CLICK HERE to view a photo album of the creation and end result of Clio's Narnia.

Millions of moviegoers across the country entered the fantastical world of Narnia this weekend, but members and visitors at New Covenant Free Methodist Church (Clio, MI) have been walking through the wardrobe into another world for a couple of weeks already.

Everyone who comes to Clio's Free Methodist church this Advent season is invited to step through a pair of ornately carved "wardrobe" doors. Inside, barely visible through machine-generated fog, are a lamppost and 65 snow-covered trees arranged in groups, surrounded by stuffed taxidermy animals – musk oxen, bears and wolves, among others. Hundreds of transparent blue snowflakes hang suspended by fishing line from the ceiling, backlit by blue lighting. On stage are the beavers' home and dam.

Every Sunday a key character from Narnia appears, visually assisting Pastor Dale Woods with his sermon. On the first Sunday, the White Witch came through the curtain in a Turkish delight outfit, roaming through the audience trying to convince everyone that she wanted to find the sons of Adam and daughters of Eve — so she could make princes and princesses of them. She begged the crowd to let her know if they'd seen the children.

Because the White Witch represents bondage, each attendee found a card on his or her seat with a thumbprint on it. Woods invited all the members and visitors to write something on the card that might be holding them in bondage. They were then invited to bring the cards forward and leave them on the altar — symbolizing release. Two hundred responded.

On succeeding weeks, Edmond, Peter, Susan and Lucy are appearing. Each represents one or more character traits covered in Woods' message: temptation, courage, surrender, self-centeredness, innocence and wonder.

The creation of Narnia at the Clio church, and that of similarly wondrous visuals throughout the year, is the work of the church's dedicated environment team, ably led by Jill Porter. "We have such a visual society," she says. "People are used to seeing, not just hearing. And so we make a real effort to portray Pastor Woods' messages using as many of the senses as we can."

The environment team has about 25 volunteers, skilled in everything from fine arts to set and costume design to carpentry. In the past, when a guest speaker gave her testimony about having a drinking problem as a teenager that led to a crash in which someone was killed, the team brought in a crashed car and placed flashing red lights throughout the sanctuary. A message on time was given in a clock-filled sanctuary; a sermon on direction in life was preached with a huge compass onstage.

On the way out the door, New Covenant worshipers are invited to take a CD of the services. The Narnia CDs have been going like hotcakes. "The goal is to have them take away the message," says Porter. Clearly, the wonder of the 100-year winter and the creative portrayal of the message through Woods’ preaching and a variety of artistic means are having quite an impact. Even the children are clamoring to attend the services.

New Covenant Free Methodist Church is one of the denomination's oldest and largest churches, regularly welcoming just under 1,000 to its two Sunday services.