First Time Guests
 
Pelham Road Church gathers together for worship on Sundays at 9 &11. The early service is called “the gathering.” This is a quiet service where soft music, a message and times of reflection are used to prepare us to hear God. At 11:00 a blend of hymns and choruses  along with prayer, fellowship, and a message prepare us for our week ahead.

Pelham Road Baptist Church is located at 1108 Pelham Road in Greenville, South Carolina. From the intersection of I-85 and Pelham Road, go west for 3.3 miles. The church is on the left.

From the intersection of I-385 and Haywood Road, go north on Haywood Road for 0.3 miles. Turn right onto Pelham Road and go east for 1.2 miles. The church is on the right.

For an interactive map showing the location of our church, CLICK HERE.

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Entering the Parking Lot:
Guest and handicap spaces are near the front entrance to the Sanctuary. If these places are filled, there is plenty of close parking available. Even the farthest parking spots are close to the main building. In case of rain, we have greeters ready with umbrellas to assist you.

Entering the Main Building:
It’s easy to spot the "main entrance" of our church. Greeters are stationed at the door on Sunday mornings to assist you. They’ll be happy to show you to a classroom or help you find a seat for worship. The Sanctuary is behind the main entrance doors. Our fellowship hall and youth/older children classes are in the building to your right. The adult/preschool/young children’s classes are down the hall to your left. The church offices are in the first hall on the left.

Finding a Bible Study Class on Sunday Mornings (10:00 a.m.):
A greeter will be happy to show you to your class. There is a chart on the wall beside the giant mirror that gives you room numbers for our classes. Our Adult Bible classes are loosely age graded. However, we encourage you to visit several classes if you’d like. This way you’ll find the teaching style that fits your needs and the opportunity to hook up with friends for a lifetime.

Entering Worship for the First Time (9:00 & 11:00 a.m.):
Greeters and Ushers are available to help you find a seat if needed. An usher will give you a bulletin similar to the example on this page. You’ll notice when you enter our Sanctuary that it’s fine to "come as you like" to worship. Some men wear suits and ties, others are much more casual. Women come in dresses and pants. Youth and children are typically dressed casually. Jeans and shorts are OK.

It’s interesting that people have "favorite places" to sit. In our church, the adults and children usually sit in the middle and right sections. Our Youth typically choose to sit together on the left (piano) side.

Small talk is encouraged before the service begins. Some churches like for you to enter quietly, but our folks enjoy getting to know those around them. The God we worship is interested in our deepening our fellowship with each other as well as Him. So we spend time in every service talking to both.

Once the "call to worship" begins, you can follow the bulletin to know what to do. We stand for most of the hymn singing. We often have responsive readings, and the congregation reads the bold print. On occasion we have a "children’s sermon" so preschoolers – 5^th graders are invited to the front steps beside the piano. Hymn numbers are printed or the words to the songs are printed in the bulletin. We don’t have any creed that we memorize and say each Sunday. There are pew Bibles for you to use. The page number of the passages the pastor reads are printed in the bulletin.

The Welcome to Our Guests is casual and we won’t single you out.
We do have time in our service to welcome our guests. We will NOT single you out by asking you to stand or even raise your hand. We will simply welcome you and invite you to fill out a GUEST REGISTRATION CARD found in the pew rack in front of you. At the end of this welcome, we invite everyone to stand and greet those around them. The people around you will shake your hand and welcome you and all those around them.

The Invitation is not long and the pastor won’t beg you to come forward.
At the close of our service our pastor will offer an invitation. He’ll ask those who would like to pray, join the church, or to recommit their lives to Christ to come forward. At Pelham Road, you don’t have to "walk the aisle" or "come forward" to join. You may choose to join the church this way, if you like. You may also join privately by filling out a membership card and giving it to a staff member. You may also join at one of our quarterly guest luncheons.

Unless someone comes forward, we typically sing two stanzas of a hymn and close the invitation. The best decisions are often made standing in front of the pew: just you and God talking about what’s best for your life and family. We celebrate those private decisions too.

At the close of the service
We sing a closing song, and we exit together. The pastor is in the front vestibule to greet those who would like to speak to him. Greeters and other staff people are around to answer any questions you may have.

We DO NOT HAVE WEEKLY SUNDAY NIGHT SERVICES.
Pelham Road is "family friendly." We believe that in this hectic world, families need time to spend together. Especially busy families with children. Many of our Senior Adults live at Rolling Green and enjoy a Sunday night service in their chapel. Our Youth Group does meet from 6-8:00 p.m. on Sunday nights. Occasionally, we’ll have a special service or concert on Sunday nights. Especially before Christmas or Easter.

EXIT the parking lot to your right if facing the Sanctuary.
Our entrance and exits are ONE WAY. You’ll exit out the drive to your right beside the Fire Station (if facing the Sanctuary). We hope you’ll come and be our guest again.