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Sunday morning worship services are at 9:00 and 10:45. (Nursery is available for both services and air conditioning is provided in the summer.)
Worship should be a family experience, and at The Fellowship we believe it’s important for children to be in the service to learn to enjoy worship with good manners. However, we do offer some alternatives, including Nursery and Sunday School. You may like trying different worship styles, in much the same way that some people like different styles of art or music. Or you may be looking for just one style—because it’s similar to what you grew up with or because it’s associated with some special experience. If you have never worshipped with us at the Fellowship, may we invite you to step out and try something new? No, there’s nothing especially extraordinary or shocking about our worship services, but many have found it rather unique in its warmth and participation.
The reason behind this is our Elders, the laymen who lead our church. From the beginning of The Fellowship, a different elder has planned and led the worship each Sunday. This goes far beyond picking out three hymn numbers just five minutes before the service.
There are also many creative ways the elders find to encourage active congregational participation and interaction. There’s a sense of freedom and heart involvement in the service. There’s also a variety of musical styles from week to week, including traditional hymns, praise and worship songs, and some classical. Most of us like this variety. It reminds us of the rich variety of the body of Christ itself. Won’t you come and join us for worship this Sunday?
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Worship
is human response called forth by the grace and splendor of God. Worship
is an art, with as much rich variety in its practice as there are
different worshipping groups. Whether with full orchestra and stained
glass, or with harmonica and campfire, the important thing is meeting
with God in ways that authentically celebrate His greatness.
The
familiar elements of prayer, music, Scripture, offering, and communion
are all there, as well as the occasional drama, testimony, or other
interactive elements. But one unique feature at The Fellowship is
that the service changes from one Sunday to the next. There is no
predictable order, so that one could go through the service with eyes
(and mind?) closed. This keeps us on our toes, alert, fully engaged
in the act of worship.
Each
elder will spend hours planning for his Sunday, deciding on music,
prayers, and various elements that, step by step, build our gathered
worship around a particular theme. The order, the elements included,
and the whole tone varies from Sunday to Sunday. One Sunday may be
more meditative, helping us to center on the Person of our Lord. Another
may be “buoyant celebration” of His goodness or His victory. The services
vary as widely as the personalities and pilgrimages of the different
elders, and the more so as God is leading our whole church on a pilgrimage
of certain experiences or lessons.