"I was searching, you know, I didn't really belong anywhere, and all of a sudden I see this flyer about Church 4 U. It kind of caught my attention. So I went to the service and met the pastor and a couple more of the guys and afterward they invited me to pray with them and the Spirit just had me…I fell in love with the church. That was just such a spiritual moment, a beautiful day, everyone was very warm and very receiving."

The Coles, together with Pastors David Thies and Larry Yaw open the doors to the neighborhood for Church 4 U in central Rockford.

Organizers hope that Church 4 U, a celebration worship event held at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Rockford's central site at 600 N. Horsman Street, will be the answer for the area's residents – primarily low- income African Americans. The monthly Sunday afternoon event features a locally prominent musician, Carl Cole, as well as NID Mission Facilitator Rev. Keith Haney, an African American pastor, who often preaches.

“Our musicians and leaders help make people feel comfortable,” notes Rev. David J. Thies, St. Paul's senior administrative pastor. “It shows we have a mixed leadership that works well together.”

Launched with the help of an Northern Illinois District LCMS Ablaze! Mission Outpost Grant last summer, Church 4 U is an offshoot of St. Paul's annual Neighborfest, an outreach tradition of the church for the past 18 years.

“Neighborfest was a way of reaching into the neighborhood, offering entertainment, activities for kids and food,” Thies says, adding that the event attracted approximately 200 people each year.

“Church 4 U is a little more worshipful – rather than just forming relationships, it's about drawing people closer to Jesus,” he says, adding that Church 4 U events still include a meal and some social time.

Like many urban churches, St. Paul has faced evolving neighborhood demographics throughout its 122-year history.

“There's a real challenge in the urban center, in that a lot of people there have had some church in their life but Lutheranism is not predominant among that demographic,” notes Congregation President Jay Wear, the first African American to hold the position at St. Paul's.

“But St. Paul's has never let a changing neighborhood stand in the way of proclaiming the Gospel,” Wear asserts.Curiosity may have brought Charles to Church 4 U, but it's the Word of God and the welcoming spirit that keep him coming back.

“You have to understand, me and other brothers associate a Lutheran church with white people,” Charles explains. “I was kind of leery, being a black guy, but I met the pastor and we talked and he touched base and everything lined up. I was just intrigued by the way the Lutherans got the real love of God and I felt good about that.”

In fact, Charles has become a missionary of sorts, spreading the news of Church 4 U at the shelter and around the neighborhood to his friends. So far, he's brought dozens of others to Church 4 U events.

“I tell them – don't judge the Lutherans by what you see, because they are really speaking the Word of God,” he says.

“Brothers and sisters who come to the mission may be down and out, but they know the Word of God. If you bring the Word of God to people, correct and out of the Book, the way God intended, they will receive.”

According to Thies, St. Paul ‘nipped around the edges' of this idea for about 15 years, but they didn't really have the means or the logistical support or experience behind them. That all changed, says Thies, when the district emphasis on New Starts...New Believers became a reality, and NID Mission Facilitator Keith Haney came alongside the church.

We were ready to go, but we needed someone like Pastor Haney to come along with a blueprint to follow and constant encouragement and advice along the way,” he says, adding that Haney helped St. Paul apply for an NID Grant to help fund it.

“Start-up costs are always the biggest hurdle to getting things going, so the grant really moved things forward,” Thies says. “The accountability structure is also helpful, in that I provide monthly updates about what we've done and how we're approaching the next step.“

Wear feels that the congregation's sincere desire to attract people from the immediate area could be realized through Church 4 U.

“Everybody at St. Paul had a vision for what we wanted to see, but we didn't know how to do it,” he says. “Church 4 U became the opportunity, and we were well-suited in terms of our desire to get it done.”

In a neighborhood that's approximately 50% African American, a local congregation that's approximately 90% Caucasian might seem out of place, but, according to Thies, the slowly changing numbers are encouraging.

“When I came to St. Paul seven years ago, our congregation was made up of less than 1% African Americans,” he says, adding that school enrollment is an encouraging 50-50 split. Still, the numbers lag behind the vision and the spirit of St. Paul's members.

“Martin Luther King Jr.'s ‘I Have a Dream' speech is a beautiful piece. If you want to live it, you come to this church and this school,” Thies says. “Church 4 U is one way to expand our vision.”

For Charles, it's more than just a vision – it's a reality. “They just showed me real compassion, they embraced me, and they asked me to be a part of prayer as they prayed for the community and stuff, and that just blew me out, I just couldn't do nothing but be a part of it,” he says. “They really opened their arms to me; they showed me real godly love.”