Hi there and welcome
We appreciate that walking into a new building or trying to make contact with a bunch of people whom you don’t know can be a little unnerving, so we hope the following information and observations might help to make you feel more at home.
Firstly, while our service starts at 10.00am, please don’t worry if you’re running a bit late. We recognise that life can get in the way of our best-laid plans and sometimes the clock goes quicker than we do. Just come on in whatever the time. It’s good to see you!
We meet at the Ladygrove Community Centre which is attached to All Saints’ School in Tamar Way (OX11 7QL) very close to the mini roundabout at the junction with Trent Road. If you’re coming by car, there are plenty of parking spaces within the grounds. The entrance to the building is under the first canopy you’ll come to.
If you arrive before 10.00am and can hear music and singing, don’t worry – you’re not late. Our music group likes to play a few ‘warm-ups’ before the service officially starts.
There’ll be a person standing behind a desk ready to welcome you and give you a Bible, the weekly newsletter and a welcome leaflet. You won’t need a hymn- or service-book as the liturgy and lyrics are displayed on a projector screen.
The service takes place in the school hall. Set-up can vary considerably. Sometimes we will face one way; sometimes another, and sometimes we will be in a horseshoe or sat around tables. Similarly the format of the service will can be very different depending on the theme for the week. What we can guarantee is next week won’t be like this week.
Our sung worship is led by a music group, usually of keyboard and guitars. We use a mix of old and new hymns though it would be fair to say that anything before the turn of the century is regarded by some as “traditional”.
Recognising that we learn in different ways, we use a variety of approaches – video clips, discussions, crafts and multi-sensory activities as well as traditional readings and sermon.
At present we do not have separate children’s groups, remaining together throughout our worship and learning from one another, whatever our age and experience. We are hopefully working towards Paul’s challenge: “When you gather for worship, each one of you be prepared with something that will be useful for all: Sing a hymn, teach a lesson, tell a story, lead a prayer, provide an insight” (1 Corinthians 14:26, The Message).
Services last about 1½ hours but don’t feel embarrassed if you need to leave early. Feel free to go. We do understand, honest.
After the service, light refreshments are served in the community hall to give us a chance to catch up with one another. Meanwhile there will be two people remaining in the school hall ready to pray for anyone who asks.
That in a nutshell is a Sunday. On the second and fifth Sunday we include the celebrating of Communion in the service and on the third Sunday we have a shared meal at about 12.30pm, which anyone is very welcome to stay for whether they have brought any food with them or not. God always seems to provide enough.
As we don’t have a building, most of our activities during the happen in peoples’ homes. You can get an idea of what else we get up to by looking around this website.