What can I expect when I visit?...

Acts 2:42 kind of summarizes what you can expect when you visit us.  Throw in some contemporary praise and worship music, children's ministries, a lot of smiles, and you've got yourself a TCF worship gathering! 

The atmosphere of our gatherings is casual.  It really is a "come as you are."  This doesn't mean don't dress up, it just means that you should come as you are comfortable.  Some members of our community like to wear suits or dresses, while others like to wear blue jeans and a t-shirt.  Some people like to stand up during worship, while others like to sit and pray.  There's a lot of freedom here!  We celebrate diversity and realize that God made us as unique individuals. 

Our gatherings generally start with a "welcome" from either Pastor Luke or another of our members.  We then like to sing some songs that express our hearts to God.  We like to sing how much we love Him and how great He is in our lives!  After some time of music, we study God's Word together.  We value solid biblical teaching, yet realize that it is important that the Scriptures are understood to be relevant to our lives!  Sometimes we'll end our gathering by praying for each other or thinking about how we can apply what we've studied to our lives.  After that, we like to stay and fellowship together. 

One thing that may seem a little "different" for some people is the musical aspect of our Sunday morning.  First of all, we've got musicians and we like to celebrate our love for God by giving him a "sacrifice of praise" (Heb. 13:15).  Secondly, some people like to stand, others like to sit, and sometimes people might kneel before God.  All of these are biblical ways to worship God, yet sometimes are a little different than what you might have experienced.  It's funny how we'll go to a Packer's game (or a Bears/Vikings game if you are a traitor) and get excited for God, but in church we think we're "crossing the line."  We'll raise our hands for our favorite football star, but we feel uncomfortable to do it for God!  Thankfully, the Scriptures tell us that raising our hands is pleasing to God (cf. Ps. 28:2; 63:4; 119:48; 134:2; Lam. 3:41; 2 Tim. 2:8).  As long as it is in "decency and order" (1 Cor. 14:40), we encourage people to be who they were created to be and to worship God in a way that brings Him glory. 

A distinctive that we hold dear to our hearts is that we value the present day moving of the Holy Spirit.  This means that we do our best, as a community, to be sensitive to what the Lord wants for us when we gather.  Sometimes there may be a special song that is sung by a member and other times someone may share a personal testimony about how God has done something wonderful in their life.  We love it when God interrupts our plans and leads us in a way that may be different than we planned.  We've found that these times of being gathered are often the most effective is drawing us closer to Jesus!

On the third Sunday of the month we celebrate a meal together that helps us stay connected as a community.  It is one of those "bring a dish to pass" type of meals, but don't worry if you forgot that famous casserole of yours - there's plenty of food for everyone! 

If you have any other questions, please feel free to email us or to give us a call at (715) 644-5532.  We'd love to tell you more.  We hope to see you soon!