Worship & Prayer
Every Sunday, a table is set,
and there’s a place for you
Sunday Liturgy
of Word and Table
live online at 5:00pm
(Melbourne time) each Sunday.
Our worship life is shaped by ancient rhythms that have been nurturing churches for centuries: a weekly service of Word and Table (see below); a daily cycle of prayer that marks morning, evening and night; and the seasons of the church year. These rhythms form us — slowly, deeply, and together.
The style we bring to these rhythms is unusual for a Baptist church. We draw on rich traditions of Christian liturgy — shared texts, prayerful silence, listening to scripture, sacramental practice — expressed in fresh language, and remaining open and accessible. It is highly participatory: nearly every voice contributes. Sometimes visitors are still unsure who is “leading” by the end of the service!
All of our worship and prayer gatherings take place online. This is not a temporary arrangement or a compromise — it is a considered and permanent choice, and one that has seen us grow significantly both in prayerfulness and in day-to-day care for one another. If you’ve never imagined online worship could actually work for you (or anyone!), the “If This Is You…” page is worth a look.
Below you’ll find everything you need to know about joining us for Sunday worship. You can use the links on the right to learn more about our Daily Prayer and the Liturgical Year.
Sunday Worship
Our Sunday gathering is the heart of our common life. Each week we come together online — typically 25 to 35 people — for a liturgy that moves through spoken and sung prayer, scripture readings, preaching, prayerful silence, and a celebration of the Lord’s Table. It is around 90 minutes long, unhurried, highly participatory, and deeply prayerful. The preaching here is genuinely good, but it is one voice among many. If you are looking for a polished, high-tech worship production that you can watch at your leisure, you will need to look elsewhere. But if you are longing to be part of an intimate community genuinely offering worship together — where your presence is noticed and your absence felt — you may have found what you are looking for.
A few things that can help you feel at home when you join us
Your screen and speakers. Joining on a small screen is fine, but if you have the option of using a large screen and good speakers, it will be a much more immersive experience. Unless you are on a mobile device that doesn’t allow it, arranging your screen so that you can see the liturgy slides and the whole congregation side-by-side will also improve the experience (see the tips in the side box on this page). After all, gathered worship is about “us and God”, rather than “me and God”, so being able to see all of “us” keeps it real.
Bread and wine. We believe that the risen Jesus offers himself freely to everyone at his Table, so if you are ready to receive him in that way, please come prepared with a piece of bread and a glass of wine or water. It is also perfectly fine to abstain.
Participation. Most of our regular participants have particular parts of the liturgy that they lead, but this is not expected of visitors or newcomers. You won’t be put on the spot or asked to do anything you’re not ready for. You will hear some parts done in different languages, but the English will be shown on the screen.
Privacy and safety. We are committed to making our gathering a safe space for everyone, and for that reason visitors who are not yet known to us will have their microphones muted during the liturgy itself and will not be able to send private messages to other participants. This is not unwelcoming — it is care.
After the liturgy. After the liturgy, we break into small groups for conversation. Some people even eat their dinner during this time — a tradition that goes back to our physically gathered days. If you’re able to stay, we’d love that. If you’re new to us, you may find yourself in a group with someone who can welcome you properly and answer any questions.
Setting Up Your Screen
Choose Side-by-side Gallery from the options in the View button in the top right of your screen (not available on mobile devices), and drag the dividing line between two sides so you can see all of both.
Display your correct name(s) Click your own video image to find “Rename”.
Turn on your video (or keep it on). Letting us see you builds trust, but if you need to turn it off to save data, or because you’re in the bath(!), we’ll understand.
See For Yourself
Previous Liturgies
Find recordings of previous liturgies
Questions?
We’d be glad to help