Schertz UMs work to ‘be the church,’ not go to church

By Rachel L. Toalson
Staff Writer
Wynonah Biggs was a prisoner in her own Schertz home.
Because of macular degeneration, she could no longer see the stairs that led from her front door to her yard. For safety reasons, her doctor had advised her to steer clear of those steps. But they were her only way out.
Until members of Schertz UMC canceled worship one Sunday, built a ramp and set a 77-year-old free.
“The ramp meant so much to me,” Biggs said. “Now I can go outside without fear of tripping. I feel like I’ve been set free. It meant everything to me.”
As part of a six-week Faith in Action campaign that began Oct. 14, leaders of the 393-member Schertz congregation replaced worship services Nov. 4 with service projects—donning shirts bearing the words, “Don’t go to church. Be the church.”
Biggs was only one of the more than 250 community members served by more than 1,000 Schertz members and visitors.
The church’s choir sang songs for Biggs, and the confirmation class delivered homemade soup and cookies.
“It was a great day—fantastic,” Biggs said. “I just think everybody should be blessed with a church like this. They are really something else.”
The church studied literature from the Faith in Action series for several weeks before the Nov. 4 event, said Alice Sutherlun, Schertz program director. The literature caught her eye because it highlighted what Jesus said about service and how service could affect individuals’ lives.
More than 100 people participated in the small group studies, she said.
The Rev. Judith Sellers, pastor, said the Nov. 4 service event not only appealed to younger families—because it was different—but it also brought people from all three services together. A new visiting couple even went home to change clothes and help church members out.
“It was awesome,” Sellers said. “It exceeded all our expectations.”
Individuals and families worked on trimming trees, building ramps, cooking, mowing yards and washing cars, among many other activities. Participants:
> Spent 870 hours volunteering.
> Filled 45 Operation Christmas Child boxes, 10 boxes for college students and 24 boxes for soldiers.
> Baked 268 dozen cookies for the Kairos Prison Ministry.
> Sorted and shelved more than 2,500 canned goods for the Randolph Area Christian Assistance Program.
> Washed more than 30 cars.
Troy Bull and his 12-year-old son, Mason, spent all day working at Biggs’ house. His wife, Laura, and their other 12-year-old son, Chase, spent the day packing Operation Christmas Child packages.
Both parents said they hoped their children would grow up to remember the importance of volunteering their time to help others.
“It’s a great learning experience for our kids, to teach them how to be responsible Christians,” said Laura Bull. “They learn what it is to serve other people. You see so many kids who are so lost with no sense of purpose—even just the purpose to be a good person. I want my children to see what it’s like to be a giving and caring person.”
Troy Bull said, “I’ve done mission work for years, and when you leave after a project, there’s nothing like that feeling. This lady (Biggs) couldn’t build this ramp. But we could. It took one day, and it gave her a way to get out of her house. Everybody who saw that situation would do the right thing because that’s what (God) wants you to do.
“To see her come down that ramp for the first time was priceless. I want my children to grow up and learn what it is to serve other people. We’ve tried to show them that Jesus came down here and showed us how to serve, and that’s a big part of who we are.”
Laura and Chase also stopped by the home of John Dilley, 79. He needed help moving his plants to an enclosed back porch so they would not freeze come winter.
“I have a green thumb and can’t resist planting,” Dilley said. “So this means very much to me. If they hadn’t come, I wouldn’t have gotten (my plants) put on (my back porch), and they would have frozen.
“This is a wonderful thing. There’s nothing like it. It’s one of the best things that has ever happened in the church.”
Sutherlun said she hoped Faith in Action would influence church members and community members for years to come.
“I would like (church members) to become more purposely focused on missions and recognize that the small things they do every day are a part of that,” she said. “Like being kind to the grocery clerk, paying for somebody’s coffee, letting someone go first in line. Those things make a difference. I hope they will learn that one person can make a difference.
“And we’d like the community to know that Schertz UMC is involved in the community and that we are concerned for them and are here to spread God’s word to them wherever they need it.”