If you are able to help on Monday, November 7th, we will be loading vehicles at 12:15 (4-5 cars or vans needed) at the Faessler’s home (1940 Lochaven Alcove, Woodbury) leaving for Hastings at 12:30 and planning to arrive at the facility by 1:00, or you can meet us there to help set up anytime between 1:00 and 2:00. When we arrive the hectic crazy fun begins. We will pray for the day, unpack, set up the items and prepare a snack. The doors will open at 2:00 and we will help the excited residents pick out their items and share a treat while enjoying a time listening to them, finding out a little about what is going on in their lives. This day is the heart of this ministry. There will be one more chance this year to volunteer to help with Bingo on Tuesday, November 29th at 2:00. We are in need of 15 Walmart gift cards for this event. On Monday, December 12th we are planning to gift each of the 68 residents with a new towel, a wash cloth and a small surprise gift created by the chil-dren attending Awana. This hour of fellowship has a lot less activity than our other outings and more interaction with the people living there. Hope you can join us for this special afternoon. On November 17th at 6:45 there will be an informational meeting at WCC about the future of Share Because You Care. If you have a heart for the elderly please think about attending. Please pray about how you can partner with this ministry in the future. If you have any questions or want to volunteer, please contact Pam Faessler 651.269.7059 or at gnfaessler@gmail.com

WCC Events & Info

Year-to-Date Budget

309K

Year-to-Date Giving

304K

Year-to-Date Expenditures

292K

Financial Update

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

WCC Events & Info

WOMEN @ WCC SUNDAY CONNECTIONS / NOVEMBER 6 / 7pm

We are so excited to spend Sunday, November 6th together to focus on prayer. Melissa Tapperson will lead the group in a devotion on prayer. Karen Baden will teach us how to make beautiful keepsake prayer journals. Please note: A freewill offering will be taken to cover the cost of materials with a suggested donation of $8 per book. For details or to sign-up, contact Tammie Haveman at dthaveman@me.com.

WOMEN @ WCC TUESDAY MEET-UPS / 1ST & 3RD TUESDAYS

All are welcome for this informal drop-in women’s meeting for prayer and discussion. Please Note: we have changed our location and will now be meeting at the Lunds and Byerlys store in Valley Creek Plaza. We meet the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of the month. Come when you can and bring a friend! For more information, contact Tammie Haveman, dthaveman@me.com.

MEN’S GATHERING / NOVEMBER 6 / 7pm We will be meeting on November 6th for our monthly men's gathering! We will utilize 33 The Series, volume 2, which is focused on A Man and His Story. This is a great series focused on your background, how it has shaped you, and how to move forward in God's design for Authentic Manhood given how you've been shaped so far. All men, young or seasoned, high school age and up are wel-comed. Bring a friend! Light snacks will be provided. Contact Brian Tapperson, btapperson@gmail.com, for more information.

ADULT BIBLE FELLOWSHIP CLASSES / 9 & 10:30am

9:00 ABF (starts Nov. 6th) - Conf. Room B Have you ever want to read through the Torah in a year? Here is your chance! This week the scrolls in all the synagogues across the world are rolled from the end of Deuteronomy back to Genesis 1. JJ Wessman will begin a study that corresponds to the weekly reading of the Torah portion. All are welcome to attend. 10:30 ABF - Conf. Room B This Adult Bible Fellowship class is on-going and meets at 10:30 every Sunday morning. It is titled Spiritual Disciplines and is led by Drew Mattison. You are welcome to join in on any given Sunday.

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

BINGO / NOV. 29 / 2PM / OAK RIDGE ASSISTED LIVING Join us at Oak Ridge Assisted Living Center in Hastings for a fun time of Bingo with the residents. We need $5 Walmart gift cards to hand out as prizes. For more information, contact Pam Faessler at gnfaessler@gmail.com or 651-269-7059.

ARTWORK BY KOZEFO’S STUDENTS IN HAITI / NOV. 13 In June 2016, the WCC youth group traveled to Haiti for a fun filled week with the Kozefo students. As part of our daily lessons, we had the students create and draw. We have used this artwork to create beautiful necklaces, Christmas ornaments and more. We will be selling the student's Haitian artwork in the church lobby on Sunday, November 13th. All proceeds are used for expendi-tures for the school in Port au Prince, Haiti. We still have eleven students that need to be sponsored for the 2016-17 school year. For more sponsorship infor-mation, go to www.kozefo.org/sponsor/.

WCC ANNUAL CHRISTMAS PARTY

You’re Invited…

Where: Bradshaw Celebration of Life Center

2800 Curve Crest Blvd.

Stillwater, MN 55082

Date: Saturday, December 10th

Time: 5:30 - 6pm relaxed arrival and check in.

6pm - Dinner will be served followed by the

White Elephant gift exchange.

Please bring a holiday treat to share for dessert.

Cost: $21/person (High School graduates and older).

Please register by Sunday, December 4th at

woodburycommunitychurch.com/events.

For more information, contact Jim Nygren at skygren@comcast.net.

WCC Events & Info

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

Special Events

FALL HIGHLIGHTS

For more information:

wccmn.org/ministries/students

Contact Youth Pastor, Darrin Geier: students@wccmn.org

FIFTH WEDNESDAY This is the first of two “5th Wednesdays” this school year, and we’re planning something awesome! Stay tuned as we reveal more details soon!

Nov 30

THANKSGIVING MEAL SERVICE PROJECT This favorite event is back! Sixth through twelfth graders and their families are invited to join us as we help pack thanksgiving meals at the Christian Cupboard Food Shelf. Watch for a sign up soon.

Nov 19 / 8:30-10am

PLANET WISDOM / DEC 2-3 Middle and high school students, you’re encouraged to join us for this conference which empowers teens on their journey toward becoming thinking, growing, authentic followers of Jesus Christ in today’s world.

Sign up coming soon! For now, save the dates! The conference will be Friday evening through Saturday late afternoon.

This Year's Pumpkin Patch Fundraiser was another big success! We made great connections with members of our community and we sold all 1000 pumpkins totaling over $12,500 in sales! Our share of the profits will be just over $4000! Thanks to the 54 volunteers who put in hours of time on this project! You're so appreciated!

PUMPKIN PATCH REPORT

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

SLUMBER PARTY MOVIE NIGHT

FALL EVENTS

wccmn.org/ministries/children Contact Children’s Ministry Director, Liz Nelson: enelson@woodburycommunitychurch.com

Children’s Ministry

Check out the church website, woodburycommunitychurch.com or Children’s Ministry bulletin board. Still can’t find what you’re looking for or have questions? Email Miss Liz.

LOOKING FOR EVENT INFO?

Kids, wear your favorite pajamas and bring along a pillow, blanket, and your favorite stuffed animal for a Slumber Party Movie Night! Zootopia and Toy Story will be showing and popcorn will be served. Sign-up today at woodburycommunitychurch.com/events.

Parents, enjoy a date night, go Christmas shopping, or just enjoy a peaceful night at home!

November 18 / 6-9 pm

What an awesome first month of Awana! We have 25 kids coming! They are learning the Bible through memory verses and engaging in Bible lessons all led by a great team of volunteers. Upcoming events include Missions Night and Art Night. Still want to join? We’d love to have you!!

Wednesday / 6:30-8pm / WCC

AWANA UPDATE

Rehearsals begin November 5 and will be each Saturday until the program (No rehearsal Nov. 26). Sign your child up online today (woodburycommunitychurch.com/events) and request what kind of part your child would like. A complete schedule will be sent to you after signing up.

Saturdays, Nov. 5-Dec. 17 / 9:30-11:30am

CHILDREN’S CHRISTMAS PROGRAM PRACTICE

MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Our annual Children’s Christmas Program will be held on Sunday, December 18th at 6:00 pm. Be sure to mark your calendars. The children will be presenting “Are You Coming?”. Don’t forget to invited your family and friends.

December 18 / 6pm / WCC Sanctuary

WOODBURY COMMUNITY CHURCH / November 2016 NEWSLETTER

* Communion

SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1 6:00 Men’s Bible Study Panera Bread, Wdby. 9:30 Romans2 Study 6:30 Women’s Meetup 6:30 Small Group at Faessler’s Home

2 9:00 Homeschool Grp. 6:30 Awana 6:30 Student Ministry Large Grp/Central Park

3

4

5 7:00 Men’s Bible Study 9:30 Christmas Pgm. Practice

6 9:00 Service*, ABF, Student Class 10:30 Service*, ABF Sunday School 7:00 Men’s Gathering/ Women’s Connection

7 8:45 Moms In Prayer 12:30 Distribution Day Oak Ridge

8 6:00 Men’s Bible Study Panera Bread, Wdby. 9:30 Romans2 Study 6:30 Small Group at Faessler’s Home 6:30 MissionTeam Mtg 7:30 SEMS Meeting

9 6:30 Awana 6:30 Student Ministry Small Groups

10

11

12 7:00 Men’s Bible Study 9:30 Christmas Pgm. Practice

13 9:00 Service, ABF, Student Class 10:30 Service, ABF Sunday School

14 8:45 Moms In Prayer 10:00 NorthstarPastors

15 6:00 Men’s Bible Study Panera Bread, Wdby. 9:30 Romans2 Study 10:00 Staff Meeting 6:30 Women’s Meetup 6:30 Small Group at Faessler’s Home

16 9:00 Homeschool Grp. 6:30 Awana 6:30 Student Ministry Large Grp/WCC

17 9:00 Moms Club So. 6:45 SBYC Info Mtg.

18 6:00 BOE Retreat 6:00 Children’s Min. Movie Night

19 7:00 Men’s Bible Study 8:30 BOE Retreat 8:30 Student Ministry Thanksgiving Service Project 9:30 Christmas Pgm. Practice

20 9:00 Service, ABF, Student Class 10:30 Service, ABF Sunday School 3:00 EagleScout Honor D. Carlson

21

22 6:00 Men’s Bible Study Panera Bread, Wdby. 9:30 Romans2 Study 10:00 Staff Meeting 6:30 Small Group at Faessler’s Home

23

24 Church Office Closed

25 Church Office Closed

26 7:00 Men’s Bible Study

27 9:00 Service, ABF, Student Class 10:30 Service, ABF Sunday School

28

29 6:00 Men’s Bible Study Panera Bread, Wdby. 10:00 Staff Meeting 2:00 Bingo -Oak Ridge 6:30 Small Group at Faessler’s Home

30 9:00 Homeschool Grp. 6:30 Awana 6:30 Student Ministry Special Event

1st Advent Sunday