Covid-19: Getting Back Together
WHAT TO EXPECT THIS SUNDAY
- PEOPLE. Old. Young. Regulars. Newcomers. Babies. Kids. Those who are waiting to hug and high-five and those who are cautious about stepping outside. Be courteous, kind and filled with grace - this season of social isolation has impacted us all differently.
- PROTECTION. We're working hard with the Doubletree Hotel staff to ensure that you are in a safe environment according to all the relevant guidelines. We'll have face-masks and hand-sanitizer readily available, thermometers at the entrance and at the kids' check-in station, and seating that is appropriately distanced in the auditorium.
FAMILIES WITH YOUNG CHILDREN PLEASE RSVP - This helps to ensure we are able to keep our kids and our amazing team of volunteers safe according to the latest guidelines and best practices. - PERMISSION. For those in a high-risk category from exposure to COVID-19 we'll continue to stream our services online at 10:30am each week on our website. If you are feeling unwell, have had exposure to the Coronavirus or are showing any flu-like symptoms, please refrain from attending the services until you feel better. Go ahead, sleep in and join us from your living room — you have our full permission!
- PURPOSE. The greek word for church — Eklesia — is defined as the "gathering of God's people." We need each other and can only fully experience the presence and power of the Holy Spirit when we are together. This is how we know Christ and make Him known in the world.
- PERMANENCE. The DoubleTree has opened up its facility for our church family for foreseeable future — so this Sunday is not a 'one-off' event, rather the beginning of a new chapter in the life of our church that will likely last throughout the end of 2020. It is a space that enables us to continue to grow while we continue to pursue God's leading in finding a permanent church home.
UPDATED GUIDELINES NOVEMBER 20, 2020
None of us have lived through a season like this before. We are, however, unusual. Throughout history, pandemics and plagues have been commonplace. And across the planet, few others know the unparalleled constitutional freedoms that we as Americans enjoy.
Since we last met, Governor Northam has tightened the Covid-19 related restrictions in Virginia in response to falling temperatures and rising case numbers. As I said on Sunday, his task is not an easy one. We need to pray diligently for him as he strives to balance the competing demands of public health and individual liberty. And we need to respond with wisdom and grace.
What does it mean for us? Well, firstly we represent the cause of Christ and have a duty protect our friends at the DoubleTree Hotel from any unnecessary risk or liability. As a church, we enjoy constitutionally-protected freedoms of assembly and worship that don't automatically transfer to other commercial enterprises such as a hotel navigating the demands of a complex public health emergency.
So, in addition to our existing safety protocols we are instituting the following measures:
• Temperature checks / Face coverings on entry
• Increased signage on doors and entrances
• Greater spacing between seats in the auditorium
As mandated by the Governor, everyone is going to have to wear masks when not seated and/or participating in worship.
The good news is this:
• We can still meet (unlike most churches in Europe)
• We can still worship freely (unlike churches in California)
• We can still preach freely (unlike our brothers and sisters in the persecuted church around the world).
So - as we gather together let’s remember that we still enjoy the privilege of meeting freely, and do so with wisdom and grace in time of unprecedented opportunity for the light of the Gospel to penetrate the darkness and hopelessness all around us.
Since we last met, Governor Northam has tightened the Covid-19 related restrictions in Virginia in response to falling temperatures and rising case numbers. As I said on Sunday, his task is not an easy one. We need to pray diligently for him as he strives to balance the competing demands of public health and individual liberty. And we need to respond with wisdom and grace.
What does it mean for us? Well, firstly we represent the cause of Christ and have a duty protect our friends at the DoubleTree Hotel from any unnecessary risk or liability. As a church, we enjoy constitutionally-protected freedoms of assembly and worship that don't automatically transfer to other commercial enterprises such as a hotel navigating the demands of a complex public health emergency.
So, in addition to our existing safety protocols we are instituting the following measures:
• Temperature checks / Face coverings on entry
• Increased signage on doors and entrances
• Greater spacing between seats in the auditorium
As mandated by the Governor, everyone is going to have to wear masks when not seated and/or participating in worship.
The good news is this:
• We can still meet (unlike most churches in Europe)
• We can still worship freely (unlike churches in California)
• We can still preach freely (unlike our brothers and sisters in the persecuted church around the world).
So - as we gather together let’s remember that we still enjoy the privilege of meeting freely, and do so with wisdom and grace in time of unprecedented opportunity for the light of the Gospel to penetrate the darkness and hopelessness all around us.
