Today I went to church for the first time...Please read if you go to Church.

I go to a baptist church. I have been a christian since 1980 and I enjoy going to church. We first go to the sunday school service for about an hour. We then go to the altar and we sing, read the bible and listen for about 40 minutes to an hour, the sermon from our pastor. I really leave church very blessed and wanting to come back again. Singing is a form of praising out Lord.

I go to a Baptist church and our service is half music and half message. I prefer to hear the message too but as someone pointed out the music is actually for worship. I do wish we could sing more uplifting songs though. Some of the slower songs I just feel like I'm trying to go through the motions.

I go to church too but not oftenle,maybe onece per year.I can't sing and a lot of times I feel sleepy,the only thing I do there is listening and pray.So I don't go to a church often beacause I am afraid that dear God will angry with me with my sleeping.

I am currently attending a baptist church here in the Philippines. I became a Christian since 1996, and since then, God blesses me with financial breakthroughs, wisdom, and passion to worship Him. It's ok if you will not sing hymns in your church, but when you get to Heaven, singing is not an option anymore, it is mandatory. That's why some Christians made hymns especially made for the modern generation, a.k.a. Contemporary Christian Music or CCM. Try hearing those songs, especially songs by Hillsong United, Sonicflood, and Switchfoot. Try to sing as well the hymns in your church.

Hi there, I am a non-demoninational Christian, but grew up Catholic. Here is the purpose behind the praise and worship at churches. The first part of the church service is supposed to be for God, the second half for us. Granted, some churches sing more than others. One of the reasons I went to non-denominational was because I was not getting anything out of going to a Catholic church. They did do a lot of singing and the preaching was just not down to earth and practical for use in everyday life. I enjoy the non-denominational church because the church songs are upbeat and I guess "modern" for lack of a better word. Plus, the churches I have went to have a lot of relevant preaching and I actually look forward to hearing more the next week. You have to find a church that you feel comfortable in, otherwise it is of no use to you spiritually. People like all different kinds of things, it is a matter of preference. To find what is best for you, you are probably going to have to spread your wings and check out many kinds of churches and you will know when you "belong", you will feel it, really. I hope this helps. If you want to chat more at any time feel free to contact me. Many blessings to you.

Well all of my family members are different Some are catholic and some are lutheran and some are christian and I have been to all of them really and they all were great but I have never been to the one you been too.

i am Baptist. We go to Sundayschool the first hour. then we start seviceswe sing three to four songs. and the preacher preaches. as Baptist we tent to only sing the 1,2 and 4 verses. the preacher preachs for about 55 mins. and of course we pray.

I suspect you went to a High Anglican communion service. That kind of service kind of bridges the gap between catholic and pentecostal. you might try going again when communion is not being given, those services tend to be less formal with more preaching and less rote services. Sadly, most Anglican churches have gotten rid of the High Mass Communion simply because of people who think it needed to be modernized.

I was born and raised Baptist and we do sing a lot. LOL At my old church, we had an hour service and only got about 20 minutes of a sermon...the rest was singing and announcements. I have just started sending my kids to the Methodist Church in my town and plan on starting attending services myself this next week. :) Not sure how much the Methodists sing. :)

Right now I go to a United Methodist church. The service is about an hour and fifteen minutes long. On a typical day, it starts out with one of the bands or music groups performing the introit, followed by reciting several selected prayers and singing a few Hymns. We then have a lesson from the Old Testament, and afterwards one of our pastors lead the "young disciples" (pre-k through kindergarten kids) in a related lesson before they are escorted to Childrens' Church. Then we have our sermon -which lasts about twenty minutes - and a lesson from the New Testament. Then there's the offeratory in which members from the church will perform a song or some sort of religious skit. In between we will sing a song and say a few more prayers. Then there's the "passing of the peace," in which we stand up and shake hands and greet one another. The pew pads are also passed. Depending the week, there is either holy communion or baptisms (both are given every other week at each service). We say a prayer both before and after each is performed. We may have another offeratory or educational activity or something of that nature. We also take prayer requests, sing a few more songs, and then say the "The Lord's Prayer," along with a few others before departing. We usually depart with a song. I'm sure I missed a few things, but that's basically it. So there is a LOT of singing but it is balanced in between all the prayers, sermon, Bible readings and everything else. I would say there are probably about five full songs in all that we actually have to sing ourselves. Our ministers talk a LOT and usually give pretty long sermons, which can get boring at times but are enlightening nonetheless. My dad's family is Episcopalian. I was actually born an Episcopal but never attended an Episcopal church simply because my family likes the Methodist one here. However, I am told Episcopal is the "American version of an Anglican" but is also the Protestant denomination that bears the most resemblance to Catholicism. But I never talked to my family much about this, so I wouldn't know anything about the Anglican church. However, not all churches do as you described. I don't know what the traditional service is for every denomination so I don't know what would be the best option for you, sorry. However, to answer your question, different churches do it differently.

I belong to the Iglesia Ni Cristo Church or (Church of Christ) which is a Christian denomination that originated here in the Philippines. Our worship service doesn't take very long, only about an hour, two at most. We start with 3-5 worship songs after which we pray and then our minister starts the sermon which is actually the main part of our worship. After the sermon, the congregation prays again and then sings three more worship songs. I don't really mind singing songs in church as I believe that it is also one way of worshiping God but what I like most is listening to the words of God so after the worship songs I really look forward to the minister's sermon.

As I've been to some churches some time ago(Lutheran) I know that singing may seem boring but if you are very spiritual you may find it interesting. Anyway you aren't supposed to go to church to have some fun :). You are supposed to get closer to Jesus and God. I think I should visit the church again in near future.

No, we don't sing so many songs in our church, so it is definitely not same in all churches. Secondly, even if we sing these songs, I love them, even if they have 3-5 verses, which they qiute rarely sing. But , today, I enjoyed each n every moment of worshipping my Lord, from the singing part , to the sermon part , cause, I have visited the church almost after one week. I sometimes get bored of the hymns, but then I remember that it is not for me ,but for my God, that I m doin this, n then be a part of it once again.

I just found a fairly local Unitarian church which I simply adore! This is my second UU church to go to since we moved and my last one was absolutely wonderful too. People of ALL religions are invited to join. UU's believe that we can all learn to get along, have the right to choose, learn from each other, and just grow into better and better people no matter what religion we actually claim. We love to chat and have friendly debates/discussions with each other. I've only been to this one a few times. Every other Sunday is Adult Education where we've been talking about "-isms" lately. We covered racism and heterosexism the two times we've been able to go and will talk about ageism next Sunday. The other Sundays we have service and we've only been to one so far. We had a Communion of Flowers and the children's Easter egg hunt. The president spoke for awhile, there was a children's reading, we got to share blessing or prayer requests, we went up for flowers, he spoke a little more and then we sang only one song. It was not very long, not a lot of singing, and everyone was very friendly and casual.

I've never been to an anglican church (infact I don't believe I ever heard of it before), however I have been to many churches that just do a ton of singing. Most of them were in the Souhern states. I don't go to any set church. I have gone to community churches, catholic, epicipal, orthodox, baptist, assembly of god, methodis and whatever else. I feel we all believe the same god. And I don't care what other church members say. I always take communion... and I wasn't baptised officially. If you have taken god into your heart I feel you should be allowed communion.

I go to a Catholic church, but only when I'm home as my dad expects it. I find it quite boring to be honest. Some of the masses have singing, while others don't. If just depends what time you go at. I usually go on a Sat evening to get it over with.

I go to a pentecostal church I could not go to an old style Church I love my happy clappy Church that uplifts me every time I go. I feel God's spirit there it is my spiritual home.

I go to the AFM church. I do not think it is better than any other church where the truth is preached but I know that it is where God wants me at the moment. As for the singing, it is not supposed to be boring. If it is then something is wrong. We also sing in our church but it is songs of praise and worship. It is sometimes lively and one could clap hands and even dance a bit because of the enjoyment of praising God. Sometimes it is more spiritual in the sense that you know you are in the prescense of God. It should be an experience, not a routine. As for communion, it is not about the church, it is between you and Jesus. You can have communion where ever and when ever you want. It is an act of faith to declare that you believe in the redemptive work of Jesus. May God lead you to the church where you can truly worship Him in spirit and in truth. Blessings.