Yes, it's true: The Church Without Walls meets outdoors, rain or shine, every Sunday, 52 weeks a year, in the first picnic pavilion at Candler Park. Once you pull into the parking lot you'll see us on the right.

It's also true that in the winter, our services can sometimes be surprisingly short -- and in the summer, they can get a little leisurely. But one thing that's always true is that we come together to worship and enjoy a potluck meal after sharing the Lord's Table.

And while we may not have walls in the sanctuary, we do have a roof over our heads and a place to sit. Although we feel compelled to warn you in advance on behalf of the park's caretakers, the City of Atlanta, that:

• The picnic pavilion where we worship isn't wheelchair accessible from the parking lot. We wish that weren't the case, but we only have so much pull with the city, so we've been praying to a higher authority about it.
• The nearest quasi-public restroom is at Radial Cafe, where owner Phil Palmer has graciously extended a welcome to our members. So take your mother's advice and "go before you go", because it's about a 15-minute walk from the sanctuary to Radial.

Having said that, in the three years we've been in the park, we've observed the following benefits of outdoor worship:

• We're the only church in town with a roaring hearth in the sanctuary.
• You can bring your dog.
• God does a great job of decorating the sanctuary, so we have one less committee meeting to go do.
• It's OK to walk around the church grounds during the service, which is great if you're one of those people who can't sit still.
• In the cold months there are hot beverages available in the sanctuary during the service.
• You can wear pretty much whatever you want. Remember to wear one more layer than you think you'll need, something warm to cover your head in the cold months, and insulated waterproof shoes if it's wet out.
• If it's winter and you're one of those people who runs a little late, you could miss us altogether on a really cold day, because we might set a record for how quickly we can get through the service.
• If there's a festival in the park, we get to move to the corner of McLendon Avenue and Candler Park Drive, which has a great expanse of grass, and the dogs love it.

If you're still wondering what sort of service you'll encounter when you join us, it's actually pretty traditional: We celebrate the Lord's Table (where we offer an open -- and we mean truly open -- communion), we sing mostly traditional Protestant hymns, we hear readings from the Old and New Testaments, and there's a Gospel-centered sermon. Afterward, we share a potluck meal.

We look forward to seeing you in the park. Remember to dress for the weather and arrive on time if it's cold out. And if you do arrive on time, you'll see that we start each service by greeting each other and saying, You're in the right place.