What We Believe

We are guided by a Covenant, a statement of our commitments to one another about how we will live together as a community of faith.


Why not just cut to the chase and say what we believe?


At Glendale, we batter our beliefs. We test them against our life experiences, newly discovered facts, and the thoughts of others. Our mental closets are littered with ideas we used to know for sure, but have set aside like a pile of clothes that used to fit. So, writing those ideas down and publishing them as something to live by seems like a bad idea.


Also, we don’t actually all agree. While life-practices and patterns of thought for individual members of Glendale flow in similar directions, we are often of multiple minds about our “beliefs” and we like it that way! The thing that holds us together is not having commonly held beliefs, but having commonly held commitments for how we will live together as a community of faith and interact with the world in which we live. Some of those commitments are captured in our Covenant below.

Covenant

Believing that the church as the body of Christ is the continuing incarnation of God, we, Glendale Baptist Church, make this covenant with God and with one another.


We covenant with God to seek:

  • to develop our personal relationships with God,
  • to see where God is at work in the world and to join in this work,
  • to speak on God's behalf and to hear God's word when it is spoken,
  • to demonstrate God's love and be open to receive it.


We covenant with one another to seek:

  • to explore the meaning of being the continuing incarnation of God,
  • to build an inclusive Christian community that affirms the worth of all persons,
  • to nurture persons as they grow in wisdom, faith, and personal relationships,
  • to help persons discern their gifts and to call them to exercise these gifts,
  • to minister to one another, being sensitive to individuals, families and groups, responding to needs with appropriate Christian action,
  • to help one another celebrate all of life,
  • to provide Christian nurture for our children, affirming our commitment to them during their most formative years,
  • to provide opportunities for worship, study, fellowship, mission action, outreach and ministry,
  • to give systematically from our personal financial resources, giving sacrificially when such giving is needed,
  • to be accountable to one another for living faithfully in this covenant relationship,


Amen.

Children + Youth

At Glendale we value intergenerational relationships. Here are the  ways we nurture our young people:

  • Godly Play

    Godly Play is a method of contemplative storytelling that emphasizes wonder and imagination as we engage the stories of the Bible. Children are invited to Godly Play during a portion of the worship service and after.

  • Be-Loved Youth Camp

    Our youth in grades 6-12 join a coalition of youth and leaders from a dozen Alliance of Baptist and United Church of Christ congregations that come together each year for a week of learning and sharing in the mountains of North Carolina.

  • PASSPORTkids

    Children grades 3-6 attend PASSPORTkids camp each year

  • Covenant Classes

    Our 6th and 7th graders participate in a Covenant Class during Lent each year, learning about the nature of covenants, our own church covenant, and the decision to become a covenant member of the congregation. 

  • Baby Dedications

    When babies are born and when children are adopted into families, we as a congregation bless them and we witness the parent(s) dedicating themselves to faithful nurture of the child’s spiritual life. 

  • Worship Helpers

    As 3rd graders, children go through Worship Helpers training, learning how to be good worshippers and how to lead worship. They then serve as acolytes, bearing the flame to light the Christ candle that reminds us of the presence of the Holy in our midst and leading the congregation in praying the Psalms.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What time are Sunday services?

    Sunday School begins at 9:30am and congregational worship begins at 10:30am.

  • What should I wear?

    Wear what is comfortable for you. There will be a few suits and dresses, and there will be jeans and t-shirts. Whatever you wear is fine.

  • Where should I park?

    Come up the driveway to the right—it’s a one-way loop around the church building. There is parking in front of the building, in the back, and on the lower side. There are all access parking spaces marked behind the building and there is an accessibility ramp entrance to the building there. The sanctuary is on this main level. There is also a ground-level entry to the building from the lower lot, with handicap parking spaces there, to access the lower level of the building where the Fellowship Hall is located.

  • Am I welcome to take communiton

    Yes. We take communion during the worship service of the first Sunday of every month. All are welcome at the table. We most often share communion by intinction, taking a piece of bread and dipping it into the cup, at three stations across the front of the sanctuary. Children usually come to the center station where a minister offers them a short time of blessing and connection.

  • What if I am differently abled?

    There are barrier-free entries on the main level (in the rear) and the lower level (from the lower parking lot.) We are deeply sorry that our 1950’s-era building was not built with accessibility in mind. We have studied the possibility of installing an elevator, but with our split-level facility, there is not a location to place an elevator that would reach all 3 levels. 

  • Anything else I should know?

    The worship hour begins with an announcement time at 10:30am. Bells are chimed to signal the beginning of worship; often, the choir sings introductory music from the entry doors to the sanctuary. If you arrive after 10:30, you’ll want to watch through the glassed French doors in the foyer until the choir processional begins. Otherwise, you might find yourself in the middle of a choral experience you hadn’t bargained for!