Church Profile
Who we are.
We exist to gather, grow, and go to see Jesus transform lives.
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We believe in the necessity of the physical gathering of believers. We can make the decision to follow Jesus for ourselves, but we cannot live out his teachings and commands by ourselves.
Sunday morning gatherings are an expression of prioritizing: community with other believers, growth in our knowledge and understanding of the Scriptures, utilizing the gifts and resources God has given us to benefit the church through serving, and acknowledging that we can do more for the Kingdom of God together than we ever could apart.
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“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:24-24
“For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” Matthew 18:20
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Whether you are curious about Jesus, new to faith, questioning your faith, or have been walking with God for decades, you are welcome at Woodland exactly as you are!
We also believe that faith in Jesus leads to GROWTH! Woodland Church is committed to not only spreading the good news of Jesus Christ, but also providing the tools and examples necessary for personal growth in faith and Biblical literacy.
One way we prioritize growth is through Small Groups.
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“…for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” Hebrews 5:13-14
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Believers in Jesus are commanded to GO into the world and make disciples in his name! Faith in Jesus begins in our hearts, but ultimately compels us to GO!
GOING at Woodland is demonstrated through expressions of local & global missions & outreach initiatives!
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“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20
Accountability
Woodland Church is an elder governed, staff led congregation that strives to equip God’s people for meaningful ministry. We are a congregation within the Great Lakes Region of the Wesleyan Church, and our pastors are licensed/ordained under their spiritual authority. Additionally, Woodland Church undergoes a full financial review by an independent CPA firm at the close of each fiscal year.
Statement of Faith
The sole basis of our belief is the Bible.
We believe that all people are infinitely valuable because all people are made in the image of a loving God.
We believe that there is one living, true, holy God, eternally existent in the Holy Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe that Jesus was miraculously conceived, born of a virgin, and sinless in life.
We believe that Jesus was fully human and fully God, walked our earth, lived a life of obedience, suffered at the hands of humanity, and died on the cross.
We believe Jesus fully atoned for the sins of all, was bodily resurrected and enthroned at God’s right hand as our intercessor.
We believe that salvation is wholly a work of God’s free grace, received by repentance and faith.
We believe each person can be made new in Christ by the Holy Spirit and thereafter continuously grow in the knowledge of God.
We believe that the Bible is the divinely inspired guide to intimacy with God and faithful living.
A Holy Spirit Led Church
At Woodland Church we respect the dynamic nature of the Holy Spirit. Though we adhere to a blend of modern song selection and visual display, we are careful not to ignore His promptings and encourage sensitivity to His presence throughout each service. Our greatest hope is that we would facilitate a moment, through spoken word or song, in which the Holy Spirit could freely move. And it is with this posture that we lead and practice worship.
We are 1 Church in 2 Locations
Woodland is a multi-campus church with physical campuses in both Battle Creek, MI & Marshall, MI!
While members of one body, each of our campuses reflect the unique community they minister to.
Located at 14425 Helmer Rd. S, the Battle Creek Campus is situated right off of I-94 in Battle Creek, MI (population 52,335).
Weekly Attendance Adults: 550
Weekly Attendance Kids: 120
Weekly Attendance Students: 52
Weekly Online Attendance: 90 Households
The Battle Creek Campus
Located at 15510 A Dr N and led by Campus Pastor, Devon Shephard, the Marshall Campus is situated in the tight-knit, historical community of Marshall, MI (population 6,780).
Weekly Attendance Adults: 260
Weekly Attendance Kids: 45
Weekly Attendance Students: 10
The Marshall Campus
Ministries of Woodland
Woodland Kids (0-Grade 5)
Woodland Church understands that children are the future of the Church and world. Children are capable of hearing and responding to the Gospel of Christ in a powerful and tangible way. We believe that home discipleship, in partnership with the local church, plays a huge role in building a lasting foundation of faith. Woodland Kids ministry is offered every Sunday morning at the 10:45AM service at our Battle Creek Campus and at both services at our Marshall Campus.
Water Baptism
Woodland prioritizes celebrating the public declaration of faith through water baptism! Once a month we hold a baptism class to walk through the Scriptural call we have to baptism. Once a congregant completes the class, they are able to take part in our in-service baptisms and share their personal testimony of faith with the church body.
Student Ministry (Grades 5-12)
Woodland believes that the middle school and high school years are crucial years in determining the trajectory of one’s adult life and faith journey! In a confusing culture, we commit to providing a safe environment for students to explore faith and learn Biblical truths. Our Student Ministry at Woodland is split up into Middle School & High School Ministries. Our 6-8th graders meet every Wednesday Night at 6PM, and our High schoolers meet every Sunday night at 6PM.
Local + Global Outreach
Believers in Jesus are commanded to GO into the world and make disciples in his name! Faith in Jesus begins in our hearts, but ultimately compels us to GO!
GOING at Woodland is demonstrated through expressions of local & global missions & outreach initiatives!
Legacy Fellowship Senior Ministry
Every age group has a critical role in the life of the Church, especially the mature saints! The Legacy Fellowship Group hosts several events and small groups per year specifically for our Woodland Seniors. We are passionate about bridging the gap between generations and aim to be a place where young and old benefit from the lived knowledge and experiences of one another.
Small Groups
Woodland offers spring and fall semesters of small groups, as well as various classes, for the purpose of community, Biblical study, and personal growth. While we make personal decisions for Christ, the Christian life is not a solo sport. Woodland Groups are a practical way to prioritize the discipline of Biblical community.
Our Team
Our Team
The Woodland staff team consists of a total of 19 part time and full time members that serve between our two campuses. The Battle Creek Campus houses our central office and is where the majority of Woodland’s administrative and organizational operations take place.
Gathering Ministries: $707,327
Growing Ministries: $737,582
Going Ministries: $748,979
Total: 2,193,888
Annual Budget 2023-2024
Finances
Where We Started
120+ Years of Ministry
First Location
For over 120 years Woodland Church has ministered to the Battle Creek Community. Woodland began as a prayer group led by Rev. George Kulp in 1898, which met at at home that stood on the location of the original Horrock’s Market in downtown Battle Creek. The church was officially founded in 1899, with Rev. George Kulp as the very first pastor. In 1968, we became known as First Wesleyan Church. The name was changed to Woodland Church in 2019. There have been 4 physical locations for the church, as we have expanded and grown. We moved into our current location, the Battle Creek Campus, in the early 1980’s.
Fun Fact: Our early congregants rented space from a Lutheran Church for $12.50 per month until 1903 when the congregation agreed it was time to move to a space of their own. A lot was purchased for $1,980, after which the congregation raised $2,583 cash towards building costs for our first location. Among the contributions were three gold watches and five wedding rings!
Community Bus Ministry
The church has benefited from visionary pastoral leadership over the years. The body at Woodland has always been outreach oriented, fulfilling Christ’s command to go into all the world and make disciples by equipping the body for acts of service. One of our mottos in the 1980’s was:
“Bring them in, Sit them Down, Build them up, Send them out.”
Woodland has done this in a variety of ways over the years and has never shied away from trying new things. With our ever-changing world, we have used radio ministry, bus ministry (pictured above), sports ministry, Christmas baskets, a living Christmas tree, drama productions, hosted a preschool, food pantries and the like to reach the lost, and meet needs in our community.
Woodland Church has been blessed with the opportunity to see generational transformation throughout our 120+ years of ministry. Our history has been marked by sacrifices, celebrations, challenges, victories, and heartache, but its people have remained focused and motivated by the call God has placed on us all to “go and make disciples…” (Matthew 28:19-20).
With the help of the Holy Spirit, one transformed life has the ability to transform a family, a community, and even our world! At Woodland, our mission is to point people not to the power of the four walls of the church, but to the life-transforming power of the Gospel and person of Jesus Christ!
It’s never too late to begin your story with Jesus.
Where We’re Going
About This Section
The contents of this section would be implemented over a period of several years.
There is no expectation or intention that all of this would be accomplished in the first year or two. Part of the strategy will be to create a staging of implementation.
Woodland Church is a body that’s focused on pleasing God.
It’s a ministry to the Southwest Michigan area that is having an impact in the forceful advancement of Christ’s Kingdom. We are hearing stories and seeing lives that are being transformed by Jesus Christ working through the ministries of Woodland Church. These stories are being expressed through our culture, outreach, worship, kids and students, discipleship, care ministry, and leadership development.
Christ is the head of the Church. When it comes to the mission of the Church, following His mandate and call is the highest priority.
We are committed to multiplication in a variety of expressions. We are committed to building relationships and teamwork among campuses.
We are committed to reaching lost people for Christ.
We have a leadership development/mentorship pipeline, championed by the Lead Pastor, that pours into existing and new leaders on staff, the board, the congregation, and throughout all of our ministries.
We are a church that represents the Southwest Michigan area demographically (This represents ethnicity, socio-economic levels, age, etc.)
We are committed to intergenerational ministry throughout the church.
We prioritize obedience to the Holy Spirit, embracing risk, guided by accountability, without fear of negative consequences.
We are a church that consistently evaluates everything and are willing to make strategic changes in response to that evaluation, even hard changes, to be in alignment with the mission.
We are a church of innovation.
We are committed to making disciples who make disciples who are continuously being formed into the image of Christ.
We strive to live out the Gospel in our communities throughout the week. We are the Church, and we exist to reach the world.
Our church engages in wise financial stewardship both personally and corporately.
Culture of the Church
Ministry Guages
These gauges are important to consider when evaluating our effectiveness and stewardship of the ministries we lead.
Family Focused
Engagement
Prayer
Leadership Health & Development
Spiritual Discipleship & Biblical Literacy
Mission & Outreach
Outreach & Engagement
Outreach & Engagement
We are committed to grow our local, regional, and global impact through partnerships with compassion organizations including Global Partners.
We will continue to explore additional campuses as the Lord opens up opportunities in addition to our already existing Marshall campus.
Our facilities are strategically utilized by the local community to impact and reach Calhoun County.
We identify, equip, and mobilize “marketplace ministers” into the communities and region we impact. This means that the people in the congregation see themselves as ministers in their sphere of influence in their homes, neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces.
We identify felt needs and recovery needs in the community and respond appropriately, cooperating with other organizations in alignment with our mission.
Worship
Worship
Worship services are engaging and Holy Spirit-filled. The presence of God is life-changing and palpable.
We are a church that unapologetically preaches Jesus Christ and holistic Biblical truth.
We frequently celebrate baptisms, stories of life transformation, and regularly see people make commitments to follow Jesus Christ.
We create worship experiences that welcome all and eliminate distractions.
The primary purpose of the worship gatherings is to put the work of God on display and give Him glory. In doing so we facilitate a space where non-believers can be drawn into His presence and discipleship can begin to take root in believers.
The creative use of worship arts is regularly expressed in our worship gatherings resulting in meaningful worship for multiple generations.
We use well-executed production, technology, and online ministry to assist us in effectively worshipping God regardless of location.
Kids Ministry
Kids Ministry
Our kids’ ministry is effective at engaging with children so that, parents have to come because their kids can’t stay away.
We have created an environment that is safe and secure and gives parents confidence when they drop their kids off.
We are committed to developing a culture where parents will be equipped to disciple their own children and lead them to Christ.
Volunteer teachers, leaders, and apprentices are passionately serving because they sense God’s call to make an eternal difference in kids’ lives and they are personally growing in their own walk with Christ.
New leaders are always being recruited and developed.
Kids are accepting Christ regularly.
Kids are telling their friends about Jesus and about Woodland Church.
Kids worship services are engaging and Holy Spirit-filled. Kids are intentionally being taught how to read the Bible, understand it, and apply it to their lives.
Kids are seeing prayer modeled by the children’s ministry leaders and are learning to pray confidently themselves.
We are committed to developing a discipleship ministry for the most committed kids that takes them to the next level.
We are committed to seeing all of the kids’ rooms in use for ministry and seeing the total property fully stewarded to grow kids in their faith.
The program infrastructure of kids’ ministry is attractive and working well.
Kids’ ministry events are calendared for an entire year at a time with reasonable flexibility and are effectively communicated to the entire congregation.
Student Ministry
Student Ministry
Students are grounded and have ownership of their faith and feel confident to share it with their friends.
We regularly see students accepting Christ.
Students are motivated to invite their friends to attend Woodland Church in Battle Creek, at the Marshall Campus student ministries, as well as in other communities where we may launch campuses in the future.
We are committed to developing a culture where parents are equipped to disciple their own students and to partner with the student ministry leaders to send students into their next season of life well.
Biblical literacy is growing for teenagers. Middle school students know how to feed themselves spiritually. They know Jesus and how to interact with Him personally.
Our student ministry is highly focused toward being a place where everyone is welcomed, is a place where students feel safe to ask questions, confront non-biblical worldviews, and are equipped to Biblically respond to those views when on their own.
Student worship services are engaging and Holy Spirit-filled. The presence of God is life-changing and palpable.
Students are actively involved in serving in the local church.
The program infrastructure of student ministry is attractive and working well.
Student ministry events are calendared for an entire year at a time with reasonable flexibility and are effectively communicated to the entire congregation.
Young Adult ministry is thriving and draws many students from Student Ministry as well as from our local young adult subculture. They are connecting with what life is like with other adult Christians. This demographic, 18-28 year olds, are engaging their friends and impacting the local social culture. A full team of leaders and mentors pours into them and builds relationships as they grow in spiritual and human maturity.
Discipleship Ministry
Discipleship Ministry
People are being equipped and are living with a “sent” mindset and see themselves as ministers in their sphere of influence.
We have many people going deep in their faith, deepening passion, mentoring and discipling others to multiply themselves. We are disciples who are making disciples who are making disciples.
People are learning what their gifts are and are serving in areas that match those gifts. They are being equipped in and living in their gifting in the church and in their everyday life, 24/7.
There is a strong community within the Body of Christ at Woodland Church and is shown through groups and relationships resulting in 75 % of the adults being in small groups that are functioning effectively and being led by called, trained, and equipped leaders.
We are faithfully equipping the saints to do the work of the ministry. No ministry area is lacking passionate volunteers. We are continually looking to develop new volunteer ministry opportunities that are aligned with the giftings of the people in our body.
Care Ministry
Care Ministry
The people of the church know they are loved, valued, and are cared for in practical expressions of meeting their needs and fully supporting them.
We have a team of experienced volunteers and leaders who are ready to help with practical needs like small home repairs, moving, winterizing, and spiritual encouragement.
We have a well-led and fully developed benevolence ministry that includes financial counseling and a clear evangelism strategy with follow-up and connection to discipleship.
We have a dynamic hospitality team that creates an environment where everyone feels welcomed regardless of their background. People who walk in with reservations or barriers quickly drop them and are able to fully experience the presence of God.
We have an active prayer ministry that ministers to the people and moves the hand of God.
People are freed from spiritual bondage weekly through inner healing ministry.
We effectively care for those who are in a place of need, (physically, spiritually, relationally, etc.) and require the ministry and help of others.
Leadership Development
Leadership Development
The Lead Pastor models leader development and has a passion for the Woodland Church Leadership Pipeline that all staff and elder board members are engaged in. This is a pipeline that will build leaders for the future both inside and outside of Woodland Church.
We are committed to monthly and quarterly intentional leadership training, equipping, and development with staff, the board, and identified leaders and future leaders in every area of ministry.
We are committed to grow as leaders and to invest in the growth of leaders around us.
We are committed to identifying potential leaders and giving them space to learn, try things, take risks, and help them identify the calling God has for them either inside the church, outside the church, or both.
Woodland Church’s ministry influence is always expanding locally, regionally, and globally as more leaders increase our Kingdom capacity.
Woodland Church invites other churches into our leadership development strategy to assist them in increasing their ministry capacity. This is especially true in the Great Lakes Region churches.
Strong leaders are drawn to Woodland Church to participate in residency and intern opportunities.
There is demonstrated trust and relationship within the congregation, board, and staff, as well as in the local towns and the region. We have created a system that facilitates and ensures healthy working relationships between the Lead Pastor, the board and the staff.