Menu
It’s hard to know what to expect from a church you’ve never been to. So, we want to give you a heads up.
Sundays @calvaryhanford are casual but very important to us. There is no dress code, other than we ask that you dress modestly.
We believe that the teaching of God’s word is incredibly important and should be respected to a great degree. At every service there is a mix of people who have attended our church for many years, people who are brand new and others who aren’t believers in Christ at all, all from different backgrounds and traditions.
Because of that, we place a high emphasis on limiting distractions within the sanctuary on Sunday morning. We ask that children under junior high age not sit in the main sanctuary. There are other places on campus that families can sit together. Otherwise, children are invited to attend our children’s worship and Sunday school classes.
For more information on your seating options, visit this page.
Our 2 Sunday morning services are identical in content and format.
Our services begin with about 20 minutes of worship. Our worship is what many people would call ‘contemporary’, led by a band with guitars, drums, bass, singers and other various instruments. The songs we sing vary from hymns to songs from the Jesus movement in the 1960’s to modern worship choruses that you might hear on the radio. The music isn’t meant to be a performance, instead it’s presented in a way that all of us can participate in. Meaning, we want to hear you sing!
When the worship concludes, Pastor Gene typically gives a prophecy update, showing how trends in the news corroborate the centuries-old prophecies found in the Bible.
After the prophecy update we have announcements where you can find out about our weekly schedule, ministry opportunities and special events. At this point we have a quick meet and greet time for people to stretch their legs and say hello if they’d like. During 2nd Service at this point, 7th through 10th graders are dismissed for their class upstairs.
Pastor Gene then gives a sermon on the passage of Scripture we’ve come to in our studies. Typically @calvaryhanford we study through books of the Bible chapter by chapter and verse by verse. The sermon lasts between 30 and 35 minutes, then we close with a time of prayer, reflection and more worship.
At the end of our services there are men at the front of the sanctuary who are available for prayer.
Afterward, people stay to talk, pray and enjoy each other’s company in the courtyard, bookstore, cafe and around campus. Be sure you say hello to someone you don’t recognize!
There are 2 meetings on Wednesdays @calvaryhanford.
In the mornings (6:30am-7:15am) men and sons are invited to join us in the cafe for our study. As guys come in they get free coffee or hot chocolate, have a time to talk and laugh with the other men who’ve come that week. Then we read a short devotional from a classic author like Tozer, Spurgeon or Ironside.
After the devotional has been read, there’s a short time of prayer together, followed by a 15-20 minute study given by Assistant Pastor Geno.
In the evenings (7:00pm-8:15pm) we have our Midweek service. This service is a casual, intimate, gathering with great variety. For the first half of the service parents and kids sit together before the kids are dismissed to their classes. There’s always worship, a Bible study, but then there are a number of other things that happen depending on the week. We’ll often have some sort of video with a devotional message or some other content to build up your faith. There are special ministry updates, small-segment teachings and other elements on Wednesday nights.
At Midweek we’re not as concerned with limiting distraction. During worship, you’re welcome to sing, lift your hands, stand, kneel or ask someone for prayer, as long as you’re still focusing on Jesus Christ and not placing attention on yourself.
Midweek also has something we love, which is a time of group participation each week. Whether it’s communion, live Q&A or gift shop, we always try to set aside time for you to interact on Wednesday nights.
We’re glad you asked!
Gift Shop is a special time of prayer and waiting on the Lord at the end of our Ignite services. You may have heard the term ‘afterglow’ before, and that’s essentially what gift shop is. It’s a time for us as a congregation to pray, sing, share Scriptures together and explore the gifts of the Spirit.
It’s called Gift Shop because it’s a time we’ve specifically set aside for our congregation to exercise the gifts of the Spirit in a friendly, controlled, Biblical way.
Often times Gift Shop is a new experience for many people, whether they’ve come from a very traditional background or a very charismatic one. For that reason, we’re very open and purposeful about how we carry out this portion of our Wednesday night services. There’s a lot of explaining and communication about what’s going on and how we believe the Bible directs God’s people to exercise spiritual gifts properly, led by our pastor.
All in all, Wednesday nights are a very precious time for us @calvaryhanford. There’s a lot going on at our Midweek services and there’s still more to come!
From 6:00pm to 6:45pm on Saturday nights we get together to pray. We meet in the cafe for a very casual time of sharing what’s been going on and praying for our church, our community and whatever else is on our hearts.
Anyone is welcome to attend. No child care is provided, but children are welcome if they’re able to pray and sit without causing a distraction.
if you have any other questons, feel free to ask or check out our FAQ page.
sign up for news, schedule updates, event info & more
