The holiday spirit is not limited to the people of the area as churches prepare to ring in Christmas with special services on and around its eve.
From Methodists to Baptists, Catholics and Nazarene, local churches offer residents a chance to hear the gospel before celebrating Christmas with their families.
“People look for a place where they can foster meaningful relationships to provide support when they need it,” Midway Pastor John Theisen said. “‘It’s great to help people live fully for God’ is kind of our tagline.”
One of the largest churches in the area, Midway Baptist offers its Christmas Eve service on the Sunday before with a pair of services in the morning.
“We pack out the foyer outside the auditorium and have two hours between services because people love to sit and visit, have opportunities for good family photos, and finish with the traditional candlelight service and sing ‘Silent Night’ as a lot of churches do,” Theisen said.
Its holiday services, offered to both English and Spanish speaking residents, focus on the tenants ascribed to the season.
“Our entire Christmas series that began on the eighth is based on something that’s been around for hundreds of years,” Theisen said. “They are the most encouraging messages related to Christmas, what some would call advent in a lot of Protestant churches along the themes of hope, joy, peace and love.”
Thanks to its size and the volunteerism of its congregation, Theisen explained Midway is a church that focuses its attentions outward as much as possible.
“We’re always looking outward rather than focusing on what’s already been done,” Theisen said. “We’re a church where faith, fellowship and purpose align. You can both grow and contribute in multiple ways. That is probably true at a lot of places, though that’s not just what we aspire to be but what we feel we are.”
The Pilot Point First United Methodist Church will hold a Blue Christmas service at 7 p.m. Saturday, which is for those dealing with grief or loss. A more traditional service will be held at 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve, Pastor Cindy Kennedy explained.
“The reason we have Christmas is for the birth of the Christ child and to celebrate that,” Kennedy said. “We usually do a candle lighting service which consists of what they call Wreaths, Carols and Candles where we read a part of scripture, sing a song, light all the candles and sing ‘Silent Night’ and ‘Joy to the World.’ It’s our fairly traditional Christmas Eve service.”
Regarding the nature of its services, Kennedy explained her church is progressive in its teachings.
“We are what you’d call a mainstream protestant church, so we’re more progressive in our theology,” Kennedy said. “We’re unique in this area because many of the churches have a more conservative, literal understanding of the Bible stories.”
She continued. “We’re more about how we live out our Christian life here and now,” Kennedy said. “It’s not focused on what happens after you die. For a lot of people, that’s appealing. We like to connect people’s faith to how they live every day.”
Another unique Christmas Eve service in the area comes from Grace Point Church of the Nazarene, one of the first churches in town revitalized eight years ago, whose congregation leaves its chapel in the evening in favor of an outdoor service on the Square.
“Christmas Under the Stars is a part of our philosophy, of who we are,” Grace Point Pastor Dwayne Edwards said. “The church is not just a building; the church is alive. You have to have a safe haven to come worship and hear the gospel, but the church is not the church until it hits the street.”
Edwards expanded with insight on his congregation and the services he leads.
“We’re a casual service,” Edwards said. “You don’t have to dress up. I preach casually. That’s how I started here. I didn’t go out looking for church people. I didn’t want church people. I went out to go after people who have given up on God or, in today’s culture, young people who don’t know much about God.”
The Nazarenes spend more than Christmas Eve outside the chapel.
“As much as the people will let us, we like to get out there,” Edwards said. “We try to touch the community with relevancy. We do a community outreach weekend. We find projects, … hit the streets for a whole weekend starting at 8 a.m. on Saturday. We come do a devotion, 5-minute devotion, breakfast burritos and the same thing on Sunday.”
The night under the stars leading into Christmas Day consists of cocoa, cookies, candles and hymns.
“I do it traditional, the basic Christmas hymns of the church,” Edwards said. “You pull a traditional family thing in, and you do it in one hour. That’s really key. We start at 5:30 when it’s still a little bit light, and it’s dark by 6:30. We do rain, sleet or snow. You come dressed [for the weater] because we don’t cancel for anything.”
