Worship Night June 25

Worship Night is next Tuesday, June 25, at 6:00 PM in the chapel. This is a 30-minute, full-band, casual service meant to give you a midweek uplift and reset. Come for some encouragement, music, and fellowship! Questions? Contact moriah@woodmontcc.org

Summer Gospel Sing-Along

Wednesday is our weekly gospel sing-along at 5:15 PM in Room 105, followed by a potluck supper in Drowota Hall at 6:00 PM. Bring food suitable for potluck sharing!

Due to enhanced preschool security, the west entrance won't be open until after 5:00 PM. If arriving earlier, use the entrance with the small white bridge facing Hillsboro Pike or the side door to Drowota Hall near the kitchen.

New Young Professionals series begins this Sunday

The Young Professionals group is starting a new summer Sunday School series this Sunday, June 23, at 10:45 AM at Campbell West. The series will run for five weeks and is based on Adam Hamilton's book The Walk: Five Essential Practices of the Christian Faith. Questions? Contact moriah@woodmontcc.org

On Sunday, the congregation voted to approve the leadership slate and the proposed 2024-25 operating budget. This new budget reflects a year-over-year growth of 17.7% which is phenomenal! Thank you for making our mission and ministries possible! Please pray for the individuals who have accepted new leadership roles. Installation Sunday will be on June 30 at the 11:00 AM service. 

During the month of June, we are talking about “Authentic Leadership & Character.” Recently, I have had conversations with our staff and elders about John Maxwell’s 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership.  Some of these laws are more relevant to church life than others but I want to share FIVE that I think are very fitting. Think about each of these as they apply to Woodmont and to your own life.

THE LAW OF INFLUENCE

Maxwell’s definition for the Law of Influence is that "The true measure of leadership is influence nothing more, nothing less.” This, of course, is one of John Maxwell’s most famous quotes heard around the world. It’s a great quote, but how often do you take time to ask yourself the big question: "Who are you influencing?" Maybe a bigger question for us to ask is, 'What type of influence are we offering those who follow us?" Insecure leaders often influence people in such a way that it keeps others down in order to protect their own position of leadership in the group. This is a shame. The best leaders realize that leadership is always about raising people up to their highest potential, even if it means they one day become better leaders than themselves.

THE LAW OF ADDITION

The Law of Addition simply says, “Leaders add value by serving others.” Maxwell says that we add value to others when we truly value them and intentionally make ourselves valuable to them. He says, “90 percent of all people who add value to others do so intentionally.” The most helpful way we do this is to actually get to know the people we are leading, find out their priorities, goals, hopes, and dreams, and then figure out what we can do to assist them in getting where they need to go. Maxwell says, “Inexperienced leaders are quick to lead before knowing anything about the people they intend to lead. But mature leaders listen, learn, and then lead.”

THE LAW OF SOLID GROUND

Maxwell defines The Law of Solid Ground by saying, “Trust is the foundation of leadership.” This is perhaps the greatest challenge leaders face in the 21st century. Too many people are disillusioned with leaders because self-serving leaders have too often abused it. Trust, then, is the most important element in leadership. If you do not have trust, you have nothing to offer. Maxwell says that we build trust “by consistently exemplifying competence, connection, and character,” and that we must “treat trust as our most precious asset.” He later writes, “How do leaders earn respect? By making sound decisions, by admitting their mistakes, and by putting what’s best for their followers and the organization ahead of their personal agendas.” This is because, “No leader can break trust with his people and expect to keep influencing them,” and, as we already know, “Leadership is influence, nothing more.”

THE LAW OF CONNECTION

Maxwell summarizes The Law of Connection by saying, “Leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand.” Another way to say this is that people will not follow you until they are emotionally bought into the vision you are casting. There is also some tie-in here with the famous quote, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Maxwell says, “You develop credibility with people when you connect with them and show that you genuinely care and want to help them.” To truly connect with people you have to value them, learn about them, and then adapt to who they are. Do not expect people to change themselves in order to follow you. You must change yourself in order to invite them in.

THE LAW OF BUY-IN

The Law of Buy-In says, “People buy into the leader, then the vision.” Maxwell writes, “Many people who approach the area of vision in leadership have it all backward. They believe that if the cause is good enough, people will automatically buy into it and follow. But that’s not how leadership really works. People don’t at first follow worthy causes. They follow worthy leaders who promote causes they can believe in.” If we roll this back to the law of the picture, this means that if your credibility as a leader is questionable at best, you are not going to have people willing to follow the vision you are casting because they doubt you can get them there.

We are blessed with many great leaders here at Woodmont, staff and lay. May we continue to harness that energy, passion, and enthusiasm as we look ahead to the future!

Blessings,

Youth Light Up Music City

June 10-14

Light Up Music City group at the National Museum of African American Music

CYF at Old School Farm for Light Up Music City, June 10-14

This Sunday, June 23

"Lead Through Your Life!”

Rev. Jay Hutchens

2 Timothy 2:1-7 & Philippians 3:12-16

"Authentic Leadership & Character" series

Our schedule this Sunday is:

• 9:30 AM – Traditional service in the sanctuary with livestream
• 9:40 AM – The Bridge service in the chapel with livestream
• 11:00 AM – Traditional service in the sanctuary with livestream

Welcome, new members!

Holly & Christopher Ing

Mark & Deidre Walsh

Tom & Carey Whitworth

Rob & Chloe Queener

Josh & Ashley Travis

Amanda Eure & Tyler Stamm

Registration links are now live for writing & Enneagram workshops

We're looking forward to hosting both Robin Pippin and Hunter Mobley at summer workshops through the Center for Hope & Healing! Registration links are now live below. Please share with your friends and family and join us at Campbell West for these great opportunities to learn from the masters

• Robin Pippin “Writing as Spiritual Practice” workshop - Tuesday, June 25, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (lunch included) with a $35 fee (scholarships available) limited to 14 participants. Bring a pen and paper - no prior writing experience needed. Click here to register.

• Hunter Mobley “Enneagram 101” - Friday, July 19, 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (dinner & drinks included) with a $40 fee (scholarships available) limited to 25 participants. If there is enough need, childcare will be made available! Click here to register.

We are always answering the big questions in life, even if we aren't necessarily asking them.

This is the big idea behind Life Worth Living by authors Miroslav Volf, Matthew Croasm, and Ryan McAnnaly-Linz. Based on a class the trio has taught at Yale University since 2014 by the same name, the book closely examines some of life's most profound questions, which speak to our desire for meaning and significance. 

The authors write, "There are countless ways to try to express it: What matters most? What is a good life? What is the shape of a flourishing life? What kind of life is worthy of our humanity? What is true life? What is right and true and good?"

Different faith traditions and philosophies have posed various answers to these questions. In the fifth century B.C.E., Siddhartha Gautama discovers the five-fold path of enlightenment, focusing on eliminating suffering. In Islamic tradition, Mohammed receives a series of visions of the oneness of God, who gives order to our existence and moral life. In the 19th century, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche supposed that all human striving is a natural exercise of our "Will to Power."

In our own faith practice, the answer comes to us in a story of the crucified Christ. 

Reflecting on the ultimate questions, the authors believe, is always done best in the company of others. To go it alone leaves us vulnerable. They write, "The Question is too much for each of us to handle on our own. We need friends who will pursue it with us." With input and insight from others, we are protected from fitting our answers to our own unconscious preferences. Community keeps us in healthy check.

The Connection Class will begin reading and discussing Life Worth Living on Sunday, June 30. The class meets from 10:45 AM to 11:30 AM in Room 100, next to the children's area on the ground floor. Coffee (and sometimes Neeley's brownies!) is served! 

We would LOVE for you to join us for this important conversation and, with a community of friends, consider what makes a "Life Worth Living."

Summer Reading List

Recommendations from Woodmont's staff

Clay

• The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt
• Morality by Jonathan Sacks
• Faithful Presence by Bill Haslam
• Doubt by Adam Hamilton
• A Time to Build by Yuval Levin

Roy

• We've Got Issues by Phillip McGraw
• The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt
• America's New Map by Thomas Barnett
• Christ of the Celts by J. Philip Newell

Andra

• Grace Notes: Poems for Families by Naomi Shihab Nye
• Holy Envy by Barbara Brown Taylor 
• This Here Flesh by Cole Arthur Riley
• The Contemplative Heart by James Finley 

Jerry

• The Women by Kristen Hannah
• Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro
• The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
• How to Know a Person by David Brooks

Farrell

• Enchantment, Awakening Wonder in An Anxious Age by Katherine May
• Have A Beautiful Terrible Day by Kate Bowler
• Surrender, 40 Songs, One Story by BONO
• Foster by Claire Keegan
• Upstream by Mary Oliver

Jake

• Practicing the Way by John Mark Comer
• New Seeds of Contemplation by Thomas Merton 
• Healing the Heart of Democracy by Parker Palmer
• Art and Faith by Makoto Fujimura

Jay

• Why The Bible Began: An Alternative History of Scripture and its Origins by Jacob Wright
• Life Worth Living: A Guide to What Matters Most by Miroslav Volf, Matthew Croasmun, and Ryan McAnnally-Linz
• Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany by Donald Miller
• The Fraud by Zadie Smith
• The SBL Study Bible

Richard Speight books available in the Gathering Hall

Richard Speight is a former attorney, writer, and member of Woodmont Christian Church since 1976. He taught the Challenge Class for many years. In the beginning, the class met on the top floor of the mansion, where the Walk Thru Bethlehem costume room is now located. 

Richard’s first book, The Pancake Man & Friends, is dedicated to all of the men and women who ever climbed the stairs to the Challenge Class. He is the author of Desperate Justice, Triple Jeopardy, and of four short story books. He has gifted the church with a great many copies of these short story books. Stop by the Gathering Hall and take a stack of his books as a gift - they are located on a table near the Woodmont bookstore.

WCPS needs a Spanish teacher

Woodmont Christian Preschool is looking for a Spanish Teacher for the 2024-25 school year. If you know of anyone, please contact our preschool director, Martha Duff, at mduff@woodmontcc.org

Church calendar

Sunday, June 23

9:30 AM 21st Century Class, Boardroom

9:30 AM Disciples Class, Room 105

10:45 AM Young Professionals Sunday School, Campbell West

10:45 AM Reflections Class, Room 200

10:45 AM Connection Class, Room 100

11:00 AM Points of View Class, Room 105

3:00 PM Pickleball, Drowota Hall

Monday, June 24

3:00 PM "Geezers" Group, Boardroom

Tuesday, June 25

VBS

6:30 PM Alateen (ages 12-19), South Hall

6:30 PM Parents Al-Anon Group, Room 105

8:00 PM AA Meeting, South Hall 

Wednesday, June 26

VBS

6:00 AM Roy Stauffer’s Men’s Group, Room 105

7:00 AM Clay Stauffer’s Men’s Group, Boardroom

8:00 AM Men’s Bible Study, Room 105

5:15 PM Gospel Sing-Along, Room 105

6:00 PM Potluck Supper, Drowota Hall

6:00 PM DivorceCare, Bay Room

6:15 PM Disciples Women's Bible Study, Room 200

Thursday, June 27

VBS

10:00 AM Sit & Stitch, Gathering Hall

1:00 PM Mahjong Group, Gathering Hall

5:30 PM Handbells Rehearsal, Choir Room

6:30 PM Andra Moran Virtual Vespers, Zoom

6:30 PM Nar-Anon, Room 105

8:00 PM AA Meeting, South Hall 

Friday, June 28

VBS

3:00 PM Pickleball, Drowota Hall

Saturday, June 29

10:00 AM Al-Anon, Drowota Hall