NEW TO CHURCH

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Help! I'm not used to Church and I'm a little nervous.

Don’t worry, you’re not alone. We understand Church may seem foreign and different at first.

When you arrive, we’ll do our best to warmly welcome you. If you can, tell the person who greets you that it’s your first visit. Then take a seat and let us do the rest.

We usually sing songs, read the Bible, listen to a talk (we call them ‘sermons’) and we pray (talk to God). Don’t do anything that you’re not comfortable doing. We do encourage you to listen, and ask questions.

You can let us know you’re coming or you can just show up. We’re so glad you want to visit us!

How long does Church go for?

Our services run for approximately 60-80 minutes and they are often followed by a morning tea.  Everyone is welcome to stay and chat over a cuppa.

I have children, what's available for my kids during Church?

Children are important and we want them to know Jesus just as much as we want you to know Jesus. Children are very welcome in all of our services and we’ll do our best to engage them.

During the 10.00am service at St John’s (in school term periods) we run a great program for children. Please see our Home page for more details.

You’re welcome to accompany your children to the kid’s program, meet the leaders, and help them get settled. If your child doesn’t want to attend kid’s church then that’s ok – they’re welcome to stay with you in our main Church service.

All our leaders (including volunteers) have completed a Safe Ministry training course, agreed to abide by the Code of Conduct – Faithfulness in Service and provided a NSW Working With Children Check.

What should I wear?

We’re quite a casual bunch and few get ‘dressed up’ to attend our regular Church services. Many of us wear shorts or jeans and thongs. Others prefer to wear a dress or a good shirt. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in (and note that our older church buildings can be rather cold in winter so you may need an extra layer or two).

Do I need to give money?

No, we definitely don’t expect you to give us any money.  For more information on the ways to support this Church, please see Give page.

Where do I park at St John's Wilberforce?

At St John’s we have plenty of parking in both our car park and on Macquarie Road.

If attending something that’s on in our Church Hall, we suggest you park in our car park which is behind the Hall. Access to the car park is from Old Sackville Road – next to the historic cemetery.

If attending something that’s on in our Historic Church then we suggest you park on Macquarie Road as it’s closest.

I don't drive, can you help me get to Church?

Yes, we’d love to help you get to any one of our Church services.  Please contact the Church Office and we’ll happily arrange some transport for you.

What if I'm not a Christian / Anglican / baptised / middle class etc?

We won’t tell if you don’t laughing!

Seriously, we’re a Church made up of people from all different backgrounds, faith-traditions and ideologies. We strongly encourage you to explore the claims of Jesus and the Bible in our safe and supportive environment. We love challenging topics, difficult questions and meaty discussions. God is patient, and we’d love to be on this journey called ‘life’ with you.

ARE YOU NEW TO OUR CHURCH?

If you’ve recently been to one of our events or Church services then we’d love to get to know you better!  Please complete the Contact Form to provide us with your details and, if requested, someone from our Church will get in contact with you.

You may also complete the Contact Form to be added to the Church database or to start receiving the regular Church newsletter via email.