A Coronavirus Precautions Message
Hello Church,
Earlier this week we sent out an email with some encouraging precautions and an announcement of some modifications being made in our worship services because of the ongoing spread of novel coronavirus. A lot has happened in our community and our country over the last twenty-four hours, so I wanted to send another update on a few things that affect our church.
- While we continue to have no confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Leon County, large gatherings over the next few weeks have been canceled, including Springtime Tallahassee. This means that our outreach during Springtime Tallahassee is also canceled.
- We have also decided to cancel our Easter Block Parties this year. We intended to have gatherings in several neighborhoods around Tallahassee where families could meet together and we could issue invitations to our Easter services. We had six homes hosting these gatherings in six neighborhoods. However, in light of the encouragement toward social distancing and the fear people might have about meeting at unfamiliar homes, we have decided to hold off on this outreach effort.
- Right now we are planning on going forward with all of our Easter week services, including our Maundy Thursday service, Remember, our Good Friday time of reflection, and of course, Easter Sunday. We are still planning on taking communion at our Maundy Thursday service, with some modifications to how we normally serve it to minimize risks of exposure.
- We currently have no plans to cancel worship services on Sunday or midweek services. As Christians, we understand that our corporate worship as the people of God is a vital and fundamental aspect of our lives, which is commanded in Scripture (Heb. 10:25). It is not something dispensable or ancillary. However, there are indeed circumstances that would warrant canceling services, and we are prepared to do that if those circumstances arise. As we noted in our email yesterday, we have made modifications to some of the things we do every week, including the offering and greeting times, to minimize exposure. We have also ordered several hand sanitizer stands for our building, and while those won’t be in place by Sunday, they should be here next week.
- I also want to reiterate some of the precautions and encouragements from an earlier email, especially the importance of staying home and participating through the live stream on Facebook if you are sick or at risk physically (if you need any help with accessing our services online please let us know):
- Don’t panic (God is sovereign over viruses too).
- Wash your hands regularly (That’s the sensible thing to do).
- Stay home if you are sick and watch the service on the live stream (Out of love for your neighbor).
- Stay home if you are at risk physically and can’t take the chance on being exposed (That’s wisdom).
- For now, don’t shake hands or, if you do, use plenty of hand sanitizer (But fist bumps and elbow bumps are great)!
- We’re taking special cleaning precautions, especially in our children’s areas, including limiting and disinfecting toys, wiping down surfaces, etc. We do this every day after Weekday Education meets and before our services on Sunday.
I have always found Psalm 121 a great encouragement in times of uncertainty and fear, so I will close with that and hope to see many of you on Sunday.
God bless,
Pastor Gary.
Psalm 121:
I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade on your right hand.
The sun will not smite you by day, Nor the moon by night.
The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul.
The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.
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