June 22, 2020
To All Our Members and Friends at Saint Paul:
As Paul Said:
The Apostle Paul was living a miserable life in prison. He sent a letter to the church at Philippi. What did he say about his sufferings? He said (Philippians 1:3-6.):
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He Who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
How can Paul be so upbeat? He knows his Christian friends in Philippi love and support him. This is one of the greatest benefits of associating with other Christians. Your Christian friends can help you keep going in good times and in bad times. Even better, if you ask, God will show you how to be an encouraging Christian friend to others in their time of need.
We thank God for our Christian family here at Saint Paul. The Parking Lot worships have been a blessing. Imagine how much better it will be when we see each other face to face in our sanctuary. It will be wonderful, even though we will be wearing masks.
The Day Has Arrived!
We will resume worshiping in the church sanctuary on Sunday, July 5, at 9:00 a.m.! To do this, we will take several precautions to protect the health of our worshipers. In specific, we will:
1.) Require everyone to wear masks. Masks will be available for those who need them.
2.) Maintain 6 foot social distancing in the sanctuary by closing off sections of pews.
3.) Encourage members to maintain 6 foot social distancing in and around the building — especially while entering and exiting the church. To help with this, we will not unlock the church doors until 8:45 a.m.
4.) Completely print out all worship services including hymns.
5.) Suspend some of our traditions such as: using greeters; omitting the sharing of the peace; no passing of the offering plates; using only the individual cups for the Lord’s Supper; discontinuing coffee hours after worship; placing our choirs on hiatus.
6.) Make hand cleaner, tissues, and trash receptacles available at several locations in the sanctuary, narthex, and breezeway. Masks will also be available for those who need them.
7.) Perform a special cleaning of the sanctuary, narthex, and breezeway after each worship service.
8.) Continue providing You Tube videos as we can.
As we do this, we ask your understanding if:
A.) Here is a big one: You used to come to Saturday worship, but there is no Saturday worship yet. We will restore Saturday worship eventually. It is all a matter of cleaning the church properly.
B.) Your favorite seat is roped off or occupied. (Maybe this is an opportunity to try something new.)
C.) You are sitting in the balcony and suddenly realize why no one sits in the balcony during Summer. (It gets hot.)
One last thought: if you are in high risk group and are worried about infection, or you feel sick, please stay home. (You should stay home and get better any time you are sick, corona virus or not.)
The Bible says (Psalm 122:1): I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.” We look forward to seeing you there on July 5 and beyond.
New Membership Directories.
New membership directories are available at Church. There should be one with your name on it on a table in the Narthex. Please maintain proper social distancing when you pick yours up.
So, stay healthy,
Remember there is always some way to love and serve God,
Rejoice in your Christian friends,
Be a good Christian Friend,
In Jesus’ Love,
Pastor Zimmerman