24 Hour Churches? When is your church available?

The other day, something happened to me and DH as we were driving around, window shopping. No, not an accident, a phone call. It was something that made us want to run to church and praise God. Like dancing and cheering and praise and worship.

Like at the end of a movie, when the dry town finaly gets rain and every stops what they are doing to run into the church to praise God.

Then it ocured to us that the church is locked up.
(Yes, we are weird to be suprized, i know..)

Is your church 24 hours?
Do you have the option as some Catholic churches have the option, to come in and worship on your own?

If you do have that option, is there certain hours available?

Just curious how other churches do it.

We are not Catholic, and the local Catholic church is closed when no service is ongoing.

:?:

 

No ours isn't open all the time. The one I went to while growing up was though.

 

No, ours is not. I know of very few churches that ARE open 24/7! (Thankfully, God's not located JUST there, and IS on call 24/7!!!)

 

Ours isn't open 24 hours, but there are quite a few things that go on at night there so it's pretty common for the church to be open until at least 8pm on many days. My hubby also has a key so we can enter whenever we want, LOL but if I really need God I don't need church to reach him...like Jackie said. I know what you mean though Jen. It's a certain feeling you get when you step in the doors. I know I get that way when I am at my church.

 

I was raised Catholic, so I have been known to step into a Catholic church to do just what you wanted to. Our church is not open 24/7, but there is one RCC in town that is. It's the big one. The one that seats the Diocese.

There really is nothing like walking into God's house to give Him thanks. Or even seek him in prayer. I know that you can do those things anywhere, but it someone just makes it a little better to be in church, purely from the standpoint of human emotion.

 

Our church is open from 9 am to 4pm everyday of the week (well, escept Staurday) and the evenings it is usually open for special things going on. Anyone can come in to pray, etc anytime the doors are unlocked. We have a large staff so there is always someone around to help you out if you need to see someone, etc. We even have a special prayer room that can be accessed from out side so you can go pray anytime without having to go through the church. But you do have to sign up to use that room, usually so you don't bother anyone who is there praying.

 

Hoosier Momma, that is a very cool set up with your church!

It occurred to me that in a time when we could use it most (An open church) we cannot because leaving a church unlocked all nigh invites the very problems that an open church might help.... it is a circle, for sure... one that I do not have the answer for, so I am not in anyway saying churches are wrong for closing.

But,
There are times when I wish I could just go sit in church and cry, you know?
Not necessarily cry for sadness, sometimes cry for joy.....just to sit in God's house and....well ... whatever...

Now, I know that it doesn't matter where you are, and I know that God was with us when we were thanking him and praising him, regardless of where we are...

But, yea...
I like to be in the church sometimes.

 

At our old church, I've actually said something to the secretary about having the doors unlocked when she's there alone! I would come in and work on Sunday School stuff during the week. I had my own key, too, but I would always tell her when I left, so she knew she was alone in the building. It simply isn't safe for a woman to be alone in a building like that with the doors unlocked.

 

I agree. Our church also got broken into several times in the last year. It's a scary world. It's too bad we have to worry about that stuff in church.

 

My home church used to stay unlocked all the time. They only started locking the doors when the insurance company threatened to cancel the policy. Not many churches stay open 24/7 anymore.

 

I am Roman Catholic and our church is open 24/7.......HOWEVER, we have a combination lock on one door and all the parishners know the code (it happens to be our Priest's birth year!). Dh and I have been late at night when we really felt the need to in the presence of the Holy Eucharist. It really is neat that we have that option. 99 percent of the time, it is fine to pray at home, but just sometimes you just really need to be there!!:angel:

 

When I was in college in Bowling Green, the Lutheran church across from campus would have silent communion once a week, on Wednesdays. You would go in, sit and pray, and then go up to take communion when you were ready. A friend took me once, and I loved it!!! I went fairly regularly. I could see how wonderful it would be to be able to just go in and sit for a while like that, Shawna!

 

Yeah, I remember being raised Catholic and churches being open 24/7...that is very nice. My church is not open 24/7. However, you can reach the pastor 24/7 if need be. Though it would be nice to have a church open 24/7 like the Catholic church.

 

Wow sure would be neat to have a 24/7 church!

 

I thought of this thread today. I was at church working with a friend getting ready for Christmas Sunday service. I didn't want to leave, I felt so at peace there. It's like I feel carefree when I walk through the doors.

 

I have been at the same church for my whole life. I could walk through all three stories blindfolded I think. I wish we could leave it unlocked for everyone who wanted to come in but we can't. We have to lock the doors now. We have had a drunk come in and start "preaching" from the pulpit one day when the doors were unlocked. A lady in the office heard him and went to see what was going on. We had someone break in through a window and break out a huge plate glass window to the library. During a recent renovation we were doing, one of the painters broke into the office and took our kids money for camp. I think it was about $1200.00 in all. We caught him in the act when Freddy installed video cameras. He came back twice more and took some items from the pastors desk and the money for a Wednesday night meal. Stuff like this happens to us a lot. We have had someone using our computers to look at porn and we had a man sleeping in our furnace room. He had tried to start a fire in the corner but thankfully didn't catch the church on fire. We are located near a major highway. Freddy has a key so I can use it and my sister is a pastor at the church so we are there a lot. I work with the after school program on Wednesdays so I have to be able to get in to prepare snack before the kids get there. We have a prayer garden at our church that is open all the time to anyone who wants to use it. It has a fountain and a gazebo in it. There are huge gates that are usually open but even if they are shut they are never locked. I hate it has to be this way but it is too dangerous to leave the doors unlocked anymore.

 

My church is not open 24/7, but pretty much everyone has a key. There have been a few times when I've gone up at odd times to pray, it's nice to be able to.

Lisa

 

We actually lock the church doors 20 minutes after the service starts on Saturday nights!!!

That's because we're located in the Inner City, and we have "street people" come in. We have a meal after the service. Our pastor and his wife have been involved in street ministry for over 20 years. The rule is that THIS meal is only for those attending service. Otherwise, we'd get lots of people coming in five minutes before it's over. Once the doors lock, NO ONE gets in. The street people know the rules, and if we were to break it for ANYONE, they get upset about it.

 

That sounds reasonable, Jackie. Our church is not located in the inner city but we have had our share of people wander in. We help anyone willing to stay for the service or if it is not on a Sunday or Wednesday..anyone willing to hear about Jesus. They don't have to get saved for us to help just listen.

I was part of an awesome experience like that last Easter. A woman in need of a bus ride home after being dumped off by a friend....came to our church for help. I talked to her and stayed with her through the service. She got saved!!!! Woohoo! The church bought her dinner at a really nice restaurant and we got her bus tickets.

 

I think it all depends on your definition of "church".

The bible says WE are the church...so, yes, I'm open 24 hours a day (although I sleep some of the time!).

I don't know many modern church buildings that ARE open 24 hours anymore...we don't live in a world where that is practical, unfortunately.

Of course, where two or more are gathered, there he is in the midst.

YOU ARE THE CHURCH !