WORSHIP TOGETHER
WHEN AND WHERE
We Worship Sunday mornings at 10:00 Onsite and Online.
Find the link for online worship in our ENews. You can find our Enews on our facebook page.
And, you can also sign up to receive our weekly ENews here.
Our campus is at 15 Overbrook Pl, Asheville, NC 28805
Our phone number is 828-575-9050.
An Asheville NC Church: Who We Are
Land of the Sky United Church of Christ is an emerging, progressive faith community seeking to serve the still-speaking God by living justly, loving abundantly, and walking humbly in the ways of Jesus.
We are young and old, gay and straight and in between. We are single and partnered, happy and sad, confused and inspired. We are street smart and college-educated. Some of us can’t pay our bills and others have more than enough to share.
We are God’s people. We are the Body of Christ. And you are so welcome here.
Here’s what we’re into – and why:
Love: We believe God’s love, grace, and mercy are the most powerful things in the universe. We want to embody it. We teach it, from cradle to grave. We believe God is love and those who know love know God, and so we want our kids to know love, and to define God as love.
Radical Jesus: We believe Jesus is incredibly radical, breaking all kinds of boundaries with his Sabbath-healing, women-touching, tax-collector communing, and more. Jesus is not one who tried to conform to social niceties, who excluded or hated others, who promoted war or war on the poor. Jesus lives in solidarity with those on the margins, and when we preach, teach, or share his Way we want to lift up how radical he is, a reality that gets lost in so many churches.
Social Justice Rooted in Repair and Restoration: If you try to cut all of the verses out of the Bible that deal with economic/social justice, our Scripture would be hole-y instead of Holy! God is deeply concerned about issues of justice, and so we are as well. Our denomination – the United Church of Christ – has been a pioneer in the contemporary Christian tradition on justice issues from race and class to gender and sexual identity. We partner with individuals, organizations, and other churches in Asheville NC to make a difference. We take risks for justice!
Creating Beloved Community in our Midst: The Christian faith has managed to convince so many that the most important thing about living is where you go when you are dying. We focus a lot on how we can live into the Divine kingdom (which Jesus said is within us) in the here and now. How can we live out the eternal life we have in Christ – today?
Welcoming Questions and Mystery: We are thinking people who also love that God is beyond our thoughts and imagining. So we yield to the mystery that is an inherent part of our faith, and believe that asking good questions can humble us, shape our journeys, and eventually lead us to new truth. Are you seeking? Your questions and explorations are welcomed here.
Expansive Images, Inclusive Language: Because God is always beyond words, we love to creatively play with images, language, and metaphors for God that surprise and delight us. Inclusive language means we balance our gendered metaphors/language of God as male with those of God as female. Expansive images move beyond gender and imagine God as beyond any binary we humans have created. God is always more.
We hope this gives you a snapshot of who Land of the Sky UCC is, what we’re into, and how you might make this your Asheville NC church home. If you want to learn more, we invite you to explore our entire website – and please stay in touch via our email updates, so you don’t miss a thing!
What to expect
Our worship service is at 10:00 am, both in person and online. Find the link for online worship in our weekly e-news or on facebook. (Don’t receive the e-news yet? Sign up here!)
Our congregation is fairly casual, so wear whatever makes you feel most yourself. We offer communion the first Sunday of each month, which is also Intergenerational Sunday and Share the Feast Sunday, when folks are invited to bring food to donate to our community pantry.
We celebrate communion at an “open table,” historically we have received communion by the ancient practice of intinction which means that all are welcome to come forward to tear a piece of bread from the common loaf and dip it in the cup; juice, wine, and gluten free bread are all available.
The flow of our worship includes words of welcome, music, the reading of Scripture, a sermon, sharing our joys and concerns, prayer, and a closing blessing. Worshiping with us, we hope you will encounter warmth and welcome, authenticity and thoughtfulness, drawing near to God who is made known to us in love. Our music is a mix of piano and guitar, inclusive hymns and songs from the wider world. Our worship is often seasoned with the sounds of the many young children who are part of our community. Kids are invited to attend Kids Spiritual Formation after Kids’ Time in the service.
During the Programming Year, we offer Adult Formation following worship from 11:30-12:30, on all the Sundays EXCEPT FIRST SUNDAYS.
We enjoy Pop-up Snacks on the First Sundays which provides time for fellowship and connection. Feel free to bring something to share.
As an open and affirming congregation, we welcome LGBTQ+ individuals and families into the full life and leadership of our community.
What to Expect with Kids:
At Land of the Sky UCC, we believe in the divine purpose of childhood as a period of wonder, exploration, and growth. We honor children’s identities, their membership in families of all shapes and sizes, and their essential role in our community. We also appreciate the collective effort needed to raise the next generation.
OPTIONS: Children of all ages are welcome in worship. Worship bags, found in our sanctuary lobby, are available for both readers and non-readers. Younger kids can enjoy (quietly) our Prayground with its coloring supplies, books, and toys. We also have a designated Youth Nook for middle-and high-school youth.
Nursery care is available for kids three and under from the beginning of the service, located in the Kids Wing on the bottom level of the education building. Our nursery is staffed by consistent, professional child care workers who are background checked and paid a living wage.
Kids may remain in the sanctuary for the entire worship service, but we ask that parents help foster worshipful behavior as their children grow. During the Programming Year, kids are invited to attend Kids’ Spiritual Formation mid-way through the service every week EXCEPT FIRST SUNDAYS. On First Sundays our Intergenerational Service seeks to help them learn the rhythms of worship.
More information to help your decide what works best for your kid(s):
Toward the beginning of the worship service, we offer Kids’ Time when children of all ages are invited to come forward for a message geared especially for them. After that, kids age 4 through 5th grade and their caregivers meet in the sanctuary lobby to sign in for Kids’ Spiritual Formation classes (during the school year) or Relax and Run.
Spiritual Formation classes are staffed by a combination of Volunteers from the LOS community and our childcare staff– all of whom have completed a background check. Relax and Run consists of an indoor classroom, our outdoor playground (when weather permits), and snacks. Click here to learn more about our Kids’ & Youth Ministry.
Questions? Contact our Kids’ & Youth Ministry Coordinator: kids@landoftheskychurch.org.
FIRST SUNDAYS: INtERgenerational Worship
First Sundays invite us to be a community that gathers all together in worship and then following at Pop-Up Snacks. On First Sundays we practice celebrate Communion. Intergenerational Worship invites our kids to be in the service throughout. An intergenerational activity is set at different tables throughout the sanctuary. It’s a little chaotic, and a lot of goodness. It invites us to help our kids learn the rhythm of worship and our adults get to be patient with the energy of our kids. We ask parents to be intentional in helping their kids participate in the parts of worship that they can, and to supervise younger kids at the activity tables. Feel free to bring canned goods for our community pantry.
Thankful for photography by our incredibly talented folks: Spaces: Maggie Shackelford and Headers: April Tarjick