Acts 2:47 And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
(from The Holy Bible: New International Version. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984, by International Bible Society)

What makes a church?
Many people believe a church is the building people meet in, or that a group of people are not a church until they have a building to hold their meetings. However the Bible does not make this distinction. Often Paul sent greetings to the church that meets in the house of one of the early christians. Hope for the Future is a church that instead of meeting in a building or a house, meets on the sidewalk. Even in cold weather and after snow storms, Wednesday afternoon, the Hope for the Future church meets on the sidewalk in Lower East Side, Manhattan.

What about preaching the word?
When they meet, the church will do the same as most churches, including worship, hearing the word of God, maybe seeing some drama, or hearing the notices. The only difference is that they are not in a building. The worship is lively followed by preaching that presents the gospel in a relevant way but also challenges lifestyle and christian commitment so that the words of Jesus in Mathew 28 to create disciples is fulfilled. The preaching may include drama performed by volunteer teams who are getting experience in urban missions and often staying at Hope House. After the preaching there is usually a chance for people to pray the sinners prayer for the first time and be welcomed into the kingdom of God. There is also an opportunity to receive prayer for healing and other personal needs. Many of the people responding to God are dong so after coming to the ministry for their physical needs.

What about baptism and pastoral support?
Although there is no baptistry in the sidewalk, there is still a yearly baptismal service held on the beach on Long Island, although in early years the baptistry was an inflatable kiddie pool. Pastoral care is handled primarily by Pastor Diane Dunne which includes home visits (be it a tenement or a cardboard box), wedding services funerals and hospital visits.