SOLID TRUTH IN POWERFUL MELODIES

Steve Woods is a Christian songwriter now based in Capernwray Bible School in Moss Vale, New South Wales, Australia. He’s been the Dean of Students and Music Director there for over ten years. His passion is to invest all that God gives him into the lives of the next generation. He thrives on leading people into the presence of God through worship and music that promotes the solid truth about who Jesus Christ is.

Graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London, Steve has been trained to lead worship in London, Hong Kong and here in Australia. His love for Jesus and music is second nature to him, so when talented musicians cross his paths, he seizes every opportunity to train and impart onto them to be effective both musically and spiritually.

Steve got together with his old pal, Glenn Capelli, with the intention of writing songs. The first opportunity came in January 2011 when Glenn sent Steve some lyrics for the anthem song of the RUOK DAY movement. The song was arranged and recorded with the help of Andy Green and Christopher Norton, who produce Steve’s Christian songs.

The second opportunity came in response to the floods in Australia and earthquake in New Zealand. The song ‘Together’ was written and produced by the same team with Australia’s Denis Walter singing the vocals. The song is available on iTunes and all proceeds from the sales will go to the Salvation Army Flood Appeal.

Steve and Glenn are currently working on ‘the Aussie Musical’ Together.

For further information on Steve Woods music or to purchase songs and sheet music, please click here.

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Much of the action for our mission trip to Hong Kong takes place before we even go! Training begins as soon as the team is chosen. It’s all about being ready to serve in a foreign culture, with a foreign language and with a whole new way of doing things. We pray a lot, do some fund-raising, and even eat Chinese food – that covers the basics of eating with chopsticks and even promotes speaking in Cantonese!

Overall, our hearts are prepared to go to give – our love, our time, and our talents. The greatest complement I can receive about the team is that people saw Jesus in us and that was very touchingly said, even giving details of how we often took so much care in the details of how we served. A large part of that credit goes to the way our school trains the students to live together in community.

So here’s an overview of the things we got involved with during our two weeks with St Stephen’s Society, which ministers to the poor and especially drug addicts. First up, we had the honour of going to the Factory where Jackie Pullinger holds her Sunday Celebration, where about 400 people gather to enjoy great fellowship, worship and God’s word. We loved the LIFE in that place and the many testimonies of people introducing Jesus to so many different people groups – all desperate for new life found only in Jesus.

Most of our days where spent in New Man House, which is a community of about 200 people situated at Shatin on the side of a mountain. The buildings consist of accommodation, a school, a pool, a gym, a sports hall, and many apartments for people to live to share their lives with the poor. The atmosphere is that of a very loving community, with kids freely running around and people worshipping God – and that’s what Jackie has always sought – the Kingdom of God here on earth.

We did everything together from singing to cleaning, from playing sport to painting walls and in the process we grew to love the guys and they us. We spoilt them on Easter Sunday by cooking a special chocolate cake (we multiplied the recipe by 25) and served it with ice cream and coke. Then the night before we left we spoilt them again with ‘Western Food Night’ in which we cooked a massive amount of Spaghetti Bolognese and served it with garlic bread and of course, followed it with ice cream and coke! Over 140 of the community simply loved it!

It was interesting that one of the guys said how impressed he was when he saw Seth preparing the tables and stick a piece of cardboard under one of the wobbly ones – they could see how much we loved and cared for them.

Brianna also spent some time in the Girls’ House and did a night duty there. Some of the Westerners find this difficult but Brianna took it all in her stride.

The guys went on an outreach to one of the poorer areas in Hong Kong – Regan prayed for one of the grannies who was collecting enough cardboard from the streets as a means of providing cash for a meal. She said that the pain in her back disappeared. God is so good!

For me, one of the highlights was the team dynamic – in being covered in prayer and united in love we were able to have the best time serving God and having fun – even enjoying a few visits to Starbucks!!
All in all an amazing time of ministering under God’s grace and sharing His love to build others and yet at the end realizing that we had grown so much by giving so much. I was very proud of the team and sad to say goodbye to all our new found friends in Hong Kong.

A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL OUR SUPPORTERS WHO PRAYED FOR US DURING OUR TIME AWAY – WE COULD NOT HAVE SEEN SO MUCH OF GOD WORKING IN AND THROUGH US WITHOUT YOU!

WOODSEY, BRIANNA, REGAN AND SETH

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In early 2009 I was not happy in my job and was praying to that God would show me where he wanted me to be. I had thought about maybe taking some time out and going to Bible School but did not do much about it. In the March of that year we had a group of students from Capernwray Hall that came to work within the church. One of the these students shared his testimony about how he felt that he had to come to Capernwray to leave his comfort zone and how God had provided all that he needed. At that point I found God speaking to me about leaving my comfort zone. This happened on 2 further occasions during that week.

A couple of weeks after I went up to Capernwray to say goodbye to those students, while I was there a staff member came up to and said that He was told to talk to me about Capernwray Australia (I had never met this person before). However I knew that God was telling me that this is where I should go.

I loved my time at Capernwray and would say it was a great year to grow in my relationship with God and learn to fully rely on God for everything and to see how He provided all that I needed. I am also grateful for all the lifelong friendships that I made during my time at Capernwray. Looking back now one of the funniest moments was when Sheree and myself got locked out of the Salvation Army where we were staying one night on Prac week for 2 1/2 hours!

My time at Capernwray has equipped me with the skills to write a Bible study and given me the confidence to lead small group Bible studies.

I would say to anyone that is thinking about going to Bible school Do it! It was best decision I’ve ever made.

This post is property of Capernwray Torchbearers Australia. Please share via the social networking buttons below. Please find info on enrollment at www.torchbearers.com.au

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Before attending Bible School my spiritual state was bland. I did not have a zest or drive for Christ. I fully believed in him and worshipped him through church and Bible studies, but I was not taking my own personal time with him and worshipping him everyday. I decided to go to Capernwray because I was tired of my spiritual state and I wanted to make my faith my own. I also wanted to travel and see a new part of God’s amazing world!

I chose Capernwray Torchbearers Australia Bible School specifically because my cousin had attended the year before. She returned with nothing but amazing stories and a passion for God.

I have so many great memories of my time at Bible School. One that comes to my mind first was our mission trip to Hong Kong. What an incredible time! I saw God’s hand at work daily while I was there. He was constantly healing people, leading people to Christ and blessing the work that we were doing. I remember getting lost in the big city of Hong Kong with a friend! We were attempting to take the transit system without really knowing what we were doing.

The friendships I made at Capernwray are some of the most important friendships I have to this day! I met people from all over the world, and 5 years later I still call them my closest friends.

Bible School prepared me to go out into my community and make my faith my own. It gave me confidence and drive to put my faith to the test and become fully involved in my church. I have seen the importance of being God’s hand and feet in my community and being an active participant in my church. It prepared me to be a leader and a faithful follower of Christ.

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Before attending Capernwray Torchbearers Australia Bible School, I was very much a loner. I had christian friends, but I never knew how to truly trust and open up to anyone. I came from a divorced home with an alcoholic father. My upbringing gave me a negative view of fatherhood and I never really grasped what it meant to maintain healthy relationships. I attended church from the time I was a teenager, but I understood more about participating in christian activities than how to live for Christ.

I came to Capernwray Torchbearers Australia Bible School for many reasons. My want to travel and experience a bit of adventure got me there, but the real reason for coming was to further my relationship with Jesus. I knew I had to devote myself.

The first few weeks of school I did what was natural, I kept to myself. It really wasn’t until the first ‘quiet day’ (10 hours of campus-wide quiet time) that I really started to open up to God. It was such an amazing day just spent in adoration of God and His word. In the rest of my time spent in the following two semesters–with the help of the great staff and the biblical truth I constantly got from the lectures–I grew more and more to see God as my heavenly father, forgive my earthly father, and to see Christ’s life (Col. 1:27) as my identity.

I know if I had not taken the time to invest in my relationship with Jesus I could’ve never become the father and husband I am today. I am married to a beautiful woman who loves Jesus and we have a very handsome five month old boy. I know that God is calling people continually to seek Him deeper and enrich their faith in a real, and practical way. I hope whomever reads this will find that enrichment in the same way I did.

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In less that two weeks I will take a team of three to Hong Kong to serve the poor in St Stephen’s Society headed by Jackie Pullinger.  We have been busily training up for the trip and are just completing our final fund-raising events.  We are extremely pleased to say that each of us has met our $2,000 target and all the monies that come in now will all go to worthy causes once we are there.

Last week we gave our students breakfast in bed – fresh fruit salad topped by vanilla yogurt, with hot cross buns and orange juice – and they paid $10 for the privilege, except for those who wanted to go all the way and pay $50 for kangaroo steak ‘n eggs!

We loved the whole process of shopping, preparing, serving and clearing up!  As a team it brought out the very best in us and gave us a huge boost!  We were thrilled to raise over $300.

Here are some pictures to describe the fun times – enjoy!!!

If you would like to get out and go on a mission, come to our school, get built up and we’ll send you out!

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

STEVE aka WOODSEY

Dean of Students

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Hi! My name is Sarah King, I’m from Western Australia and I attended Capernwray Torchbearers Australia in 2006.

I had just recommitted my life to Christ and I wanted to get away from worldly distractions so that God could work in my life, and prepare me to be the best woman I could be… a woman of God. I knew that if I stayed at home I would slip into my old habits so I asked my brother-in-law, who was a former student, about Capernwray. There were so many things stopping me from going, but I figured if God could make a way for me to get there then I would get there!!

I could go on and on about all the wonderful memories I made, but the most memorable experience would have to be prac week!! Being able to put everything that we had been learning into practice (ministering to the homeless and listening to their stories was amazing). Oh, and another thing. On our first quiet day (one day each semester that is 8 hours of campus wide quiet time), I had so many questions for God. I was writing them all down in my journal…. I pretty much was writing all day. At the end of that day I was reading through all my questions… and all the answers were written under them!!! Its amazing that God could use my hand to write down his answers!

Capernwray helped me become a Godly woman, one that is confident in my own skin, and helped me realise the gift that God has given me, the gift of loving others. I may not have a position in the church specifically … but I have a role in the church. a very important role of being there for those in need, and showing compassion.

This post is property of Capernwray Torchbearers Australia. Please feel free to use the social media links at the bottom of this post to share.

If you are a former student and would like to share your testimony, please click here.

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Well, the time came for our trip to Hillsong. Almost everyone of our students came along. The excitement was intense!

As the same for any road trip (be it only a few hours) there is heaps of fun in the in the actual journey – getting to know everyone so much better and of course the communal singing! So we were running pretty high before we even entered Hillsong. Then we were there in the Hills with the sound of music! Great worship, followed by Ben Houston delivering a relevant and inspired message about not losing our focus on our walk with God.

Then we were all invited to join them for supper (amazing) and then on to Mackers for a treat – or for some of our students – a touch with reality!!! Then more singing and home – what a way to spend a Saturday evening!

Don’t know what you do in your spare time, but for us at full-time Bible school, weekends are a blast hanging out with each other and making the very most of what Australia has to offer. Why not come and join in with what Jesus is doing the in the lives of our students?Come for a Taste and See! Apply online – just follow the links.

Look forward to seeing you here.

STEVE aka WOODSEY

Dean of Students

This post is property of Capernwray Torchbearers Australia Bible School. Please feel free to share this post on any social networking platform.

For any questions on enrollment please visit the official school site here.

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Every other week our family groups (a small number of students and staff ) meet to have some fun. This allows us to bond, be real, grow together, share great experiences together and in the process learn or have confirmed what it is to be loved and to love in the small tight knit group of a family – just the way God intended.

In the book of Titus, chapter one, God establishes the principle that He seeks leaders who have learnt how to be responsible in leading their families to then go on to lead people. Families are a great way to learn godly principles through the good times and also through the tough times.

Here at the school, where we live in community, we embrace transparency in our relationships – we learn from each other. We all need godly examples to learn and grow from. Who is your godly example in your life? Why not consider coming to Bible School to learn from a wonderful staff who know God’s love and have a gift to share it along with their gifts to encourage the next generation to grow.

Enjoy the pix!

STEVE aka WOODS

This post is property of Capernwray Torchbearers Australia Bible School. Please feel free to share this post on any social networking platform.

For any questions on enrollment please visit the official school site here.

Dean of Students

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