This Sunday

As United Methodists, we believe Holy Communion is our most direct means of receiving God's grace. This sacrament points to the past by reminding us of Christ's sacrifice for us, and it points to the future by symbolizing the heavenly feast Christ has prepared for us in eternal life. We also believe Christ is truly present in the meal - the Holy Spirit imparts Christ's real presence into what we partake. 

At Faith, we usually celebrate Holy Communion on the first Sunday of every month, plus on special holy days throughout the year. We celebrate what's known as an open table - all are welcome to take communion, regardless of whether they're members of our congregation or our denomination. We follow the historic Methodist practice of using grape juice instead of wine for Holy Communion so that all people can feel comfortable receiving both elements. We also have gluten free wafers available for those with a gluten intolerance.

Baptism is the ancient ritual of being officially brought into the Church as a believer. While we know that it is our faith in Christ and our connection to God that truly saves us, we believe baptism represents this salvation and changed life. The waters of baptism represent God's power to cleanse us of our sins, and they represent the new birth we have as believers. 

At Faith, we baptize infants, children, and adults, using any of the historic methods - the person being baptized may choose to be immersed, to have water poured over them, or to be sprinkled with water. If an adult wishes to be baptized, they should meet with one of our pastors to discuss the vows they'll be asked to make as they take this important step in their faith journey. If parents wish to have their child baptized, they should also meet with a pastor to discuss the vows they'll be asked to make as they pledge to raise their child up in God's ways.

We believe music is a gift from God, and we celebrate the creativity God has given us by incorporating music into our worship services. Whether it's a contemporary Christian praise song or an ancient hymn, music and singing enhances our worship by allowing us to praise God and hear God's good news proclaimed in a different way.

Growing as a disciple is a fundamental part of Christian worship, and the primary way we're encouraged to grow is by hearing God's word read and by hearing a sermon that proclaims the good news. Our clergy team often group sermons into series that last several weeks, but whether there's a theme or not, they always strive to preach a sermon that faithfully proclaims a message taken from the Scripture passage of the day.

Through prayer, we believe that we have the chance to do several things: ask God to act in our lives and in the world around us, to open ourselves up to God's presence and will, and to spend time quietly contemplating God and God's presence in our lives.  

On a typical Sunday morning, one of the members of our clergy team lead us in a community prayer, speaking on behalf of the congregation and voicing certain concerns and desires. You may either listen and pray along with the pastor, or you can pray on your own silently during this time. At the end of the community prayer, we join our voices together to pray the Lord's Prayer, as we believe there is great value in praying the prayer that Christ taught us. We also join our voices together to collectively affirm our faith using a creed or modern affirmation. These texts may be ancient or new, but they always speak to the core truths of the Christian faith.

Disciples of Jesus Christ pledge to support the Church in a variety of ways, because we know that the Church exists to serve God and spread God's love and light throughout the world. One way we support the Church is through our monetary offerings. Every week, we have a chance to give something back to God. During each service, there will be a time when offering plates are passed through the congregation; you can place cash or checks into them if you so desire. You can also give online by following the link on our GIVING page. There, you'll also find information about how to give via text. 

When you give money to Faith UMC, it goes to support the ministries of this congregation. Some of it also goes to organizations and groups in the broader United Methodist denomination; these entities do wonderful ministry all over the world, and this is the system that allows United Methodist congregations to support this great work. In this way, the money we give is able to have an impact in ways and places we could never achieve as an individual congregation.