Nazarenes offer kisses to Marion

MARION - If somebody comes up and plants a Hershey's kiss, or a whole pack of kisses, on you this week, don't be surprised. It's probably just a member of the congregation of Marion First Church of the Nazarene.

The church is in the midst of its Kiss Marion project, which, according to Outreach and Young Adult Pastor Gregg Parkman, is intended to express the love of God in a practical fashion to residents of Marion County. Kiss Marion is part of a larger church outreach called So Random, which started in 2015.

"We actually do it twice a year," Parkman said. "The first one typically happens in February, with the theme being Kiss Marion. We do a second one in May when we distribute Coca-Cola all throughout Marion. It's called Coke and a Smile Day. We just go out and bless people with a can of Coke and follow up with a random act of kindness."

Parkman said church members generally go above and beyond the stated goal of the particular So Random idea.

"That's the so random part of it," he said. "A lot of our folks typically follow up with something else. If they're at a restaurant, they give their waitress or waiter a really good tip. We know of some of our people that have been at gas stations, they give out a Kiss pack or give out a Coke and then pay for somebody's gas. Or somebody's at Wal-Mart and they'll pay for their groceries. We hear a lot of different stories like that."

About 2,000 kiss packets were prepared for the campaign, which runs through Valentine's Day, Parkman said. Each packet contains seven Hershey's kisses and a card with information about the church written on it.

The So Random program is one of many outreach endeavors that members of Marion First Church of the Nazarene are involved in throughout the year. Parkman, who joined the pastoral staff in 2014, said church leadership encourages the congregation to engage the community on a personal level.

"Our church is very community-focused," he said. "We love our community. We're out there all day, every day, but this gives a big push for all week of just being out there giving some people smiles and hope and love, just letting the church be the church. That's the So Random concept of getting our people outside these walls, meeting people where the work, where they go to school, and just flooding people with love and encouragement."

Parkman said the simple act of just sharing a pack of chocolate kisses or a can of Coke has produced some incredible results in people's lives.

"We've had some people that actually started coming to church and re-engage with Christ as a result of this outreach," he said. "It's been really cool to see how God has kind of used that simple thing to help change someone's life."

The So Random projects also allow church members to practice their faith in the community, Parkman said.

"It encourages our people to use their platform," he said. "I say everybody's got a platform, so use your platform for some good, some positive outflow. Our folks really get excited about that. Most of the people are very positive about it. They like doing that."

Other outreach initiatives that First Church of the Nazarene engages in are Adopt A Block, Adopt A School, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Celebrate Recovery and a jail ministry.

The church also hosts Restoration Weekend in August, when church members engage in community service projects. Parkman said more than 450 members participated in the outreach last year.

"Our mission, pretty much why we exist here as a church, is to restore hope to our community through Jesus Christ and serving others," Parkman said.

For more information about Marion First Church of the Nazarene, visit www.mfcn.org, or call 740-383-6021. The church is at 233 W. Church St. in Marion.

eacarter@gannett.com

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Twitter: @AndrewCarterMS