Walk Thru Bethlehem - help is still needed!

Our annual Christmas gift to Nashville is only two weeks away on Sunday, Dec. 14. We have plenty of opportunities to bring this immersive event to first-time visitors and returning friends and family. Families have made Walk Thru Bethlehem a family tradition for decades.

We still need plenty of help! Sign up and volunteer now! Below are the important needs we still have:

• Roman soldiers
• Rabbis at the synagogue
• Parking

Click the button below to sign up!

Costumes need to be picked up as soon as possible. The costume room will not be serving needs on the day of Walk Thru Bethlehem.

Costume pickup is significantly behind! We need everyone to make plans for costume pickup on one of these dates:

• Wednesday, Dec. 3 — 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM
• Sunday, Dec. 7 — 9:00 AM to 12:15 PM
• Saturday, Dec. 13 — 9:00 AM to 12:00 noon

Christmas Eve schedule

• 2 PM - Napkin Nativity service (younger children) in the sanctuary

• 3 PM - Napkin Nativity service (younger children) in the sanctuary

• 5 PM - Children (older children) & youth service in the sanctuary

• 5 PM - Contemporary service in the chapel

• 7 PM - Traditional service in the sanctuary

• 9 PM - Traditional service in the sanctuary

Enneagram presentation & Midweek Worship tomorrow, Dec. 3

December's Midweek Worship will feature a special presentation by Enneagram expert Hunter Mobley called “The Enneagram, Christmas, and Managing Stress” at 6:15 PM following a 5:30 PM dinner in the gym.

This is a full-band, casual service meant to give you a midweek uplift and reset. Come for some encouragement, music, and fellowship! Click the button below to RSVP for dinner.

The Christmas season is now in full swing. We will experience some special Christmas music this Sunday with the choir and orchestra and Walk Thru Bethlehem is coming on Dec. 14. 

I have always loved Christmas. I love the parties, the lights, the trees, the wreaths, the music, and everything that comes with this wonderful time of year. Our family always watches Home Alone 1 & 2, Cousin Eddie making his surprise appearance in Christmas Vacation, Elf, A Christmas Story, and all the other classic movies. I believe that Christmas is a time for us to reflect upon our lives and everything that has happened over the past year, the good, the bad, the joyous times, the sad times. How we’ve grown. Who we’ve lost. What has always remained true is that at Christmas, we all experience a very wide range of emotions. We get to connect with family and friends. We get to remember those who have moved on from this world. We get to think back to Christmases past where we grew up, where life was different, kids were little, and the world didn’t seem quite so crazy and chaotic.

The truth is, many of us live our lives the exact same way that we go through the Christmas season – very busy, very tired, stressed out, rushing around, distracted, in a hurry, not slowing down, not being quiet, and then suddenly, we miss it. We turn around and we have missed it! Children have grown up and moved away. They’ve married and started their own families. Grandchildren are born. Parents have aged and perhaps even passed on. Relationships have drifted apart. Friendships have shifted. Christmas is always a reminder that life is full of change, and it presses forward whether we want it to or not. So if you’re not careful, you might miss it. But one truth remains. Whatever emotions you are experiencing this Christmas, whatever has happened this year for good or bad, it is still possible to find joy. 

Joy will always be different from happiness. We all want to be happy, but nobody is happy all the time. Joy is much deeper, more meaningful, and it resonates in the depths of our soul. Joy involves the acceptance of life the way it is, flaws, disappointments, and all. And joy can come when we least expect it. There are many things that try to stand in the way of joy – stress, worry, pain, fear, envy, anger, selfishness, loneliness, addiction. But these are simply human realities, obstacles that we must face and overcome. We should learn to find joy in the ordinary, basic things. Stanley Hauerwas articulates it well in The Peaceable Kingdom, “The most remarkable aspect of learning to live joyfully is that we learn to see the simple and most common aspects of our existence, such as our friends, our spouses, our children, as sheer gifts to which we have no right but who are nonetheless present to us.” Joy and inner peace go hand in hand. Nobody ever said that finding joy is easy. But in a world of constant noise, breaking news, never-ending distractions, anger, and discontentment, we need to experience something different. Jesus Christ brings us that joy! 

The classic carol says, “A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices.” Yes, it’s a weary world, but we stand ready to rejoice. It’s still not too late to find joy this Christmas. It will only come when you are fully present with the people that you love and when you open your heart fully to the mystery and presence of God.

Make your "Generations of Faith" pledge

If you haven't already, it's not too late to make your pledge to our "Generations of Faith" capital campaign! Simply click the button below.

Leadership nominations begin today

This year, we will be nominating:

• 1 Board Chair-Elect
• 3 At-Large Board Members
• 7 Elders
• 35 Deacons

Nominations are accepted through Jan. 31, 2026, and the committee will meet in February.

Our 2026 Nominating Committee is:

Alissa Mansfield (chair)

Kempton Presley

Ragan Graves (deacon)

Damon Bowers (deacon)

Mary Graf (deacon)

Cathy Johnson (elder)

Kirtley Whittington (elder)

John Stauffer

Chad Greer

Questions to consider for potential leaders are:

1. Are they regularly present in worship?
2. Are they growing deeper as disciples of Jesus?
3. Do they have a servant's heart?
4. Do they put the church and others first?
5. Can they help lead Woodmont into the future?
6. Are they positive, encouraging, and willing to grow?

Hanging of the Greens

Sunday, Nov. 30

Pick up your Advent poinsettias in the Gathering Hall this Sunday, Dec. 7

New this year! Instead of picking up your Advent poinsettias from the sanctuary, we will have them available on a table in the Gathering Hall (the large room beside the sanctuary with the TV that we currently use for overflow seating) on Sunday, Dec. 7, at the earliest.

We had originally arranged for these to be delivered by this past Sunday, Nov. 30, but unfortunately have received word that there is a delay.

The sanctuary will be adorned with artificial poinsettias to keep everything looking great all through Advent! All live memorial poinsettias will be available in the Gathering Hall.

This Sunday, Dec. 7: Week 2 of Advent

“Finding Peace in an Age of Chaos” • Clay Stauffer • Isaiah 11:1-6 & Matthew 2:1-12

Our schedule for this Sunday is:

• 8:00 AM – Full breakfast in the gym
• 9:30 AM – Informal service in the sanctuary
• 9:30 AM – Middle school service in the youth lounge
• 9:40 AM – The Bridge service in the chapel
• 11:00 AM – Traditional service in the sanctuary
• 4:00 PM – Youth Christmas party at youth group

New! 8:30 AM adult & children's Sunday School hour

Continental Breakfast with bagels and muffins will be offered starting at 8:00 AM in Drowota Hall followed by our 8:30 AM Sunday School classes. Grab some breakfast and join a class!

A Place for Peace — Room 100 — No required reading or homework.. Currently focusing intentions on Advent with readings from the book, The Lives We Actually Have by Kate Bowler. For more information, contact Alex Scarbrough Fisher - alex.scarbrough@gmail.com (Alex's email was misspelled in previous editions of the newsletter - please reach out again if you have tried and not heard from her!)

The Gathering Class — The Boardroom — Currently studying the Gospel of Luke and following a study guide by N.T. Wright to grow our understanding of the text and share meaningful conversation. For more information, contact Carey Whitworth at carey.whitworth@gmail.com and Grant Mullins at gcmull@gmail.com

If you are interested in your child attending the 8:30 AM Sunday School program, please click here to fill out our registration form.

Thank you, Woodmont!

Many thanks to the 83 Woodmont members who offered gifts to 35 Fannie Battle families, including 114 children, parents, and caregivers this Christmas!

Thank you to the 13 volunteers who helped us load the U-Haul at church yesterday and deliver to Fannie Battle! Fannie Battle Executive Director, Kristie Ryan, joined us for a prayer led by Jay and a picture.

"Inviting Peace" - this Wednesday at The Center for Hope & Healing

You are invited to join for this week’s Midweek Reset centered on peace! Mary Clare Pyron will lead a Sound Healing session from 9:30 AM to 10:30 AM at Campbell West. The last time the group had Sound Healing it was a little tight in their space, so please let Vicki Askew know if you will be there at vaskew@woodmontcc.org and she will get make sure there is a room that works.

When Vicki gets a headcount, she will let you know where the session will be! As always, there will be coffee, conversation, and a time to connect with new and old friends. There is no registration fee required.

Prison Ministry meets Sunday

Our newly-formed Prison Ministry meets this Sunday, Dec. 7, at 8:15 AM in Room 232.

Youth Cake Wars

Sunday, Nov. 23

Church calendar

For a full list of everything happening at Woodmont, click the button below to view our church calendar.