Worship

Worship the Living God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).

Lord's day worship

We seek to worship God as modeled in Scripture, not according to human imagination, custom, creativity, or glamour. This ancient and reverent worship form depends on God’s ordinary methods: preaching, prayer, and the sacraments as effective means by which God conveys grace, strength, truth, love, and eternal life. We extend our hands to invite you to join us.

Prelude

A musical piece planned for reflection and preparation. We recognize that most of us lead very hectic lives. Please calm your heart and be preparing to meet God. Meditation on Scripture or reading over the words of hymns for the service is often helpful.

Call to Worship

The service’s tone begins with Scripture, reminding us of our purpose, which is to meet with the living God to whom our worship is due.

Singing unto the Lord

We welcome you to pray, praise, and witness during our songs. The pastors select hymns or psalms that reinforce the message of the later sermon and also that lift up the Triune God. We use hymns that are time-tested, focused on God, and reverent. Our goal is to bring you into the presence of the exalted God, no less, who joins us in worship.
We conclude our songs by singing “Amen.”

Invocation

A short prayer, inviting and acknowledging God’s presence.

Confession

Often, we use historic confessions or creeds to verbalize our faith publicly and to unite us together. Usually, the pastor will identify the time period or setting of an ancient confession. We also use prayers of confessions with an announcement of pardon from sin — good news for all believers. We invite you to enter sincerely into these opportunities to acknowledge our sinfulness – in thought, word, and deed – and to receive God’s forgiveness through Christ.

Pastoral Prayer

A time to praise, petition, and communicate with God. We often pray for specific needs of our congregation at this time, as well as use words and phrases from the Bible – some of the very best prayers ever.

Choral 

Our choir is placed in the rear loft so that the focus will remain on God’s Word and not on human servants (that is also the reason for the raised, central pulpit). The choir prepares anthems and responses that are to lead us to contemplate and worship God.

Offering

Our church’s work is supported by grateful givers and their tithes, which belong to the Lord (Mal. 3:10).

Scripture Reading

We believe that God’s Word is perfect and cannot fail. Thus, we seek to saturate our worship with as much of God’s Word as possible. Every service of worship will feature many portions of Gods’ Word because it is the bread of life.

Sermon

An explanation of the Bible verses read. Our pastors frequently preach through books of the Bible, trusting God’s Spirit to apply his Word to your hearts. The sermon’s purpose is not so much to entertain as it is to unfold and apply the eternal message of God.

Benediction

(literally, “good word”) is taken from Scripture to give a concluding blessing to the service. While the benediction is pronounced, reverently meditate and rejoice in God’s blessing.

Postlude

Celebratory music played after the service has concluded. During this time, be sure to greet one another and deepen your friendships as an overflow of worship.