What to Expect on a Weekend

We are on the corner of Hooper Avenue and Chestnut Street in Toms River, NJ. (If you want to drop our exact address into Google Maps, we’re at 1070 Hooper Ave, Toms River

From our Chestnut Street entrance, park anywhere in the lot and follow the signs to the Main Entrance.

From our Hooper Avenue entrance, follow the signs around the rear of the building to the Main Entrance.

Take the Main Entrance through the covered walkway and come in to our Welcome Center. Our hospitality team will greet you when you enter. Ask them any questions you have! They’re happy to answer, as well as to help you find your way around.

Contemporary Worship (Saturdays 5 pm/Sundays 10:30 am) – Music is led by our band at these services and includes guitars, keyboard, bass, and drums. The service lasts about 1 hour and 15 minutes and includes a thought-provoking, Biblical, gospel-centered message from one of the pastors. Grab a seat in one of the rows of seats or at a table (complete with coloring sheets and crayons for the kids in your family!)

Traditional Worship (Sunday 9:30 am) – Music in our traditional service is led by our choir, as well as piano, organ, and sometimes even handbells and other classical instruments. The service lasts about an hour and includes a thought-provoking, biblical, gospel-centered message from one of the pastors. Grab a seat in a sanctuary pew or in the chapel.

Online Worship – Worship with us live online on Saturdays at 5 pm (Contemporary Worship) or Sundays at 9:30 am (Traditional Worship). You can find our livestream on our website (pctr.org/live), on Facebook (facebook.com/pctrnj), or YouTube (youtube.com/pctrnj).

You can always view past services on YouTube (link to: https://vimeo.com/showcase/pctrnj).

We want you to be comfortable. Come dressed in what feels right for you. What you’re wearing should never stop you from attending worship.

Our contemporary services (5 pm Saturday/10:30 am Sunday) are more casual. You’ll find folks in everything from casual dresses and slacks to jeans, shorts, and tees.

Our traditional service (9:30 am, Sunday) does tend to be more of a business casual to business formal crowd when it comes to dress.

We love kids! We have a spot for kids, infants through 5^th Grade, every Sunday at 9:30 and 10:30 am.

Preschoolers through 5^th Graders are invited to join their families in worship. Part way through worship (about 15 minutes in), kids step out with our crew of church school leaders for a lesson designed just for them. Parents can pick up their kids after worship from their classes. After worship, your kids will be waiting for you in their church school room. (You’ll find a specific list on the back of your worship handout.)

Our younger friends (birth to age 2) are welcome to join us for worship or they can play with our team in the nursery. Nursery is available for the full duration of worship.

We love students too! Our middle school and high school students gather to worship together or serve together in church school at the 10:30 contemporary service. To cultivate both a heart for worship and a heart for service, we serve in church school every other week and remain in worship together for the full service on the other Sundays. If your family worships at the 9:30 traditional service, you’re also welcome to connect with Next Gen: Kids to serve in church school from time to time.

And that’s just the start of it. Click to learn more about Next Gen: Kids and Next Gen: Students

However you complete that sentence, the answer is “Yes. You are welcome here.” You don’t have to have it all figured out or your life put together. You don’t have to be a member of the church, a Presbyterian, or even sure you believe in Jesus. Our hope is that we are saved by the grace of God through Jesus. That message of hope, of redemption, of belonging, of purpose, of pure love, is at the core of everything we do.

Got more questions about Jesus? You may find them here: Start with Jesus. You can find other answers to other faith-related questions here: Faith Questions