What is the Sunday Schedule?
- 9:45 – Main Entry Door opens. Nursery / Toddlers area opens
- 10:00 – Main Service begins with singing
- 10:30 – Break and greet
- 10:40 – Message/Teaching Time (sermon)
- 11:30 – End of service. Everyone is welcome to stay and fellowship. Pastor Ron remains to pray with anyone seeking prayer support, to discuss the message, or to make appointments to meet later in the week.
Are there any other services or meetings?
There is a “Games and Gathering” Evening, one Tuesday each month. Ask for details when you come to church. “Women’s Ministry” meets the 4th Sunday after church service, for a Bible Study. The Women bring sack lunches to eat during the study. “Ron’s Theological Roundtable” meets at the same 4th Sunday, right after church. Ron invites anyone not attending the Women’s Ministry to join him at a local sub sandwich shop for lunch and discussion of any Bible topic, or theological questions anyone has. This is an informal roundtable setting.
What is Calvary Chapel’s style of worship?
The worship service at Calvary Chapel of Leesburg is in two parts: singing and teaching. A distinctive of Calvary Chapel is that all of our singing time is “corporate,” meaning we all sing together. There are no solos, choir, or small group songs. We project song lyrics up on the projection screen, so we don’t use hymnals. Our songs stress sound doctrine, often quoting Scripture, and is generally in a “contemporary” style. We also sing the “old hymns.” Some people lift up their hands when they sing; some don’t. During singing, most people stand, but some sit, or sometimes kneel. This is your choice. We hold the role of the Holy Spirit as very important in our worship, so you will notice some flexibility in the order and emphases in any given service. Our service is not “liturgical,” meaning the leader and congregation do not read or recite the same things each week.
What does Calvary Chapel have for my children?
The number of babies, children, and teens we have varies, but we are committed to providing education for each of them. At this time, these services are staffed and offered only when you ask for them. So ask for Colleen to make these arrangements. Nursery and Toddler care are available from 9:45 to the end of the service. Children’s Church begins after the song time till the end of service. Both are in the Education Wing accessed through the door to the right of the podium in the Sanctuary (bear right). When the numbers of teens are sufficient, we are very open to having a Teen Group to meet at another time. Everyone age 10 and up participates in the entire Sunday Church service from 10 – 11:30.
You are very welcome to keep your children with you during the Worship in Song time, from 10:00am to 10:30 am. Everyone ages ten and up participates in the entire Sunday Morning Church Service.
Moms, if you’d like to have your infant with you in church, that’s just fine. We suggest you take a seat towards the back of the sanctuary, as this will give you more room to use for your baby and gear and will give you a bit more privacy if you wish to nurse your baby during the service. You may also take your baby to the Nursery to change diapers, play or for you to use one of our “Mom Rocking Chairs” to nurse your child with privacy. There is a sound speaker in the Nursery that you can turn on to listen to the service in progress if you wish.
If you prefer to have your youngster (Toddler – 10 years) go to Children’s Bible Time during the sermon, again, ask for Colleen to help arrange that. Otherwise, they are welcome to remain with you and listen or draw in a coloring book, etc., during the service.
What do you have for my teens? — We regard teenagers as young adults and invite them to participate in the entirety of the church services and home fellowship meetings as welcomed young adults. When we get a group of teens, and they wish to have special meetings or fellowship with other teens, we are happy to arrange events for this. But we do not believe in “Youth Groups” or “Teen Church.” We choose not to have a “Youth Pastor,” as we see no justification for this in God’s Word. Pastor Ron and the Church Leadership Team will speak to your teens with respect, treating them as full brothers and sisters in Christ, joint heirs of the Kingdom, who have their own faith-journeys, own thoughts and opinions, and their own questions and needs, just like the rest of us. We pledge to never talk down to your teens. We believe and teach that teenagers can and should be preparing to become ambassadors of King Jesus in their schools, clubs, and friendships in the world. And to prepare for this, they need to be in the Sunday morning service, sitting under the teaching ministry of the Pastor and receiving the serious “meat” of the Gospel.
How do your members do “giving?”
You’ve probably noticed that we do not “take an offering” during the Sunday morning service. Calvary Chapel has the conviction that giving should be done quietly, as a matter between the believer and God. Therefore we teach the Biblical principle of “tithing” (giving 10% of one’s income to God), and we provide giving envelopes and a “tithe box” just inside the Main Entry door and the East Entry door. People place their gifts into the Tithe Box. Each person’s actual giving is a private matter of conscience before God. Neither the Pastor nor the Elders know what anyone gives.
What are your financial practices and accountability?
Calvary Chapel of Leesburg is a “Florida Non-Profit Corporation,” and all donations are tax-deductible. CCL has a checking account, a budget, and a bookkeeper using QuickBooks. Our bookkeeper pays the bills, and produces financial statements that are reviewed and approved monthly by the Pastor and all the Elders. Once a year, an outside accountant reviews our books. Any member may review our financial reports by asking an elder.
Can I give online?
Yes. On our website at https://ccleesburg.org/give/, there’s a form where you can give online. It is very quick and easy. However, we have found that the most convenient way to give is through your own bank’s “Billpay” feature. This is very simple and takes less than 5 minutes to set up with your bank online. You simply instruct your bank to send a check, for a set amount, from your checking account, to “Calvary Chapel of Leesburg” each week/month/etc. and mail it to Calvary Chapel of Leesburg, PO Box 490222, Leesburg, FL 34749. This way, it happens automatically, even when you are traveling. If you would like help with this, we can show you how.
If you prefer to use a credit or debit card, please use this form to give via credit/debit card online. After you submit the form, you will receive a receipt by email. Thank you for your generosity!
What about Church “charity” or “benevolence?”
Being a smaller church, we are not as equipped to directly help the community with such things as addiction counseling and rehab, food & clothing, etc. But the Church gives a monthly support donation directly to the “Christian Care Center” at the corner of Main Street and Hwy 27 in Leesburg, a multi-church ministry of assistance directed and staffed by people from many different churches. For the CCL church family, we provide direct emergency assistance to members, as needed, and as discerned by the Elder Board.
What about women in ministry?
The Bible teaches a high view of women in general and teaches that both sexes are of the same worth, dignity, and value in God’s Kingdom. CCL encourages women to do ministry in the church and in the community. Frankly, the Church would be crippled without the ministry of its women. The Bible also teaches that women are not to take authority over their husbands, or men in the church (1 Tim 2:12). Therefore we hold that the three authoritative public ministries of preaching, eldership, and the teaching of men, are limited to godly, mature males who meet the qualifications. (1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, 1 Peter 3).
Do you have formal “membership?”
No. There is not a formal membership roll. The Church business is all done by the Officers of the Church (the Elders and Pastor). Informally we consider a “member” to be a committed believer who has been consistently attending services for at least six months. Before anyone commits to a ministry in the church, we ask that they complete six months of regular attendance.