I worshipped at First Baptist--Jacksonville today...

FBC, Jacksonville has three Sunday morning worship services--two that are more contemporary and one that is more traditional. I attended the 9:45 service which is one of the contemporary services. I arrived at exactly 9:45 and had a little bit of trouble finding a parking space. The church is fairly large for this Colorado boy and I had to drive around a bit before I discovered where I was supposed to be. I didn't see any designated guest parking spaces and chose a spot towards the back of the lot. No outside greeters were visible but there was a steady stream of people going in a side door and I chose to follow them. Walking towards the open door I could hear that the service had already begun. A worship folder was handed to me and I followed the line into the worship center. The Worship Center was pretty full and I didn't immediately see any open seats. I stood still for a moment and then walked across the back of the sanctuary before starting down the center isle towards the front. About halfway to the front a smiling man held up one finger...I nodded yes...and he showed me to a seat on the second row. The worship music was very good. They had about five vocalists on the stage with a band back behind and to the side. The band consisted of drums, bass, and three acoustic guitars. No piano was used. They had a really good sound and I was able to follow their lead into worship very easily. The songs did not flow into each other--there was a clear break between each song. Overall the music was very good. There was a greeting time included in the service and all of those seated around me took the time to speak to me. The pastor is Dr. Mike Turner and he did a good job presenting the message. He had a great introduction and the points in the message were relevant and tied to the biblical text. He referenced the military and the war in Iraq several times which is the right thing to do when you're in Jacksonville, NC. The bulletin listed the names of 61 individuals related to the church who are currently deployed! Pastor Turner was friendly and clearly communicated the message. The invitation struck me as formal and primarily an opportunity to join the church. Several came forward to join and those who came for baptism were celebrated as "desiring baptism into the fellowship". Nothing was said of their salvation, their relationship with Christ, their life-change, or potential decision-counseling that they would be receiving. This, of course, is just my impression on this one Sunday. Overall, it was a good experience and I was certainly able to worship. I felt very comfortable with the environment and did not feel out of place in my blue jeans. I did not get my guest slip turned in--the offering was taken in the middle of the service and I had not actually even opened my worship folder at that point. I did fill it out, intending to hand it to a greeter or someone on my way out but I did not see anyone.

you can check out FBC's website here.