New Series – “Under Construction: Becoming More Like Jesus”

by Clay Stauffer

August 18, 2026

This Sunday, August 23rd, will be Homecoming Sunday at Woodmont, where we will kick off our fall programming and promote our children up to their next grade. We will also have our Blessing of the Backpacks for Fall Hamilton Elementary, our partner school, and welcome the Nashville Pipes and Drums to worship. I will begin a brand-new sermon series called “UNDER CONSTRUCTION: Becoming More Like Jesus.” We will be studying the Gospel of Matthew, which is the very first book of the New Testament. Matthew is an incredible gospel often referred to as a teaching gospel. It is very helpful for Christian formation and for understanding the life and teachings of Jesus; it also contains the Sermon on the Mount.

If you haven’t noticed, our church is now under major construction on the west side.

We have knocked down the old parsonage and have started building a brand-new, state-of-the-art Family Life Center that will have a Connection Café, new classrooms, a youth center, a beautiful outdoor courtyard, and a new multi-use gymnasium. On top of this, we will gain about 70 net parking spaces and a new exit onto Valley Brook Rd. We have needed this space for many years. It is very exciting to see it emerge from the ground. Thank you to everybody who is making it happen.

In this new series, I will make the case that just as our church is now under construction, as Christians, so too are our lives. Following Jesus, being a disciple, going deeper, and growing spiritually means admitting that we are all works in progress. We don’t have it all figured out. We all struggle. We fall short. We mess up. We miss the mark. But we get up, and we keep trying to do better every day. There are no perfect people here. At Woodmont, everybody is welcome because nobody is perfect! The best part about the Christian community is that we do this together. We don’t do it alone. We support each other. We encourage each other. We pick each other up when we fall. Christianity is a faith done in community.

I encourage you to begin reading Matthew’s gospel on your own. I will also recommend a great book that came out a few years ago titled “Practicing the Way” by John Mark Comer. It is one of the best contemporary books on how to dive deeper into becoming a follower of Jesus.