Adults

‘Well’ Classes

Each Sunday morning during the fall, winter, and spring, Oakbrook offers “The Well,” an hour in which education and discussion classes are offered for all age groups. In ancient Hebrew culture, the well   was a public meeting place where people shared their lives with each other as they  drew life-giving and life-sustaining fresh water for their families. The ancient well  offers us a powerful metaphor for life, shared community, and by extension, personal growth in knowledge and relationships. We believe that these classes offer us similar things today: the Word (Jesus) and the Water of Life (the Holy Spirit), the opportunity for people to build relationships and share life together, and a cordial and collegial environment to learn and grow in faith.

Class curricula are wide-ranging.  Examples of past studies include:

  • Faith Lessons, a twelve DVD teaching series by Ray Vander Laan
  • Love Dare by Stephen & Alex Kendrick
  • The Invisible War by Chip Ingram
  • Citizens of Two Kingdoms, produced by the Awareness Course
  • Bringing the Kingdom of God into Everyday Life, a soon-to-be published book by Preston Junkin
  • Muslims, Christians, and Jesus by Carl Medearis
  • Speaking of Jesus: The Art of not-Evangelism by Carl Medearis
  • Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus by Ann Spangler and Lois Tverberg
  • Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus by Lois Tverberg 
  • Mere Discipleship: Radical Christianity in a Rebellious World by Lee C. Camp
  • Surprised By Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church by N.T. Wright   
  • Generous Justice by Timothy Keller
  • What’s So Amazing About Grace? by Philip Yancey
  • A Farewell to Mars: An Evangelical Pastor’s Journey Toward the Biblical Gospel of Peace by Brian Zahnd
  • Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God by Dallas Willard
  • Seek Peace and Pursue It, a 10-part course on the follower of Jesus being a peacemaker in the world

 

Home Groups

At Oakbrook we seek to build authentic Christian intimate relationships and one of the ways we do this is through home groups. These groups usually meet every other week to study and seek to know God more, pray and share life together. These groups also periodically engage in outreach together. It is one of the best ways at Oakbrook to grow closer to God and closer to those in our community.

 

Prayer

Oakbrook Church frequently schedules times of corporate prayer for the church body to come together and intercede for each other, our families, our nation, our leaders, and our world. Please check the Oakbrook calendar to find out about upcoming corporate prayer meetings.
 
Oakbrook also has an email prayer chain ministry, so we can lift each other up in prayer as brothers and sisters in Christ. Those who have a prayer request can send an email to prayer@oakbrookchurch.org. That prayer request will then be distributed to members who have chosen to be part of Oakbrook’s prayer chain ministry.
 

A critical need facing the church today is prayer. Jesus is our example and the scriptures point out that He often withdrew to lonely places and prayed (Luke 5:16). One of the greatest requests made in the Word of God can be found in Luke 11:1 where the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. This urgent request was made because their hearts were hungry for the knowledge of God. Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”  R.A. Torrey, an evangelist and Bible scholar, once summed up the importance of prayer by saying “Prayer is the key that unlocks all the storehouse of God’s infinite grace and power. All that God is, and all that God has is at the disposal of prayer.”

The Bible makes it clear in James 4:8 that for God to draw near to us, we have to draw near to Him.  Jeremiah 29:13-14 states, “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the LORD.”  Nothing can be accomplished without prayer first, and we are going after the Heart of God … will you join us?

 

Connected (Young Adult Ministry 18+)

Connected is a place where young adults can fellowship together in a loving Christ-centered environment. Our goal is to build a community where young adults can find support, encouragement, and accountability, and be challenged to grow in Christ and follow his will. We have bible studies throughout the year as well as various activities such as bowling, game night, bagging lunches for the homeless and other social events. We are currently expanding into other outreach programs.

 

Women’s Ministry (Tapestry)

The guideline for all the activities specifically designated for the Women of Oakbrook Church can be summed up in the following Mission Statement:

We are women called to exalt the Lord through worship and prayer, to be equipped through study and discipleship, to encourage each other through our relationships, to seek empowerment by the Holy Spirit, to share our faith, and to extend God’s Kingdom.

The Women’s Ministry at Oakbrook Church is for all women whether they are single, married, divorced, with or without children, retired, professional, widowed or at any stage in life.

Our prayer is that you will be able to participate as often as you are able.

Throughout the year, we plan Bible Studies, Devotional Studies, Dinner Evenings followed by motivational topics and fellowship, Guest Speakers, Day Retreats, Prayer meetings, Book club, and Fun Evenings.

We also plan several events over the summer (nature hikes, picnics, etc.).

We feel it is important to make everyone feel welcomed and comfortable at all our fellowship gatherings and to encourage friendship with one another.

The Women’s Leadership team is comprised of Jenny Hoppel, Irum Le, Lesley Whitney, and Laura Phillips.

You maycContact a leadership team member at: womensinfo@oakbrookchurch.org.

 

Men’s Ministry (Men of Action)

The Oakbrook Men’s Ministry, Men of Action, starts with two premises:

1. Spiritually healthy men are essential to a spiritually healthy church; and
2. There is nothing more exciting, challenging, and fulfilling than walking with God.
 

The Goal of the Men of Action is to encourage one another in practical spirituality in all aspects of our lives: personal, family, work and community. We do this by connecting with God and one another in:

Men’s Meetings. Men getting together in community is essential to our spiritual growth.  To foster “iron sharpening iron” we gather monthly for spiritual growth and fellowship.  Typically this occurs on the second Saturday of the month.   We meet to explore the practical realities of walking out our calling in God, pray for one another, and to break bread together.

Men’s Activities. There is a special relationship that guys develop when we work together or take time to play. This may be a canoe trip down the Shenandoah River, a ball game, or even a work project in the community, at the church, or for someone who needs a little help with something.

Men’s Retreats. There is nothing like getting away from the daily grind for a day or so of refreshment, perspective, and re-centering our lives on the important things. We plan to go deeper with God, have fun, enjoy sports, or a quiet walk in the woods. There is plenty to do and also time to reflect.