At All Nations, we deliberately have two services on Sundays – a morning service at 10.30am and an afternoon service at 4.30pm. These services aren’t for two different congregations (like a shop, extending its opening hours to get more business!). They are for us as a church to worship God twice together (like a family eating two meals together, rather than one).
Maybe the idea of going to two services on a Sunday is new or a bit unusual to you:
– “Why would I do that?”
– “I’m going to feel tired when I get there”
– “The children won’t be able to cope”
– “I don’t have time for that”
Well, this is why we do it: going to church twice on a Sunday helps us use Sundays in the way God intends, better than one (see Exodus 20:8-11); it helps us maximise the day. As your minister, I am confident that you will grow more spiritually as an individual, as a family, and as a church, if you commit to come to church twice rather than once.
Now, I can sympathise with the second and third reactions above (though, not the fourth). At times, coming to church twice on Sundays can feel inconvenient. It can mean saying “no” to children’s birthday parties. It can mean less free time on Saturdays, because you’re getting your “work” done then. It can require all kinds of readjustments, and children aren’t usually on their best behaviour at 5pm! But when something really matters, we’re happy to put ourselves out and our families out. War forces soldiers to show discipline. The incentive of a gold medal drives Olympic athletes to train hard. The prospect of a good-harvest helps hard-working farmers handle inconvenience (see 2 Tim 2:3-7). Well, we’re living for Christ’s eternal kingdom, aren’t we? What we do with our Sundays is a very practical way of showing what our priority is to a watching world, ourselves, and our children.
I’d love us as a church to get the most we can out of Sundays.
Here’s a link to a helpful article about one lady’s experience of deciding to come to church twice:
http://www.reformation21.org/blog/2017/08/the-blessing-of-sunday-evening.php
