Salem United Methodist Church youth members hosted a free car wash at the church Saturday morning to help spread the gospel. The car wash was the first of its kind for Salem UMC, but church member and car wash worker Pat Miller has hopes that it will continue into the future.

"As long as there’s not any water restrictions, we’re going to try to do it again," Miller said.

There could be no truer source for the idea of a Christian car wash to have come from. "The idea totally comes from Jesus himself," he said.

Miller explained that John 13:5 and Acts 22:16 were the core themes for the car wash. At the Last Supper, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet of dirt from walking around Jerusalem as an expression of His love for them. Miller also believes that Jesus was setting an example for others by doing that.

The car wash workers made it clear that the service was free of charge. The church members funded the wash, and though a donation bucket was nearby, donations were not required. This, too, related to a core theme of the car wash.

"Everything’s free, but there had to be a price paid," Miller said. "We couldn’t make people come in here. They had to make the decision to come get their car washed, and pull in and let us do that for them. And salvation is just like that. Salvation is free. Doesn’t cost us anything, but it cost Jesus everything. He’s the one that paid the price."

The car wash workers had a fun and successful day washing the dirt from cars, and look forward to hosting the event again. Be sure to check out the Community Calendar for this and other events happening near you.