From its inception, it was the hope of our sister Presbyterian churches who sponsored us that we be different, encouraging us to experiment freely with worship practices and organizational forms. They also desired that we would be very mission oriented.
Mission orientation means that, as a group, we would understand ourselves to have been called into existence for the sake of the world. While inward-focused nurturing programs are critical, their purpose is to better equip God's people to be blessings to the world.
When we first considered purchasing property, some of us were very hesitant, fearing that it might lead us into becoming a building-focused or inward-focused church. However, when we considered the Mellinger's property, we immediately foresaw how the unique combination of land, buildings, and growing history might lead to a distinct missional focus. The question was asked among ourselves, "If we buy this property, how can we design it in such a way as to be a blessing to the community?". We also asked this question of Christian leaders across the country. In short, the consensus was that we could use our site as an educational agriculture center to support urban agricultural efforts, address local poverty, and address local and world hunger issues.
Feeding the hungry was an OT emphasis as well as one emphasized by Jesus, so it was clear that addressing hungers issues was a very faithful thing to do. We could have simply decided to grow food to give away to the hungry, but the old adage about giving a fish or teaching a person to fish encouraged us to think more deeply. With our educational space we could indeed teach people how to grow food for themselves.
Part 2: Recent Work and Some Future Plans
Over the last two growing seasons we have been involved in just that. While our efforts and results were modest, they have led to a couple of important projects. For one, a grant from the State of Ohio will allow one of our partners (Flying High) to pay us to train 16-24 year olds in market gardening. The goal is to prepare young people to generate income for themselves. Thus in this one project, we are addressing both poverty and hunger. Yet there are benefits beyond that: we will be connecting with young people with whom we normally would not have opportunity to do so. Through this effort and while we clearly maintain our Christian identity, we will be witnessing to others of Christ's love for all. (More plans will be announced soon).