Sunday Services
'Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have the habit of doing. Rather, let us encourage each other' - Hebrews 10. 25Every Sunday we meet together as a Church to worship God, sing praise to Him, hear the Bible read and be taught from it.
We are fortunate to have our two ministers, plus occasional visiting preachers, to preach from God’s Word, helping us apply it to our lives.
On a Sunday morning we also run a Sunday Club for school age children, and a creche for toddlers. Both of these are run by carefully chosen, safeguarding checked, members of our congregation, and the children enjoy suitably themed activities to help them learn more about the Bible.
Sometimes Church services can look confusing, particularly if you’ve never been to one before. Our services are simple, but (we think) very powerful. We have four songs during the service, two of these are hymns or worship songs (gently accompanied by a piano), and two of these are Psalms (sung unaccompanied – just our voices). All of the words appear on a screen, but books for the Psalms are available if you wish. Aside from standing to sing, we remain seated throughout the service. The sermon, which will usually last approximately 30 minutes, is designed to explain and explore the Bible reading that we hear. Nobody will ask you for money, or ask you to speak in public. There are no ‘reserved’ seats in the Church, and you are welcome to sit downstairs in the main body of the church, or sit upstairs in the gallery. After the morning service, teas and coffees are served in the small hall at the back of the church. Everyone is very welcome to stay.
Communion – The Lord’s Supper
Once a month the Church celebrates communion, where we take bread and wine and remember the Lord Jesus’ death and resurrection, doing what He told us to do in the Bible. The Table we gather around is the Lord’s, and doesn’t belong to us, therefore anyone who is a Christian is welcome to take the bread and wine with us.
Around these times the Kirk Session (Elders) are particularly happy to talk to anyone who may wish to become a member here at Dowanvale.
Our usual pattern is to hold Communion services once a month, alternating between the morning and the evening.