Important to note, this Sunday we begin a new start time of 9:30 AM. |
March 16, 2021 Friends, The elders met last Wednesday and discussed at length our best sense of when the Lord would have us return to the Worship Center for Sunday morning worship. We will begin to return on March 21st. What do I mean by “begin to return?” We recognize that the pandemic is not yet over. One of our elders characterized the issue by saying, “We have almost finished the race. We don’t want to stumble this close to the finish line.” Until we reach herd immunity either through natural immunity or vaccination, the virus is still a significant risk. Our top priorities remain the protection of life, care for our community and loving one another. We don’t want to fall into the trap of thinking it’s all over and contributing to greater spread. Important to note, this Sunday we begin a new start time of 9:30 AM. I’ve talked with Steve Tedder of Valley Bible Fellowship who share our facility on Sunday mornings. They plan on resuming in-person worship in the middle of April if the virus continues to decline. That gives us four or five weeks to transition without intruding on VBF’s worship preparation. The bottom line: The B.1.1.7 variant has not yet begun to surge. It may be hindered by the degree of immunity already in California and by the discipline of the population in maintaining the safe protocols of masking and social distancing. While we continue to watch and pray, we will resume gathering beginning Sunday, March 21st at 9:30 AM, while maintaining the safety protocols we practiced prior to the Christmas surge. On March 21st, all are welcome to gather with masks and social distancing. Also, we will keep the doors and windows open to ensure ventilation. This means it may be uncomfortably cold in worship. If you plan on joining us in person, dress warmly! We will continue Zoom simultaneously, as we did last Fall. We encourage those wanting to remain home until receiving vaccination to do so. If the B.1.1.7 variant generates a dramatic surge in the following weeks, we will return to Zoom only. Finally, our renewed Children’s Ministry is coming together nicely. On March 21st our children will be able to attend Children’s Church. We will also be staffing care for newborn-to-toddlers, worship for Elementary aged kids, and a middle-school gathering during our service. If the weather cooperates, we are planning an outdoor Easter celebration on April 4th, looking forward to a full, official return once we get past this crazy pandemic. Looking forward to seeing on Sunday, on Zoom or on site! Blessings, Kyle | ||