Midweek Check-in (Dec. 3, 2025)

Good afternoon, church family!

It’s time for a midweek check-in, and I want us to focus on the theme for this season: Hope. In this season of Advent, the first week is all about hope. There may be no more significant difference than the gap between someone who is filled with hope and someone experiencing utter hopelessness.

Like many households, our family has an Advent calendar this time of year. It’s shaped like a house with enough windows and doors to match each day of Advent leading all the way to Christmas Day. So each morning our girls get to open one door and get the surprise waiting behind it (just a small piece of chocolate for each girl).

It’s not the full, present-giving extravaganza of Christmas morning. It’s just a taste of what is to come – a snack before the big feast!

That’s a bit like the hope we have now. We know that the fullness of God’s glory will come when Jesus returns. Until then, we get just a glimpse of the ways heaven breaks in on earth. And the hope we have in Jesus’ return and His promises fulfilled is all the more evident this time of year.

“Now we see a reflection in a mirror; then we will see face-to-face. Now I know partially, but then I will know completely in the same way that I have been completely known. Now faith, hope, and love remain – these three things – and the greatest of these is love.”

-1 Corinthians 13:12-13

My prayer for you today is that you will know Jesus and the promises He has made. And in that knowledge, you will experience the hope of Advent!

Your pastor,

Billy Byler 

CHRISTMAS AT WOODLAND LAKES! Mark your calendars for these festive events and services coming up at the church!

·ANGEL TREE: We had such a great response this past Sunday to our Angel Tree that we ran out of angels! But rest assured – the need is great and more angels will be available this Sunday! Look for a Christmas tree in the lobby with angel ornaments. On each angel is a family who could use a little help this Christmas. If you’re able, pick up an angel and help bless a family in need with a few gifts this Christmas! Please deliver the gifts to the church by Sunday, Dec. 14.

·CHRISTMAS POST OFFICE: Once again the youth will be having their Christmas Post Office Fundraiser this year. Instead of purchasing stamps to mail your Christmas cards to people who are a part of our church, you can simply bring your Christmas cards to the table in the church lobby, and the teens will deliver them for 25 cents each! Drop off your Christmas cards anytime over the next four Sundays to take advantage of this convenient service AND help the youth group raise some funds! Note: we’ll have a list of regular church attenders available at the booth starting this Sunday.

·SONGS OF THE SAVIOR: Join us for our Christmas Worship Service on Sunday, December 14 at 6:30 p.m. for an evening of familiar Christmas songs, worship and communion.

·CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE: Bring the entire family for Christmas Eve at Woodland Lakes, Dec. 24, 6-7 p.m. The candlelight service will include traditional Christmas hymns and a special reading of the Christmas story.

BLOOD DRIVE: We are partnering with Angel Wings Learning Center and the American Red Cross to host a blood drive in January. However, we need to make sure we have enough people willing to donate blood. Potential donors must be at least 17 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds and be in generally good health. We won’t be able to set a date until we know we have enough potential donors, so if you are interested, please sign up on the sheet at the welcome center in the church lobby. Thank you!

JUST FOR FUN: Hey, you read Pastor Billy's midweek check-in all the way to the end! As a reward, check out these crazy stories I came across recently:

·A company in Japan recently introduced a human washing machine. Just climb in, hit a few buttons and you’ll be gently cleansed like a dish in a dishwasher.

·Here’s the study from 2003 in which researches proved that Kansas is, in fact, flatter than a pancake.

·With only 22 days until Christmas, you may not yet have a leash for your chicken. This one is on sale for $16.99 and comes in 10 different colors.