by MaryJo McNeill

SAN DIEGO - Traditionally, Sunday is a day when people gather inside a building for a worship service. But Nov. 17, members of New Seasons Church in San Diego exited their building and took their faith to the streets.

As the members gathered early that morning, Pastor Al Vines gave one simple instruction: "Show yourself as the church."

Throughout the weekend, more than 200 volunteers took part in at least one of three community service projects, including cleanup of local public areas, packing boxes of toiletry items for troops at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and providing 75 holiday meal boxes to families in need. 

The effort was held in conjunction with a national Faith in Action initiative that encourages churches to consider postponing their morning service, and instead go out and serve the community. The churches usually hold an evening celebration service after the projects are complete.

On April 27, churches all over San Diego will take part in a county-wide Faith in Action Sunday, reaching out in practical ways so their neighbors might understand what the church can offer a community. In other words, "Don't go to church this Sunday. Be the church."

For Angie Kretschma, a member of New Seasons, the slogan rang true as she served.

"There is such excitement to see the whole church together; it feels like being the church," she said.

Because Faith in Action Sunday coincided with the end of a church-wide 40-day fast, Vines was wary of the turnout for the service day. In the week leading up to Sunday, no one had signed up for the cleanup project. But as Vines - who was elected in November as second vice president of California Southern Baptist Convention - turned the corner to the church that morning, he said he couldn't believe his eyes as he was greeted with a full parking lot, Faith in Action t-shirts, volunteers ranging in age from children to senior adults, and signs and tents in place.

Earlier that weekend, volunteers delivered meals to families in the community. The boxes included everything needed for a Thanksgiving meal: a turkey, yams, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, vegetables and rolls. The church organized the distribution of Thanksgiving meals by collecting names of families in need from local apartment complexes.

Brenda Wheeler, a New Seasons volunteer who helped deliver the boxes, remembered one woman who met the group in her apartment building as they were leaving. She asked how her name could be added to the list to receive a meal, and because one of the recipients on the list hadn't been home when the group arrived, they had an extra meal they could give her.

"It had to be only by God we had an extra meal, because we had specific people we were giving them to, and all of them were notified of when we were coming," Wheeler said.

Vines echoed Wheeler's belief in God's sovereignty over the whole event; early in the planning process, New Seasons decided to make Faith in Action a weekend-long project, instead of the usual one-day event. It's a decision Vines said was God-ordained. On Saturday, the volunteers who delivered meals had no idea that the next day, one holiday recipient would decide to begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

"If we didn't go on Saturday, we would have missed the opportunity to usher in the Light the next day," Vines said. "Don't ever think what you do on one day won't usher in a blessing the next."

Sunday night during the celebration service, Vines reminded the congregation that ultimately the reason for Faith in Action goes beyond community service events.

"It's all about the one. One man got saved; that's what it's about. Lives get saved when you put faith in action."