Welcome to St James

Bring your kids with you! We love children at St James and we work to offer an all-ages worship service. We have coloring pages (with crayons) that follow the Bible passage for each Sunday. We have a children’s talk during each service.

Dress casually and comfortably! People wear shorts, someone might wear a tie (but not the pastor!). Seriously, there is no dress code. Come as you are.

We celebrate Holy Communion every Sunday. In the United Methodist Church, we practice open communion, which means you do not have to be a member of St James, or any other United Methodist Church, or ANY church at all to participate in Communion. It is Christ’s table, not ours. When the congregation is invited forward, simply follow everyone else to the front. You will receive a small piece of bread with the words “Body of Christ, given for you.” Eat the bread. Then you will receive a small cup of grape juice (United Methodists use grape juice, not wine) with the words “Blood of Christ, shed for you.” Drink the juice and then place the cup in the waste can. Return to your seat. Participation in Communion is voluntary. If you want to remain in your seat during Communion, that is totally fine.

No, you do not need to give an offering. On any given Sunday, probably half of the congregation put money in the offering plates, so you would not stand out. We believe that the offering is more than just getting money to pay the church bills. It is an act of worship. That is why we pass the offering plates in worship. It is to give everyone the opportunity to worship God through giving. That is why we have ‘I Gave Online’ cards in the pew racks in front of you. Place that card in the plate as an act of worship if you gave online. You can text to give an offering, or you can give online if you wish.

Each week, we print a worship guide or bulletin. It has the order of worship (an agenda) on the front. Inside, you will find the Bible passage we are studying that day, and usually notes on the message. Announcements and other helpful information is also included. We use two large screen monitors in the front of the church to project song lyrics, congregational readings, and any images that might facilitate worship.

There are three parking areas at St James. The front parking lot directly borders Campbell Avenue and is across the street from McDonalds. The back parking lot is behind the sanctuary and can be accessed from Lind Avenue. There is a small parking lot on the north side of the sanctuary. After you park, simply head toward the steeple of the church. You will find the main entrance!

We do not publicly recognize visitors or point you out in any way. You will find our people are caring and friendly, but not intrusive. When you enter the church, you will be offered a name tag by our greeters. If you don’t have to worry about remembering names, it puts you more at ease!

Our sanctuary is handicap accessible.

It is easy for a church to say ‘Everyone is welcome here!“. But we work to make this true at St James! We have all kinds of people attending and we would love to include you also!