Wearing T-shirts that proudly proclaimed, "DON'T GO TO CHURCH (BE the church)," 57 people gathered during the normal 9 a.m. worship time on November 4, 2007, at St. John Lutheran Church, Farmersville, to receive their assignments, then left the building.

"Canceling worship on All Saints Sunday for a day of community service was bold, outrageous, and over-the-top" says Pr. Roxi Kringle, "but we did it anyway."

One of the first challenges that the planning team faced was what type of mission project would involve the entire congregation for the day. With the wide variety of ages and skill levels among congregation members, the team decided on three projects: raking leaves for the elderly and disabled, collecting and sorting children's winter coats, and making no-sew fleece scarves.

By the end of the day, six yards had been raked, 100 coats sorted, and 93 scarves made. The larger coats and scarves were then taken to Donegan and Marvine Elementary Schools in Bethlehem. Ten toddler-sized coats and 40 knit scarves were donated to St. Luke's Clinic in South Bethlehem.

The day of service was not a stand-alone event. The members of St. John's also took part in a four-week program of small group meetings, personal devotions, and sermon series. The theme of each week set the tone to look at the world the way God sees it – a world of hurt where the smallest act is multiplied.

Those who attended the small groups found themselves becoming more aware of the needs of the community and looked forward to putting feet to their faith, first with the rest of the congregation on the day of the project, then later with each other on a need they discovered.

In addition to the congregation's participation, Girl Scout Troop 8334 from Wilson Borough took on the challenge of collecting coats for children in need. Announcements in other congregations in the Bethlehem-Easton Mission District brought 100 knit scarves from one member of Holy Trinity, Bethlehem, who spent last winter knitting while confined at home. "I'm so glad they will be used," she told Pr. Kringle.

A grant from the Witness and Service Ministry Team provided the funding for a direct mail postcard sent to 5,000 households announcing the event to the neighborhood. "We had several people show up to help make a difference. They were amazed that we had cancelled worship and thrilled to be a part of the project," said Pastor Kringle.

At the end of the day about half of the volunteers came back to the church for a Celebration Dinner to share their stories and view a slide show of the day's work. Over and over they shared stories of gratitude. Because the leaves were very late in turning and falling, three of the leaf-raking teams told the homeowners they would be back when the rest of the leaves fell to finish the job.

For more information about the project, contact Pr. Roxi Kringle at revrkringle@verizon.net.