NEW YORK--A youth minister from Saddleback Church in California has taken a new role as the leader of a "purpose-driven" evangelical church in lower Manhattan. Gregg Farah is using a unique approach to breaking ground in territory that has traditionally been difficult for new churches, according to Baptist Press.

"We wanted to meet practical needs, and have fun doing it," Farah said. "So we do surveys, but we also hand out Krispy Kreme donuts. In the summer we hand out bottles of water and in the winter cups of Starbucks coffee.

"Often those types of interactions stir up questions like, ‘Why are you doing this?' and ‘What's the catch?" Farah added. "Those questions lead to great conversations.

"For a culture steeped in Catholicism or Judaism, starting a church is not going to make sense to a lot of people," Farah said. "New Yorkers are going to watch us and just wait and see whether we are going to be here long term, and whether our actions match what we're saying."

Farah and his wife, Janine, became North American missionaries in 2002 and launched the new church, Mosaic Manhattan, last spring.

Farah grew up in New York and on the East Coast and said he feels he has come home. He had been planning to plant a church in New York as part of Southern Baptists New Hope New York emphasis in the city. After the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack those plans accelerated.

The Farahs worked with other Christians to form a core group that started the church. Servant evangelism has been one main outreach in a city not accustomed to receiving "something for nothing."

In addition to influences from Saddleback the Mosaic Manhattan church is modeled after the original Mosaic, a Los Angeles congregation of thousands that emphasizes experiencing God through the arts.

So services are anything but traditional and include activities such as the pastor skating across the stage or an artist interpreting a sermon through a painting.

Response has been slow. The church baptized four people after its first few months of services. The Farahs say it will take five to 10 years to develop the church and others like it.

"Our vision is to provide a church home for the 21 million people of metro New York," said Farah. "That's going to take thousands of churches, and we want to be a part of a movement of church planting that seeks that goal."