By Jenny Peter

MONROE CITY, IN—The parishioners of the First Church of God here won't be sitting in their regular pews this morning [Sunday October 12, 2008]. Instead, you'll find them out running the streets.

More than 150 parishioners from the church, located at 4930 S. DeBord Road, are participating in Faith in Action Day, a national event where parishioners abandon their church buildings and look to serve God by serving their neighbors.

”Our slogan is: ‘Don't go to church, be the church’," said Youth Pastor Bob Morrison. “We're going to go out into the community and do whatever needs done.”

"We went through the whole town and went to every person in a wheelchair or who was disabled somehow, even the elderly, and asked them what they needed done. We got everything from cleaning out gutters to painting garages to weed-eating. The whole idea was to do anything people needed done that they couldn't do on their own."

In addition to painting houses, making small home repairs and picking up trash, churchgoers also are helping to pay for everyone's gasoline. The church will "buy down" fuel by 10 cents per gallon. For every customer that purchases fuel from Speedy Pete's in Monroe City, the gas station is lowering the price per gallon by 10 cents. At the end of the day, the church is paying the difference to the gas station.

But it doesn't stop there. Parishioners also are offering full service by pumping gas, washing windows, checking brake fluid, checking tire pressures and even adding oil to engines.

"It's back to the old days," Morrison said. "All the things you used to get for free, we're going to give you for free."

And if that isn't enough, the church is also buying them lunch.

"We're going to serve lunch to entire community," Morrison said. "Right there on Main Street in front of the fire department we're going to set up grills and just feed everybody."

The church also set up a health tent at the fire station on Main Street where it has nurses ready to do blood pressure and blood sugar tests. And those wanting to give blood can to do so at the church.

Volunteers are preparing care packages for troops serving overseas and are making exterior improvements to the Blue Jeans Center.

"The only real message we're trying to send is that Jesus Christ said love your neighbor," said Pastor Mark Nielson. "He didn't define who that was. So let's go out and share the love of Jesus. No strings attached.

"We have a great little community here, and we just want to do some things that will make it better," he said.

Article is courtesy of the Vincennes Sun-Commercial newspaper. Original article printed October 11, 2008. Photos supplied by the First Church of God.