FRIDAY EVENINGS · EVERYONE WELCOME
We come to hear the Bible preached.
We are a small church in Lexington. We gather on Friday evenings around the reading and preaching of Scripture, and through the week we are in one another’s living rooms. Visitors are welcome at both.
WHEN
Fridays at 7:00 pm
We start at 7:00 and are usually done between 8:00 and 8:15. Most people stay a while afterward to catch up.
WHERE
3601 Winthrop Dr
The sanctuary at Anchor Baptist Church, which is a separate congregation from ours. Park in the church parking lot and come in at the main entrance, at the front of the building.
WHAT TO WEAR
Whatever you own
Some dress up, most do not. Nobody will look twice.
BEFORE YOU COME
Four things it helps to know first.
Sit wherever you like. We would love to meet you when you are ready.
Most people stay afterward and talk, and we would love to get to know you, but that is an invitation rather than an expectation.
Parking, the entrance, and how long it lasts
- No card to fill outNobody at the entrance is taking down your information. If you would like to introduce yourself, we would love that, and if you would rather not, come and go as you please.
- You will not be asked to standVisitors are not introduced or pointed out from the front. Sit wherever you like, including the back.
- Stay as long as you want toPeople usually stand around talking for half an hour afterward. Join them, or leave early; both are ordinary here.
Children stay in the room with us.
We would rather your two-year-old make noise than have you stay home. Keeping them with you is completely fine, and plenty of families do exactly that. There is a nursery if you would rather.
- Keep them with youThere is nothing to sign and no desk. Bring them in and sit wherever you like.
- Children’s Bible classDownstairs, for children through third grade. Parents take them down.
- We pray for them firstThere is a point in the service where the children are prayed for and can go down.
The building belongs to Anchor Baptist Church. We are their guests on Friday evenings.
Anchor Baptist is a separate congregation. Their name is on the sign at the road and their name is what your map app will show you, and if you are at 3601 Winthrop Drive on a Friday evening you are in the right place.
Getting here, and where to go in
- Look for the Anchor Baptist signIt is the only sign at the road, and nothing outside carries our name. If your map app shows Anchor Baptist, you have the right place.
- We do not own a buildingWe would rather not carry a mortgage for a room we would use a few hours a week.
- Friday is when the sanctuary is freeThat is the whole reason for the night.
Listening first is a perfectly good way to start.
Every recording we have is free. There is no login and no email address to give. Nobody will know you listened.
- Podcast feedApple, Spotify, Overcast, or the raw RSS.
- Search by title, book or speakerThe archive has a search box and four filters. Use it the way you would a library.
- Downloadable MP3sTake them with you; no streaming required.
WHAT WE BELIEVE
We hold the historic Christian faith, confessed in the creeds the church has said together for centuries.
We are an independent congregation. We would rather you read what we believe than take our word for it.
- Scripture read and preachedConsecutive teaching through whole books of the Bible.
- A congregation you can knowSmall enough that we notice when you are not there.
- Homes through the weekHome groups meet in members’ houses to study and pray, with a snack at the end.
- Children with usChildren are welcome in the service. There is also a nursery and a children’s Bible class.
HOME GROUPS
The rest of the week happens in living rooms.
Groups meet through the week in members’ houses, for study and prayer. Visitors are welcome long before they are members.
KIDS & YOUTH
Bring the children. Really.
Children are welcome to stay with you for the whole service, and plenty do. Part-way through we pray for them, and any child who would rather can go downstairs with a parent.
Why do you meet on Friday evening?
We do not own a building, and we are not trying to. Buying one would mean a mortgage and a maintenance bill for a room we would use a few hours a week, and we would rather put the money elsewhere. Anchor Baptist’s sanctuary is free on a Friday evening, so that is when we meet.
Are you Anchor Baptist?
No. Anchor Baptist Church is a separate congregation that meets in the same building, and their name is on the sign at the road. Nothing outside carries ours. Come to 3601 Winthrop Drive at 7:00 on a Friday and you are in the right place.
How long is the service?
About an hour and fifteen minutes. We start at 7:00 and are usually done between 8:00 and 8:15: prayer, a few songs, Scripture read together, a sermon of about thirty minutes, and communion. Most people stay afterward for half an hour or so.
What time should I get there?
Any time before 7:00. Most of us get here not long before we start, so the room fills in the last few minutes. If you are running late, come in anyway; a late arrival is ordinary here.
Can I take communion?
There is communion every Friday: the bread and the cup, at the end of the evening. They are for baptized believers in Christ, and if that is you, they are for you on your first Friday here as much as on your hundredth.
If that is not you, stay in your seat. People get up and go down to the front to take it, families usually together, and the worship team sings through the whole of it. Coming to the evening and coming to the table are two different invitations, and the first one stands either way.
Will I be asked to give money?
No. No offering is passed around, and a visitor is never expected to give anything. The members of the church support its work by giving, and they arrange that themselves.
Are you part of a denomination?
We are an independent congregation. We govern ourselves, under our own elders. If that changes, we will say so. What we hold to is set out in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed, both printed in full on What we believe.
Come this Friday. We will save you a seat.
Tell us you are coming and someone will meet you at the entrance, or just show up. Both are fine.