When visiting a church for the first time, it can be difficult to know where to go and what to do. Some people may avoid visiting a church because they are afraid of doing the wrong thing. We hope this page will assist you as you visit our church for the first time.
Arrival
When you arrive at Bethlehem, the sanctuary is the largest building facing the street. This is where Sunday morning worship service is held as well as Wednesday evening services. If you are attending a function that is in the Family Life Center, it is the large metal building behind the church. The church office is the red brick building with a flag across the street.
Parking
We have plenty of parking. There are several parking spaces along the side of the sanctuary and there is additional parking in back and west side near the cemetery. We have a few handicap parking spaces in front of the sanctuary as well as a covered drop off area in front of the building.
Entering the Building
We recommend that you enter through our main entry when visiting a worship service for the first time. This entry is the two wooden doors in front of the sanctuary. There will usually be someone waiting to welcome you to our church and will be able to answer any questions that you may have. The weekly bulletin will be available just inside the front door. First time visitors may fill out the tear off portion of the bulletin and drop it one of our offering boxes. Our staff will collect these afterwards so they may contact you and answer any questions that you may have.
Sunday School
Our Sunday school classes begin at 10:00 am. and we have classes available for all ages. The Adult Sunday school classes are scattered throughout. Two are located in the FLC and two are located in the main building. 5th -12th grade classes are in the Family Life Center and the 4th grade & under are in our main building. Don’t be afraid to ask someone to direct you to the correct class.
Worship Service
Our Sunday morning worship services begin 11:00 am. A nursery is available for children up to 2 yrs old and is located to the right, up the ramp and the 1st door to your right. One of the greeters will be more than happy to show you where to go. Children’s church is available for kids 3 yrs old through the 4th grade. Preschool Children’s church starts at 11. Preschool is will be in the Family Life Center; K-3rd grade meet in the sanctuary for the song service then are dismissed to their classes which meet in the fellowship hall. After service, you will need to go pick up your children from their classes.
Our worship service meets in the sanctuary. You may sit anywhere. Our worship services are best classified as blended, so you may hear many different styles of music, from traditional hymns to contemporary songs. We do not ask that our visitors give for the expenses of our church, but we would like to know more about you, so we ask that you place the visitors information portion in one of our two offering boxes. Offering boxes are located in the sanctuary foyer on the side of the info desk and there is one on the wall to right front of the sanctuary entrance.
You can expect to hear a sermon from the Word of God following the song service. If you have a personal Bible you will probably want to bring it to follow along. We also have Bibles available in the pews. Following the sermon we normally have an invitation and then a prayer is said at the end of the service.
Leaving the Building
You may find that people are slow to leave after services. Many people stand around to visit one another and our pastor likes to stand at the door to shake everyone’s hand as they leave.
How We Dress
We have no dress code and we don’t turn people away based on how they are dressed. Many of our people like to wear their best clothes on Sunday morning, but there are very few who wear suits. Sunday evening is more relaxed and Wednesday evening is even more so. At any of our services you will find people wearing jeans, but a smaller percentage does so on Sunday morning.
God looks at our hearts – not our clothes, but our hearts should respect Him.