People who attend worship at First Christian Church cover a large spectrum of choices of attire: some people come dressed to the nines, cuff-links included. Others come in that comfy hoodie they wear everywhere. And all feel welcome, loved, and accepted as they are.
When you arrive on Sunday morning, you’re invited to enter through the main doors on North St. You’ll enter into the narthex, a fancy word that means something like a lobby. You’ll be greeted by friendly faces who will be ready to assist you in finding your way around. Restrooms are to the right (follow the signs and you’ll find them.)
As you walk through the doors of the sanctuary, you’ll be handed a bulletin with the order of service, weekly prayer requests, and events in the community listed on it. There are no assigned seats: sit where you like.
If you follow along with the service in your bulletin, you should have no problems. In the 8am service all songs will be in the Chalice Hymnal in your pew. During the 10:15 service, some songs will be on the screen and some will be in the hymnal. Don’t worry about if you’re not the best singer…we have lots of those, and you’ll fit in just fine. If you’re more comfortable not singing, feel free to listen to the sounds around you. Music is one of the best ways to connect with God!
We practice an open communion table. That means we don’t have any tests for who can take communion. No one will test your faith, ask you for a specific confession, question you on your worthiness. This is not our table; it’s God’s table. We don’t get to decide who is and isn’t welcome at it.
When the communion trays are passed you are invited to take and eat a wafer (bread in the plastic cups is gluten-free) and take and hold the cup of juice. After everyone has received the cup, the pastor will conclude the words of institution and we will all drink together.
Worship ends with a benediction, followed by singing a song printed in your bulletin. It has been the tradition of First Christians to hold hands with those around you as we sing.
As you exit the sanctuary, feel free to grab a cup of coffee from the station in the narthex and hang out and talk with the pastor and other members.