On May 26, 2020, the Elders of First Christian Church met to consider how to safely and expeditiously move toward reopening our church. We discussed how to be as “wise as serpents and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16), and how to “fear God, honor the king” (1 Peter 2:17). We also consulted CDC guidelines, the Restore Illinois plan, our insurance company representatives, as well as Michael's reporting from conversations with other pastors in the area and DHF network. In Christian unity, and with the eager expectation of meeting together soon, the Elders agreed to the following:
1. We will continue to comply with the State of Illinois phased reopening for the next four Sundays by live streaming our worship service. We challenge and encourage each church member/family to either invite someone to stream the service with you in your home, or be invited to stream the service with another church member/family in that home, in gatherings up to 10 people. Please reach out to your fellow church members and begin to gather. Along with this challenge is a reminder for those who have medical issues that make them vulnerable to severe infection, to heed the advice of the CDC and self-isolate. Anyone who feels ill or has a fever should stay home. Anyone who has traveled to an infected area or been in contact with infected individuals should self-isolate for 14 days before attending worship services.
2. For the next four Sundays we also need volunteers to come to church at 8 a.m. to help us test our audio/video equipment by observing the service from the Crossroads dining room, the Crossroads gym, and the education building basement in groups of 10. If you are interested in helping us in this way, please contact the church office ASAP and we will give you more information. This would be a great opportunity for those who have no ability to stream services to participate in worship.
3. Starting Sunday, June 28, we will move to a new worship format that will allow us to begin meeting in groups of up to 50. We hope the technology will allow us to incorporate simultaneous worship of groups up to 50 in the sanctuary, the Crossroads dining room, the Crossroads gym, and the education building basement. We ask that all joining us for these services follow the guidelines that have been set forth for the safety of your fellow worshippers. This includes practicing social distancing, the wearing of masks when not able to maintain a six-foot distance, and the washing of hands. We are working out the details of potential childcare and will give more information as it becomes available.
4. Weather permitting, we will also be holding one outdoor service during the month of June. More details to follow.
We are excited as we begin the re-opening of our church. Please pray for us and for Michael as we strive to serve the church in love. We ask for grace and understanding as we prayerfully look for the best interests of the church family. We realize that this may be too slow for some and too fast for others, but if we all will look to extend Christ's Love and Grace to one another, we will not only get through this time, but grow closer to one another through it. May the expectation we feel for an in-person meeting of the church be a foretaste of the joy we will all feel one day at the great marriage supper of the lamb! (Revelation 19:6-9)