We invite you to join us for worship. We gather for waiting worship in the tradition of Friends (Quakers). We silently wait upon the Lord Jesus Christ to minister to us and through us. This manner of worship is also described as "unprogrammed worship" insofar as there is no prepared "program" to be followed, as well as "silent worship" since we remain in silent prayer until the Lord gives us words to speak, sing, or pray. The following may help orient you to this manner of worship.
AN OVERVIEW FOR VISITORS
We gather in silence, in a practice centuries old, to wait upon our Lord. The meeting has no clergy. Individuals who feel led by the Holy Spirit may rise and speak or sing (or kneel and pray). Such ministry is usually brief, plainly spoken so all may hear, and grounded in the speaker's sense that the Lord provided the message and desired it to be spoken to the meeting. The usual practice is that Friends speak only once during the course of meeting. This helps increase the spiritual depth and clarity of the message, while also providing ample time for others to speak. Ideally, a spoken message is preceded and followed by significant periods of silence. Messages are never given in response to one another. As worship concludes, an appointed Friend reads a traditional Quaker advice for living followed by a short period of silence and then an invitation to share reflections on what was experienced during worship. We conclude the meeting by shaking hands.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Some visitors will be interested in knowing the following.
Friends tend to dress for worship in the same manner in which they dress on
other days of the week.
We encourage children of all ages to be brought into worship. Sometimes
they are even given messages to share. Of course, it is not always
practical for children to remain in the meeting room for the whole period.
Chairs with books suitable for children are located outside of the meeting
room.
Caprock Friends Christian Fellowship
Conservative Quakers in Lubbock, Texas
