I’m new here, what should I expect?

Which service should I attend?
As God’s people, united in faith around God’s Word, we are given a tremendous freedom in how we can choose to worship. At Abiding Savior, this means that while we have three distinct styles of worship in any given weekend, we truly believe that they are all unified in purpose and can be a blessing to you no matter what your previous experience. 

Our traditional services (7:50 and 11:15am on Sunday) employ more “traditional” instrumentation – the organ, choirs, bells, etc., and generally follow an established liturgy. The liturgies and hymnody are rooted in musical and theological tradition, but could be written anywhere from a thousand years ago to the previous week! This gives this service a tremendous sense of connection with the past, but also a connection to the present-day church and, hopefully, a sense of communication “with angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven”. 

Our contemporary services (5:00pm Saturday and 10:00am Sunday) generally involve acoustic rock worship leadership with guitar, drums, keyboards, and vocals. Blending the newest in contemporary Christian music and the best of the worship life of the Church throughout all ages, we maintain a devotional, congregational-song focused service, always directed towards God’s Word and its place in our lives. 

Nytelife (6:00pm Sunday), the youngest service at Abiding Savior, is the most “free-form” of the services. The style of music is similar to our Contemporary service, but more time is given to silence, to community/small group prayer, and to the deliberate study and speaking of God’s Word. A small, intimate, quiet service, Nytelife is both a great place to first experience our community and is a place where our regular attendees can be challenged in God’s Word. 

For festival services (Easter, Christmas, Holy Week, etc.), you will most likely see a blend of all of our various types of worship. On these occasions, we gather everything we have as a congregation and present it to God, united as one body of Christ! 

Every Sunday, from 9:00am-10:00am, we offer Bible Studies for teens and adults and Sunday School for children ages 3 to eighth grade. The classes meet in various locations on campus -- please take children to the School Office located in the center of campus for more information. The schedule and locations for adult Bible studies can be found in the bulletin news, or please ask an usher for directions. 

How do I get there, and where do I park?

We are located at 23262 El Toro Rd. in Lake Forest, CA. We’re actually just off a frontage road, between Muirlands and Jeronimo if you’re traveling on El Toro Rd. There is a map on this website, or please call us and we’d love to help you get here: (949) 830-1460. 

There are spaces marked out in our parking lot just for you! Look for the Visitor signs along the fence in the parking adjacent to the sanctuary. (The sanctuary lot can be accessed from the frontage road, it is the third driveway on the right after turning onto the frontage road from El Toro Rd.). You can certainly park in any of the parking lots, once you are here; feel free to ask anyone you see for directions. 

What should I do with my children?

We strongly encourage family worship! Please feel free to keep your children with you during the service. We know that it is not always possible, so our nursery is fully staffed and available for your little ones if you so choose. The nursery is located immediately to your left as you come in from the sanctuary parking lot. There is also a cry room adjacent to the sanctuary if you wish to remain with your children and view the service, but find them to be a little restless! 

What can I expect from my first visit?

You can expect a friendly greeting at the door (if not before!), a welcome into God’s presence as part of our community, and an individual welcome from those who have been a part of our community for a while. Whether you are just visiting the area or looking for a church home, we will welcome you whole-heartedly in Jesus’ name! 

You can expect to be able to participate in our worship service; our bulletin and video screen will guide you along. Our worship leaders and pastors will do their utmost to make sure that our worship is accessible to all, and if you have questions, concerns, or just want to meet some of the people up front, we would love to talk to you! You can expect that we will be thankful for your presence, and if you fill out a Visitor Card (located in the pews), you can expect that you will be contacted via your preferred mode of contact and be invited back to worship, and to experience our ministry opportunities, and bible studies. 

What is the Lord’s Supper, and do I participate?

As Lutheran Christians, we believe that the Lord’s Supper is no less than the body and blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in, with and under the bread and the wine – both are truly present. We teach that this Sacrament, instituted by Christ himself, is done in remembrance of Him, knowing our fallen state by standing in His forgiveness. We also believe that this is a “communal” experience – one of unity and brotherhood, and not to be taken lightly. 

All are invited to come to this life-giving Sacrament, but we ask that if you are unfamiliar with or have questions regarding what we believe about this, then we invite you to come forward simply for a blessing in Jesus’ name. (You are also welcome to remain seated.)