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We welcome you to attend our Sunday worship services. For those who cannot, or don't wish to, attend in person we offer our services online. Join us Sundays at 11 am on our Livestream page.

What to Expect at Church

If you have never been to a service at First Metropolitan United Church, come and check us out! We welcome and affirm all people regardless of age, ethnic or cultural background, income, gender identity or sexual orientation. Whether you have never attended a church service or have not been inside a church since you were a kid, our goal is to make you feel at home from the moment you enter the building.

• 9 a.m. Communion service (first Sunday of the month)
• 11 a.m. worship service

What about parking?

On Sundays, there is angle parking on Balmoral Road and ground level parking east of Balmoral Gardens Apartments on North Park Street.

On weekdays, there is parking on Balmoral Road and on the ground level, east of Balmoral Gardens.

What should I wear?

Our Greeters

Attending with Children

If you have children, ask the greeters to direct you to our  Children, Youth and Families program. Children may stay with their parents at the beginning of the service. After Children's Time, the children are then accompanied to Sunday School classrooms where they take part in age-appropriate Bible lessons, multimedia, music, crafts, games and much more. Our aim is to show kids how much fun church can be!

All our Children and Youth Ministry people have been carefully trained and screened and are committed to the safety and well-being of your child. Of course, you are also welcome to keep your children with you during the service. 

Our worship music

Services begin with an instrumental Prelude (organ, violin, flute, piano, oboe etc) to help set an appropriate tone for worship. Sometimes the Director of Music Ministry will set aside a few moments to teach the congregation a new hymn or to rehearse music that will form part of the worship service. This enables congregants to feel more connected and comfortable as they participate. 

Congregational singing comprises a carefully selected balance of hymns, both traditional and contemporary, which reflect the Message of the Day and the seasons of the church year (Christmas, Lent, Easter etc). The singing is led from September to May by the Sanctuary Choir which also provides a high standard of choral music from a wide range of traditions and cultures.

Our Message

Each week our Ministers offer relevant, life-applicable messages punctuated by humour and relate stories from the Bible to your everyday life and the life of the world.

We are a church that believes in reaching out to people at every stage of their spiritual journey, from those who are considering our church as their spiritual home to those committed Christians with an open heart and a passion for justice.

There is no doctrine that you have to accept in order to be welcomed - we think and let think.

Communion

Communion is offered at the 9 a.m. service, held on the first Sunday of the month,  and at various times throughout the year at the 11 a.m. service. We do so to commemorate Christ's final meal with his disciples and to celebrate his resurrection. 

Communion is open to everyone, regardless of denominational affiliation, church membership or belief.

What should I do about the offering?

At First Met, we provide baskets where you may place offering or prayer requests before, during or after the service. This time of offering provides a time of quiet reflection to recall and commit to doing the work of Christ in the world.

If you are visiting us, you are our guest and we don't expect you to put money in a basket. We celebrate our opportunities to give our time, talents and money: however, giving is never compulsory.

If you consider this your church home, you may prayerfully consider giving to First Met via cash, cheque, e-transfer to [email protected], through pre-authorized remittance (PAR) or through Canada Helps.

The Connect Card

We want to hear from you. There is a Connect Card in the seat pockets to let us know how we can serve you and what you might be interested in getting involved with. The seat pocket also holds a Prayer Request card that you can fill out if you would like someone from our prayer team to pray for you, your family or a friend. Both cards can be dropped on the offering plate or given to a Greeter or Ministry staff.

Refreshments and Friendship

During 'normal' times, each of our services is followed by time for coffee and refreshments, an ideal time to meet others and get to know one another. During the COVID pandemic we have been unable to meet for after-service refreshment. 

Accessibility

See here for further information.