If there is someone who wants to resume on-campus worship services more than our team, I don’t know him! Seriously, since our church last met on March 15th for worship, we have been closely following the guidance of our local, state, and national leaders working hard to keep the members of our congregation safe. As part of those efforts, we have also continued to improve our online presence each week. I am truly blessed to serve in a local church with such a talented staff.
The effort to bring a quality online worship experience to our congregation has brought our team even closer together (if that was possible!). The obvious benefit is easily seen on each of our livestream services, the announcement videos, etc. that we have been doing. There is also the benefit of nearly two months of planning before we actually begin to move towards returning to a more normal routine.
Understanding that plans can (and should) change as the reality on the ground changes in our community, we have developed what we believe to be a sensible, responsible, and executable plan that keeps our focus squarely on the safety of our congregation while slowly beginning the process of resuming on-campus activities. Things are going to looks a bit different when we start meeting again but not in a bad way or in a way that hinders the worship of our Lord.
May 17, 2020
We will have two Sunday morning worship services beginning on May 17th. At the time of writing, our plan is one service at 9:00 a.m. and a second service at 11:00. We plan for these services to last about an hour each with an hour in between to allow us to sanitize our worship center after those who attended the first service exit.
We will have multiple hand sanitizer stations strategically located throughout the worship center so anyone who feels the need, can quickly and easily make a brief stop by a station. We will also have masks available should anyone desire to wear one during their time on campus that does not have one with them. There will be no childcare, nor evening service, and no Sunday School. We will do that through Sunday, June 7th.
We are prepared to add a third service, if necessary, to maintain distancing guidelines. We have asked our folks to let us know which service they plan to attend or if they plan to wait to a few weeks before returning. It has been such a blessing to see so many responding to our request to let us know what their plans are in light of our plan for May 17th through June 7th.
We have a large facility and plan to limit access to the building to our worship center, foyer, and atrium allowing us to control points of entry, exit, and traffic flow (one way in, a different way out). There are restrooms in this part of our facility and at this time we plan for them to be available for use though we will be making sure there are not too many people at any given time.
Mid-June
Sometime over the next few weeks, we will evaluate our ability to add on to what we’re doing on Sunday mornings. During the summer months attendance is down for us so this seems to be a sensible approach. We will continue to follow the appropriate distancing protocols provided by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp in place at that time. Lord willing, all of the numbers will continue to trend in the right direction and, having passed through another gate, those restrictions will have been eased somewhat.
We have done a couple of Town Hall meetings that have been livestreamed. They have been very effective ways for us to communicate with our congregation and take questions in real time via social media and our Livestream site. It is likely we will use this approach to communicate future plans as we are able to share them.
Mid-July/August
Though we’re getting a bit out from where we are today, we are thinking through what comes next. We may look at a “soft” restart of some activities though we may continue to wait. We are looking to August and hope to be able to return to a full schedule by then. That is going to continue to require lot of planning and certainly is based on some assumptions.
We are making plans knowing that if things begin to trend in the wrong direction, we may have to alter our plans. That’s okay! We strongly believe we need some targets for us to work toward and are these are by no means set in stone. We believe the COVID-19 numbers will continue to improve allowing a great many churches across our state and around the nation to begin meeting again very soon.
Some Closing Thoughts
Our congregation knows that their pastors have remained on the job ministering to our people and we have been following pandemic developments closely. Sometimes it is challenging to filter out the noise from the news media, social media, etc. I am grateful that our church chooses to be active in our local association and Georgia Baptist Mission Board. Those connections have helped inform our planning throughout this time.
Some churches will follow a very different schedule and that is as it should be! There are churches which have already begun this transition and met last Sunday while others may wait until June or later, depending on the conditions in their community. Each congregation needs to work through the process of resuming on-campus activities in a manner that is safe. This is going to look different in our 3,600 churches. The plan for us may not be a good fit for others in a different part of the state where coronavirus conditions are different than here.
One final note for believers who are eager to gather with their congregations but have concerns. If you are not comfortable coming to church May 17th or perhaps until June, there is absolutely nothing wrong with continuing to watch online for a few more weeks or until you do feel safe venturing out. Our seniors and others with compromised immune systems should continue to exercise caution and use their good judgment about when the time is right for them to come back to church.
I hope sharing our plans is helpful for some out there trying to work through this process. These are challenging times and I do not believe anyone has a monopoly on best practices for reopening a church that has been off-campus since March. Feedback is appreciated and I am happy to answer questions. Leave a comment and let me know what plans you’re making!
Blessings,
Chris