In sheer scope, the challenge is massive. Around the world some 100,000 Seventh-day Adventist congregations are worshiping under trees, in rickety shacks, in tiny rented rooms—they are homeless. And with 4,000 churchless congregations added each year, it is a burning problem.

"Our evangelism is bringing them in, but without a building, we lose them to the church down the street," said Garwin McNeilus, a Minnesota-based businessman and member of Adventist-laymen's Services and Industries (ASI).

Each time a congregation has to change location, they lose an average of 30 members. Some groups have been forced to move multiple times, with disastrous effect to their membership.

Maranatha Volunteers International has been providing churches for Adventist congregations worldwide since 1989, and they knew an innovative approach was needed to help meet soaring demand. Attempting to solve this problem, Maranatha president Don Noble met with McNeilus and explored the idea of a steel church, one that would arrive as a pre-fabricated kit requiring minimal time and labor to build.

Thus the One-Day Church was born as a cooperative project between ASI and Maranatha. And it is indeed a church unlike any other, a galvanized steel frame and vented roof measuring 20 by 35 feet when assembled—enough to seat 150 people. Engineered to meet hurricane and earthquake safety standards, the One-Day Church is durable and rustproof.

The One-Day Church is delivered to the construction site as one fully contained kit weighing 1,300 pounds. A team of four using simple, readily available tools can erect the structure in one day. In fact, the very first One-Day Church was completed in six hours.

Cost-effectiveness was crucial in planning the One-Day Church. Arrangements were made to purchase the processed steel kits at cost, and the entire structure was carefully designed for both maximum strength and efficiency. An entire One-Day Church, including transportation and construction, costs $3,000. However, this year's ASI Convention Special Projects Offering provided dollar-for-dollar matching funds for the first 4,000 churches.

Involving the recipient congregation is a key element of the One-Day Church. Local members will be tasked with selecting the construction site and obtaining all necessary permits. They are also responsible to finish the walls and interior of the church. This provides the congregation with a sense of ownership, with "sweat equity" in their new church building.

Adventist leadership is squarely behind the One-Day Church. Jan Paulsen, World Church president, and Don Schneider, president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America, offered a special dedication of the project during this year's ASI Convention in Tampa, Fla.

"Worldwide church membership growth is tremendous, however we haven't been able to match that growth with church buildings," Schneider later said. "It's amazing how such a relatively small sum of money can build an entire church. And the effect on the congregation from having a church of their own is so great; this project is going to bless countless people," he added.

"The One-Day Church has tremendous potential and will benefit the worldwide church in ways never before possible," Paulsen said after the ASI Convention. He went on to describe how the church is a family, and like any family a church needs a home in which to grow and be nurtured. "The One-Day Church provides numerous such homes," Paulsen said, "places where our family can continue to grow both spiritually and in number."

The first One-Day Church is already standing—built this past July in Valle Hermoso, Ecuador. Soon there will be thousands.

More information about the One-Day Church can be found at www.onedaychurch.org.

Steve Hamstra, communication director for Adventist-laymen's Services and Industries