It's like going to church ... if church was full of livestock

It was, as one worshiper aptly described, "like church on Noah's ark."

As nearby roosters crowed and sheep bleated, about 30 people gathered at one of the agricultural barns for a worship service at the Lake County Fair in Grayslake. The 25-minute, nondenominational service is an annual event at the fair, which wrapped up Sunday. As has been the case for the past few summers, the Rev. Orrell Ruth, a retired United Methodist minister, led the service.

He didn't mind the service's unusual location one bit.

"I think we can worship anywhere," said Ruth, of Grayslake. "We can worship outdoors. In fact, Jesus worshiped most of the time outdoors."

Fair board director Bill Obenauf said the service started seven or eight years ago as a way to provide a religious program for people who couldn't attend a service at home because they were involved with the fair.

"A lot of people related to farms and agriculture are church people," Obenauf said. "If they don't get the rain and the weather they need, they don't get a decent crop. So they're very aware of the land of the Lord."

The service featured musical accompaniment from a guitarist and a keyboard player. It also included a comedic puppet show about the biblical figure Gideon and his efforts to free the Israelites from the Midianites. Siblings Matthew and Rose Craig of Ingleside staged the well-received performance.

The worshipers all were dressed casually. They prayed and sang from metal bleachers set up on one side of the barn.

Among the attendees Sunday was fair goer Matt Sample of Mundelein, who said he likes to hear religious messages from different pastors.

"And it always makes you feel good," he said.