Worship in St John's
Worship in St John's ranges in style, content and duration, offering: a 'traditional' Sunday morning service, all-age worship. On Sunday evenings there are more informal services often incorporating a praise band. A short mid-week service complements Sunday worship.
Sunday mornings
This generally takes the form of a 'traditional' service lasting about one hour with praise items taken from the newly revised Church Hymnary (CH4), Songs of God's People and other sources. Preaching incorporates all ages, starting with Kidzone designed to appeal to younger children in the congregation. The main element of preaching is the sermon which can form part of a series based on a particular book of the Bible, a Bible character or other theme of spiritual interest.
Bible readings are normally given by members of the congregation who have volunteered to be part of a rota. Worship may also be enhanced by dramatic items or musical contributions from the organist, Fiona Hobson.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion is celebrated formally four times per year on the first Sunday in March, June, September and December, with more informal communion services taking place at various times through the year. All-age services, which concentrate on involving members of the Youth Church, take place at Easter, Harvest and Christmas times.
There is an opportunity to chat to friends and meet people after worship on Sunday mornings at Time for Fellowship. There is normally a there is Traidcraft Stall, affording the opportunity to buy Fairly Traded goods.
Sunday evenings
An evening service is held, normally on the last Sunday of the month at 7:00 pm, incorporating prayers for healing.
Thursday mornings
This is a short service lasting approximately 20 minutes, starting at 10:30 am. It may appeal to folk who, for some reason, find it difficult to sit through an hour on Sunday, or who otherwise find it convenient to visit the church during the week.
The Thursday morning service is complemented by Kettle's On - starting at 10:00 am, this is an informal gathering where folk can meet over a cup of coffee or tea and have a chat.
