What You Can Expect When You Visit Our Worship Service

If you have not worshipped with a Church of Christ before, or with the Mount Vernon Church of Christ in particular, here is some information to familiarize you with our Sunday worship service.

The Singing
You will notice that our worship in song is without instrumental accompaniment - or "A Capella" format. We believe that a cappella congregational singing both enhances our personal involvement in the worship, and conforms to the New Testament example of the early church in the Bible. In fact. the word "a cappella" literally means "in the manner of the church". Most visitors are surprised to hear such inspiring and awesome congregational singing.

Prayer
During each service, there will be multiple prayers lifted to God. One man will lead the prayer while the rest of us silently and collectively pray together. The purpose of each prayer will be different depending upon the part of worship we are in, but every prayer is directed to God the father in the name of His son, Jesus Christ.

Communion (The Lord's Supper)
We observe (and also celebrate) Communion (The Lord's Supper) every Sunday. Jesus established this practice of sharing the bread and the cup so Christians might remember weekly the sacrifice of his body and blood to make a new covenant with God possible for us. The church in the Bible observed this communion on the first day of every week (Sunday) - so we do the same. We leave to each person the decision to participate in the Supper. Individual communion cups are available at the entry doors.

The Offering
While not part of the Lord's Supper, we provide an opportunity to make an offering. This is how our members make their weekly contributions in support of our ministries. Occasionally, we will also take a collection for special needs in our community or worldwide. It is important to us that guests know that this is for our members to support the work here at Mount Vernon and our missions abroad. As our guest, you are welcome, but not expected, to make a donation. The collection box is located near the auditorium doors.

The Sermon
The sermon is when the "good news" of God's love and Jesus' redemptive life is proclaimed and applied to our lives today. We hope you will find it encouraging, relevant, and Bible-based. At the close of most sermons, our minister will offer the invitation of Jesus and respond to anyone's personal needs—a prayer concern, the desire to be baptized, an intention to recommit one's life to the Lord, or other spiritual needs.

Leadership of the Service
Leadership in worship is not limited to those formally recognized as Ministers and Elders. You will see many Christian men in the congregation leading in worship and everyone from all walks of life participating in vibrant worship, singing, scripture, and prayer. We are concerned to include all members in our worship in biblical, orderly, and meaningful ways.