photo by: Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

Pastor Martin Lee leads a parking lot service at the Immanuel Lutheran Church In Lawrence on Sunday, March 29, 2020. The church plans two "Praise in the Parking Lot" services on Easter.

On a yellow pad of legal paper, Dudley Karstensen writes messages such as “Have a good week” and “God bless you,” then holds them up against his car window.

This is how congregants have been interacting during church services the past three weeks at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 2104 Bob Billings Parkway. Though the church has discontinued ordinary services because of concerns about COVID-19, it has found a new way to come together for worship: by congregating in cars in the church parking lot.

It’s a new experience for the Rev. Martin Lee, the church’s interim pastor, but one that adds a family feel to the unique services.

Congregant Beth Dwyer said, “We teach our kids early on that the church is not a building. The church is the people.”

photo by: Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

Pastor Martin Lee leads a parking lot service at the Immanuel Lutheran Church In Lawrence on Sunday, March 29, 2020.

Leslie Traylor, church secretary, said the congregation was worried that services might be affected by Gov. Laura Kelly’s Tuesday order to apply a 10-person limit on gatherings to religious services. This order was shot down Wednesday by a legislative committee, and Thursday, Kelly sued the legislators and called for an expedited ruling from the Kansas Supreme Court, which is hearing the case Saturday.

Despite the changing orders on the state level, “Praise in the Parking Lot” has been approved by Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health, director Dan Partridge said in an email Friday to the Journal-World.

“While ‘praise in the parking lot’ is an innovative way to balance risk and life, it is impossible to say it is risk free,” Partridge wrote. “It is however, in compliance with what we believe are reasonable public health precautions.”

During the services, church-goers remain in their cars with the windows up. Only a handful of members help out with the service from the outside, including the pastor, a tech crew and parking attendants. Congregants hear the pastor’s message by tuning into an FM transmitter on their car radios. Music for each service is pre-recorded and also streamed through the transmitter. Fifty to 75 cars have been in the parking lot each Sunday.

photo by: Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

An usher directs attendees to a parking spot for services at Immanuel Lutheran Church In Lawrence on Sunday, March 29, 2020.

Dwyer’s car is one of the fuller ones. Her family of six enjoys the community feel of the church service as well as the creativity of it. They especially enjoy using their car horn to interact during the service.

Honks can serve as an impromptu “Amen,” as well as a way to take attendance. During the children’s message, Lee invites every child in each car to take a turn honking, to let him know they’re there.

“You’d be amazed at how honking with people makes you feel like you’re part of the church again,” Dwyer said.

Karstensen is an elder in the church community and helps the pastor with duties. But so far, he’s remained inside his car for all services. He said that for the Good Friday service, he would help out by ringing a bell, a newly complicated task.

From within his car, Karstensen will pull a rope that will hang out his window and be connected to a bell, which he will ring multiple times.

In addition to wanting a community feel, Traylor said another reason the church opted to congregate in the parking lot was because many of its older members were not comfortable using technology to watch online. The service is streamed, however, for those who do wish to remain at home. Those interested in watching the services may go to the church website, immanuellawrence.org, for more information.

This Sunday, the church will host services at 9 and 11 a.m.

photo by: Contributed Photo

This sign telling passersby that a “parking lot church service” is going on will be installed outside Immanuel Lutheran Church on April 10 to alleviate concerns that anyone is inside the building.