First Congregational Church of Woodstock, CT

06/10/2026

“Gratitude is helping me remember God”. Hear FCCW member, Christina Manilow’s thoughts on Hope

06/08/2026

❤️🌈❤️

❤️ "No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here."
❤️ We are only a week into Pride Month and already we have experienced a significant uptick in hateful comments. This month (and beyond) is about celebrating God's love and inclusion in all of its forms.
❤️ So, we feel called to remind our communities of our commitment to keep our spaces safe, loving and respectful, not just during Pride month, but always.

06/07/2026

Peace be with you,

This Sunday we continue our Whole Life Worship series with a simple, life‑changing question: How do we see the ordinary as holy?

Last week we explored worship as a posture of the heart — a quiet turning that helps us pay attention to God’s presence in the moment. This week we’ll go further: we’ll ask how seeing our whole lives as places of worship changes the way we see everything — even the ups, the downs, and the valley places of our ordinary days.

We’ll listen to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:1–6) and Paul’s image of treasure in clay jars (2 Corinthians 4:7–18), and we’ll practice a simple, daily way to open our eyes to the sparks of God around us.

If you missed last Sunday’s message, you can watch it on our page, website, or YouTube channel. I’ve been moved by the messages people have shared this week about how that sermon has touched them — and I hope this next conversation will be just as encouraging.

Come. Worship. See.

Rev Kev

06/02/2026

Happy Pride Month!

05/31/2026

Peace be with you,

Friends, most of us live in a swirl of tasks, conversations, errands, and responsibilities. Life feels busy, scattered, ordinary. And for many of us, worship feels like something that happens apart from all that — something reserved for Sunday.

But Brother Lawrence, a humble monk who found God in the kitchen, once said, “We can do little things for God; I turn the cake that is frying on the pan for love of Him.”

What if everything we did, every word we spoke, and every way we treated others were seen as a way of expressing our gratitude and love for the God who loves us?

What if we could experience God’s presence in the small things — the things we barely notice?

This Sunday we begin a new series called Whole Life Worship. This journey is deeply inspired by the work of Sam and Sara Hargreaves, the directors of Engage Worship, who spend their lives resourcing local communities for creative, sustainable, and world-changing worship. Together, we are going to explore how to discover the sacred woven through our routines, our work, our conversations, and our care for one another.

I hope you’ll join us.

In Christ,
Rev Kev

05/28/2026

What is the Houses of Hope? Watch the full documentary on our website. Firstchurchwoodstock.org

05/24/2026

This Sunday we celebrate Pentecost; the coming of the Holy Spirit to the early church. The story is filled with wonder, awe, and mystery.

And it holds a powerful, often overlooked truth that is good news for all of us today. Resurrection didn't stop with Jesus—it is multiplied into and through us in the here and now!

If you have been longing for a faith that feels active, urgent, and deeply relevant to the world we live in, you won't want to miss this service.

05/21/2026

The World Needs More Hope 🦋