Before the service
Church starts at 10:30 sharp, so give yourself plenty of time to travel, park, and find your seat. Dress is at your discretion – some dress up and most are casual.
Our wooded, park-like campus is located on Morris Bridge Road, near where Morris Bridge intersects with Fowler Avenue, just west of I-75. There are actually 2 entrances to our property, one off of Morris bridge and one off of Davis Road.
We have plenty of parking, and even some visitor spots on the left as you pull in from Morris Bridge Road. Handicap parking on a concrete surface is available close to our main church building and close to our multipurpose fellowship building.
Please find your way to the large dome which serves as our sanctuary (you will also spot a smaller white geodesic dome which is our old church building).
There is a story behind the “domes”… ask us why we have these as our worship buildings.
During the service
Once inside the church, you will be welcomed by several members volunteering as greeters or ushers. They will make you a name tag, answer any questions, and provide a contact form. You will also get a paper bulletin, which has our order of service. On the back cover of the bulletin is our Seven Principles and other statements that we follow.
You can sit anywhere, either downstairs or upstairs. Kids and babies can stay with their family. We follow a structured service, but are not super formal. If you need to step out or use the restroom, they are off of the lobby area.
Once seated, you will see the front platform with our Minister, Worship Associate, or perhaps a special speaker. There are 2 big screens that show graphics, slides, videos, and song lyrics. Everything you see and hear, except for the sermon or special talk, has been planned and coordinated by our Worship Committee (volunteers from our membership). Even the Worship Associate is a member volunteer.
Church lasts about 1 hour. During the service, depending on the theme for the specific Sunday, we follow a pattern that usually includes:
- Opening announcements
- Opening hymn (words on the screen)
- Stone ritual – where everyone has the option of going to one of the “Zen” stations where you can take a stone and place it for a joy, sorrow, or intention. Lots of members and visitors will get up to do this each Sunday… a calm ritual with background music.
- Meditation time
- Offering – this is a chance to donate cash or checks that help run the church and/or support non-profit organizations and causes
- Hymns and/or Choir performances are sprinkled thru the services. We have a professional Music Director who plays and directs the music.
- Sermon (or sometimes a talk) – this is often from our Minister, but can also be an outside speaker or even a church member. We have had lost of speakers from around the country share their ideas with us.
- Closing words
- Closing Hymn – which is almost always “Let there be Peace on Earth”. Most people, if they choose, hold each others hands while singing. If you do not want to hold hands, do as you please. It is a very powerful song and many feel one of the best parts of the services.
After the service
After church, take a stroll to the multipurpose building with all the other members and visitors. The structures are connected by a winding sidewalk. The multipurpose building is the only rectangular building, and it houses our fellowship hall, meetings rooms, and kid’s classrooms.
We always have some refreshments and often lunch on special events. It is all free and we hope you come share some good times with all of us.
We were all newcomers at some point, so don’t worry about feeling out of place. We really are a very welcoming church family.