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What can I expect on Sunday morning?
No matter what worship service you attend, you can first expect warm, welcoming people. Some churches can feel intimidating, but we make a conscious effort to avoid that here at First Baptist. But besides this, what you can expect to see and hear depends on which worship service you attend:
11:00 a.m. Traditional Worship. This service is the largest of the 3. Average attendance is between 225-250. When you come in, you will be greeted and handed a bulletin that has the order of the service for that morning as well as announcements, the weekly calendar, etc. Before the service starts, 2 large projection screens at the front loop through all the important announcements and events of the coming weeks, and there is usually some sort of live gathering music being played. One of the pastors will start the service with a welcome. Then there is a prelude (usually on the organ) to give everyone a chance to focus on God. We usually sing an opening hymn. On the 2nd Sunday of every month, there is a special time for the children with one of the pastors. There will be a few prayers, 1 or 2 more hymns, a time to take up the offering, and sometimes some other special music. The chancel choir usually sings at least one piece. A passage from the Bible will be read, and one of the pastors will give the morning sermon (often, it will be Dr. Joe Kutter, the senior pastor). If it is the 1st Sunday of the month, we will celebrate “communion,” or the Lord’s Supper. The way we normally do this is have 8 pre-chosen servers pass plates down the rows with the bread and juice, and the pastors will speak a few words. We sing a closing hymn at the end which is a time for people to come forward if they wish to join the church.
8:30 a.m. Traditional Worship. Our early service is small and averages about 25-30 people. Everyone sits in the back half of the sanctuary to avoid making it feel too spread out or empty. The 8:30 and 11:00 services are essentially identical. The 2 major differences are that the 8:30 service is much smaller, and it usually does not feature the chancel choir and other elements.
9:45 a.m. ConneXion Gathering. This is our new alternative worship service. It is held in the chapel and is very different from the traditional service. The setting is smaller and, to some, more relaxing. This service uses contemporary music with a band, videos, skits, art, and other creative elements. In this service, we try to make worship much more participatory.
Rock the Light @ Starlight Theatre