Pastoral note, from Garrett

August is flying by, and September will be a busy month at Woodland. Today at our Business Meeting, we reviewed some of the upcoming events.

One unique offering this September is the 2nd annual Festival of Faiths. The Festival is September 14 at the University of the Incarnate Word. “FoF” is coordinated by the Interfaith San Antonio Alliance. ISAA is an interfaith group I have been a part of since its founding in 2017. The first Festival in 2024 was attended by over 700 people (on a rainy, cold day). Over 40 different faiths will be represented at this year’s festival. It’s a great time to connect with people of goodwill throughout the city. 

The following Sunday (September 21), Greg Garrett will be with us. He will preach in both services and teach Sunday School in Maresh Hall. 

The Sunday after that is the Church Retreat. So, that means it’s time to sign up for the Church Retreat. Our block of rooms is filling up, but we have a few spaces left. Would you rather just come for the day? You can do that too. 

We continue to have a lot of guests on Sunday mornings. I’ve been surprised by how many come to the 9 a.m. service. Last Sunday, half of the people at the service were first-time or returning guests. Part of the reason for this proportion was that we had a deacons meeting at noon, and so most of that group attended the late service. 

This is one of the reasons we no longer hold congregational meetings at noon. At today’s business meeting, we had 14 people on ZOOM and 13 people in person. 

Perhaps we might try a business meeting on a Wednesday night before choir. I’d rather avoid having the meetings during the Sunday School hour. What happens in Sunday School is important. We’ll continue to make adjustments to maximize what we have available during the renovation.

The church office will be closed on Monday, September 1, in observance of Labor Day.
Grace and peace, 

Garrett Vickrey