St. Michael & All Angels' Episcopal Church Longview, TX

Our worship is very diverse, just like those who worship here. We use the Book of Common Prayer as our guideline for worship. We use Hymns from our hymnal yet we also use contemporary worship songs. Most Episcopalians would consider our worship very contemporary, but they would also be familiar and comfortable with liturgy that we use.

Those who worship at St. Michael's come from different backgrounds, different denominations and different places in life. We are young, old and everything in between. Yet we all seek to grow closer to God each day, wherever we are in life. Some of us have been Christians our entire life. Some of us are new Christians. But we walk together, praying for and encouraging each other. Come, worship and walk with us at St. Michael's. Come, be loved and Share God's Love.

"Sharing God's Love"
At St. Michael's those words remind us at the close of worship who our God is and what He wants from those who follow His Son, Jesus. Christians have long been convinced that God is all about love.

We believe its was love that motivated God the Father to send His Son to redeem us. It was God's love that Jesus offered His disciples to guide their lives and relationships. It was love that later Christian mystics saw at the heart of everything. And it is love that motivates our worship and service today. With so much of our world in disarray and so many people hurting, the people of St. Michael's seek to live out the call of the Jesus we follow to "love one another as I have loved you." Come, join us in sharing God's love.

Communion
Everyone who follows Jesus is welcome to receive Communion at St. Michael's. We celebrate an "open" table, meaning that the Lord's Supper is open to all who believe in Christ, not just members of St. Michael's or the Episcopal church. We celebrate Communion by coming down the center aisle to the communion rail at the front of the church. There you will be offered a piece of bread broken from a common round loaf prepared each week. Then you will be offered the wine (we use real wine) from the chalice.

You can consume the bread and then take a sip from the chalice; or you may hold the piece of bread and dip it in the chalice. Some prefer not to receive the bread and wine. They come forward and kneel at the rail then simply cross their arms across their chest. This lets the servers know that they aren't receiving Communion. In this way, everyone still celebrates together.

The Bible
We follow the Revised Common Lectionary for our Scripture lessons each Sunday. This means that we have a set order for reading through the Bible that thousands of churches around the world follow as well. We believe this puts us in unity with God's church (whatever denomination) around the globe. Every Sunday you will hear a passage of Scripture from the Old Testament books, as well as a Psalm from the Old Testament. You will also hear a passage from the New Testament letters plus a passage from one of the Gospels. Yes, this is EVERY Sunday! We call this the Service of the Word portion of our worship. You will hear God's Word (and lots of it!) every Sunday at St. Michael's.

Sermons
The sermon at St. Michael's is usually about fifteen to twenty minutes. Our pastor, The Rev. Dr. Jim Watson, has many years of experience in preparing sermons and teaching in a college classroom. You will hear a well-prepared sermon/teaching on one of the Scripture lessons for that Sunday. Fr. Jim usually includes a story or two from his own experience to highlight a lesson from Scripture (and leave us laughing).

Music
Most of the music at St. Michael's would be considered very contemporary. Yet we sing from the Episcopal Hymnal as well. We almost always begin our service with the first song (the Processional) from the Hymnal. St. Michael's Music Team (Music Team) consists of up to 12 singers, keyboards, from one to four guitars (on any given Sunday, a bsss guitar, occasionally a live drummer, and sometimes a digital drummer. When you worship at St. Michael's you will hear hymns, contemporary worship song, African-Amercian Spirituals, music from Taize and original compositions as well. From the prelude worship music to the last song (the Recessional) you will sing ten to twelve songs every Sunday.

Our "Style" of Worship
There is no easy way to describe the overall worship experience at St. Michael's. It is comtemporarily traditional. We follow the order of worship in the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer. We use written prayers yet we have a time of open prayer as well. We use responsive readings and prayers (a leader reads or prays and the congregation respond together). There are both traditional and contemporary elements to our worship.

We believe this is what makes the worship at St. Michael's unique. We kneel during some prayers and stand during others. You will see some people who lift their hands during worship songs or prayers. You will also see others who make the sign of the cross on their chest or genuflect (briefly kneeling to one knee). So in whatever "style" of worship you are comfortable you will find something familiar in the worship at St. Michael's. And maybe you will find a new way to connect with God as well.