We’re Always Excited to Greet New People!
Thank you for taking the time to visit our website. Given the sheer number of churches, along with their websites in the Mechanicsville area, we're glad you found ours. Take some time to explore what Grace United Family Church is about. And when you are ready, please take the time to visit. Our prayer is that you will discover that we are a family who seeks to faithfully and joyfully follow the Lord Jesus. Welcome!
Please don't worry about what to wear!
As you will discover, our clothing "style" is casual. But feel free to dress up if you want to!
When you walk in,
introduce yourself to one of our greeters in the foyer. They will offer you bulletins and other things of use during corporate worship and beyond. The greeters can show you the restrooms, fellowship area, and kitchen. If you have any questions about the service itself, the greeters can provide helpful answers.
Be sure to hang around after the service so we can get better acquainted!
Face to face interaction is better than looking at the back of the head of the one you sat behind! After corporate worship, set aside a little time so we can meet you, and for you to meet us!
What To Expect
when you visit for the first time,
You get a smile and a handshake (or a hug!) from just about everyone. We are delighted to see new faces and want to get to know you.
During the service,
The preaching of the Scripture, the Word of the Living God, is central to the ministry of Grace United. We seek to know and understand the Lord and his ways through the accurate handling and application of God's holy word.
We sing songs which seek to honor the Lord and lead his people to worship him. We sing a variety of songs, from hymns of the Faith, to contemporary songs and all points in-between, all sung with the purpose to turn our hearts and minds to the One we've come to worship!
We set aside a time during Corporate Worship for "Open Worship" where we have the opportunity to share with one another a Scripture passage, a brief, personal "victory story", or a heart-felt prayer request--and we pray for them on the spot.
We make it a point to remember in prayer our Christian brothers and sisters around the world who are being persecuted for their faith in Christ.
Here at Grace United, you'll find ordinary people who behold an Extraordinary God. We are passionate to live out our mission, part of which is: "To live together in love and unity." Whether you are just beginning to explore the truth of God in Christ or have followed Jesus for many years, we invite you to visit with us. Our Sunday service begins at 10:30 a.m.
"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works." -- Hebrews 10:24
At Grace United Family Church, we are committed to the mission we believe the Lord has charged us with: "Upon the foundation of prayer, we exist to love God, learn the Bible and care for people, the lost and the found." Our ministries are all geared around fulfilling this mission
Prayer Ministry
The foundation of Grace United Family Church is prayer. During the week we gather to simply, and profoundly, pray. We do not talk about prayer, or spend a lot of time sharing prayer requests, but we actually pray!
We believe it is vital to the ministry, and our own souls, to set aside Sunday mornings 7:30-8:00, to come before the Lord and commit the day to him. On Tuesday evenings, 7:00-8:00, we have a "sweet hour of prayer."
In addition, we have two vital avenues in place to keep one another aware of prayer needs and praise reports. One is a bi-weekly "Prayer and Praise Guide," and the other, a very active prayer text ministry.
Children and Youth
In keeping with our Family Integrated model of ministry, Sunday mornings find everybody at Grace United doing everything together. This includes our time of Bible Fellowship (some call it Sunday School) and corporate worship. We believe the local church ought to supplement, rather than serve as a substitute, for the privilege of fathers and mothers rearing their children in the "discipline and instruction of the Lord."
During Bible Fellowship and Corporate Worship, we work hard to include the children with interactive learning activities. However, we know that, regardless of our age, much more learning is "caught" than "taught." And it is amazing what children catch as they watch and even at times listen to the "big people!"
The youth are invited to fully participate in the various activities that comprise corporate worship, to include delivery of the message during our annual Youth Sunday!
Men's Ministry
Men's ministry affords opportunities for men of all ages to get together to build strong relationships with one another. We provide a place where men can be themselves, without pretense, in a confidential forum. On Fridays especially, we interactively cover a previously agreed-upon topic, seeking to understand and apply God's word to the issues of the day. We meet first and third Thursdays from 6:40-8:00 p.m. and Fridays from 1:00-3:00 p.m.
Women's Ministry
The Grace United Ladies Gathering is a group of women primarily from GUFC who meet together on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. at the Hawkins Home. Their two-fold purpose is to build deep relationships with one another and to grow in the wisdom and knowledge of the Lord Jesus. The Gathering is hosted by Kitty Hawkins and Natalie Pheifer.
Small Group Bible Studies
Part of our mission statement is that we exist to learn the Bible. What this means for us is that we try to answer this question: "What did the Bible mean to those who first heard it?" But it doesn't stop there. We seek to take what we learn and apply to our lives the eternal truth we discover in our study of God's word.
On Sunday mornings, 9:00-10:00, and Wednesday evenings, 7:00-8:00, we gather around a book of the Bible and, in an interactive way discover what Scripture says, what it meant "back in the day" and how it applies to our lives today. The discussions are lively! And we come away from our meetings with a deeper knowledge of God, his word and one another.
Living Classroom
It's no secret that the one we follow was Jewish! To know how to follow Jesus better, we seek to understand the world in which he and his disciples lived. We do this through what we affectionately call, "living classroom."
Over the years, we at Grace United have gained great benefit by "living out," or re-enacting several important Jewish feasts that certainly our Lord attended in the days of his ministry: Passover Seder, the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), and the Festival of Lights (Hanukah). However, since we are not Jewish, we try to arrange our "Jewish classroom" to include us Gentiles, as we see Christ in the Passover, for example.
"Good Work" Projects and Ministries
Grace United is unashamedly pro-life. By this we mean, every person bears the image of God, beginning from the moment of conception. David writes in Psalm 139: "For you formed my inward parts. You knit me together in my mother's womb." Therefore, as a fellowship we are actively involved in the East End Pregnancy center, volunteering our time, sharing updates with one another and giving of our resources to help promote the pro-life cause in the Richmond area.
Operation Christmas Child is a popular, international outreach to children established by Samaritan's Purse. Grace United has been actively participating in this very worthy outreach for many years. Scripture tells us "it is more blessed to give than to receive." Through the packing and sending of shoeboxes, it has been our desire over the years that boys and girls would experience the love of God and the gift of salvation found in the Lord Jesus Christ.
