Joel Sutton, senior pastor at First Evangelical Free Church, talked last Sunday about an older member of the south Minneapolis congregation who said she felt less useful to the church and to God as she grew old.

But then she was hospitalized, and she had a long conversation with a hospital chaplain who didn't know what it meant to be "born again" -- to surrender his life to Jesus Christ.

"God found a way to use her," said Sutton, a gifted preacher who blends everyday stories with biblical themes. "People in our own church family have shown us the way. Will you follow?"

The mission at First Evangelical Free is disarmingly simple: "to know and worship God, to grow spiritually and to help each other as we share the good news about Jesus."

At a time when many churches are working to make a difference in their local community and the broader world, this one pays particular attention on attracting others to its beliefs.

That's the cornerstone for Evangelicals.

The "true church," according to the denomination's 12-point Statement of Faith, "is composed of all such persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit."

Without such belief, people may not join a local Evangelical church -- although you are welcome to worship at First Evangelical Free even if you haven't undergone baptism by total immersion, commonly done at nearby Lake Nokomis, one parishioner told me.

One-third of the service is music alone, conducive to prayer and reflection. It's done beautifully, thanks to pianist Debbie Smith and five parishioners on the altar who lead the congregation in hymns, accompanied by worship leader Eric Twietmeyer on guitar.

It's especially helpful to have the lyrics for hymns projected on a large screen behind the altar. That allows people to look up when they sing -- toward the cross, toward each other -- rather than burying their faces in hymnals.

First Evangelical Free is a comforting place to worship. People are friendly. The minister and worship leaders wear street clothes, rather than imposing robes. The age range in the inner-city congregation -- which was founded in 1884, as the first church in downtown Minneapolis -- spans from young families to seniors.

The brick building, to which the congregation moved in 1951, displays not a touch of ostentation.

"We want to be a church that prays with you and prays for you," Sutton said. That's the ticket in the Evangelical faith, where people surround themselves with others who believe as they do and take refuge in knowing that they have found the truth.

• First-time visitors: "Creating a visitor-friendly environment" is among the points in the vision statement, and in that the church succeeds. I was warmly welcomed from the moment I stepped in the door. One man told me attendance has blossomed since Sutton arrived nearly a year ago. (Prayer has helped, too, he added.) After the service, two women insisted I join them for coffee, juice and doughnuts in the gymnasium of the spacious church, which was expanded in 1965 and includes a parking lot across the street.

• Programs and services: The nearly 300 members of First Evangelical Free could be active in their church everyday. Small-group Bible study meets at 6 p.m. Sunday. A parishioner hosts a women's study group in her home on Monday nights. A group plays basketball at nearby McRae Park on Tuesday evenings and Thursday mornings. Youth groups meet on Wednesday nights. Adult Bible Fellowship classes also meet weekly, focusing in coming weeks on the book of Judges.

A cardboard box labeled "Toothbrushes for Honduras," for a couple's medical and dental mission trip, was the only evidence I saw of outreach to produce any social change. A visit to the church's Web site, however, showed a host of missions -- from Japan to Macau to New Orleans to Cameroon.

Other programs are geared toward bringing visitors to church and having parishioners get to know each other.

• Memorable moment: Several people lifted their hands heavenward, smiling and swaying, as the congregation sang "Fairest Lord Jesus" (known in some churches as "Beautiful Savior"), a gorgeous old hymn that the St. Olaf Choir at St. Olaf College in Northfield has used for decades to close its concerts.

-- Amy Gage is a free-lance writer in Northfield. Contact her at agage {at} charter.net.

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