Sunday Mornings for Our Children and Youth

Details

Category: Youth Education & Worship

We are happy to welcome you to Horizon on Sunday morning! Our Sunday Services begin at 10:30 AM and last roughly until 12:00 PM.

Upon entering, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask one of our helpful Greeters. The Greeters can be recognized by the yellow “Greeter” line on their name tags. If these informative people cannot answer your question, they can direct you to the appropriate person.

Our Nursery and Pre-School open at 10:20 AM. Children in these age groups (any age up to 4 years) can proceed to their classrooms at this time.

In addition to the Nursery and Pre-School, children in grades six through 12 proceed directly to class. The begin time for these classes is also at 10:20 AM. Please do not leave children in any room unattended, however. If a Youth Advisor is not in the room ready to greet the children, please wait to say goodbye until one or more of the adults in the classroom is present and ready.

At 10:30 AM, you will hear a gong. This instrument welcomes everyone who is not already in class into the sanctuary. At this time, worship will begin. Children in Kindergarten through Fifth Grades are invited to worship with their parents for the first 20 minutes of the service. This portion traditionally includes the welcoming hymn, welcome and announcements, the opening hymn, the Call to Worship, the lighting of the Chalice, the saying of our Affirmation, and the singing of our Doxology.

During the second verse of the Doxology (the verse in Spanish), the children in the sanctuary are welcome to the front of the stage to participate in the Conversation with the Children. This part of the service usually includes a short story followed by a sharing time for the children.

After the Conversation with the Children, all of the children in the sanctuary (those who participated and those who did not) are all 'sung out' to their classes. The congregation will sing a song, and the children will exit through the side door to their Religious Education classes. The Director of Religious Education is usually standing at this door to welcome the children to RE for that day and assure that each child is ready to go to class and arrives safely at the correct classroom.

When the service is over, parents are encouraged to greet their children in their rooms no later than 10 minutes after the service has been let out. Children and adults alike are then invited to join us for coffee and conversation in the foyer or to attend the After Church Lunch Bunch, which gathers in the apex of the foyer after church.

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Of course, children are invited to participate in service in its entirety at any time. At Horizon, we welcome and encourage children to worship with their parents, regardless of age, at any time.

If you have a very young child or a newborn, please feel free to use the tables and chairs in the Fellowship Hall during service if you need special time with your baby. You will be able to see and hear the service from this perspective. If you need extra privacy, please feel free to use the office of the Director of Religious Education. It is furnished with chairs for your comfort. For changing needs, the nursery houses a changing table and disposal unit. While you will not be able to see the service from these rooms, please feel free to pick up one of the portable hearing devices located in the back of the sanctuary. These packs and headsets can broadcast the service to any room in the building.

Horizon and its Religious Education Program welcome your family and its specific needs. If we can make you more comfortable or be in any way more helpful, please feel free to contact the staff. We are happy to make sure your family feels at home here!