Safe Worship

It has been an information overload week for many pastors/preachers I know, of all persuasions. Email, Facebook posts, and texts focused on Governor Reeves “Safe Worship—Guidelines for In-Person Worship Services” that was released on Tuesday. As expected, there has been the full range of responses from ”Now we can go back to church”, to “Eight pages of fine print that still don’t make me feel any safer”. Some have had ‘emergency’ council, deacons, or session meetings; others are ‘waiting on the Lord’. 

Perhaps you have thoughts on the subject?  If so, feel free to share them with me, or any member of our Session. One of the best things I saw this week came from our neighbors in the Mississippi Presbytery. In their ‘guidance’ on the subject of ‘reopening churches’, here are two questions they asked Sessions and congregations to consider:

• Do we want to use the resources of time, talent and treasure available to us to figure out protocols and practicalities for opening buildings in a way that might help people stay safe but will not be guaranteed? Or,
• Do we want to use the resources of time, talent, and treasure available to us to be the body of Christ dispersed and deployed until it is safe for all people to return to our buildings without restrictions?

These will be a focus of our Session’s next stated meeting on Wednesday, June 3rd. In addition to your input to the Elders, please be in prayer as they consider the ‘when and how’  of resuming face to face activities, particularly worship. Meanwhile, if you are open, we are looking for those who would like to offer their gifts to assist with our video worship services.