To God's Beloved At Cloverdale Baptist Church:
This coming Sunday we are doing a trial run on gathering in three different places in the church on Sunday mornings (Gym, Fellowship Hall, Sanctuary). Some of our elders, deacons and families as well as a growth group or two are joining us to see if we can gather safely and in a satisfying way in three different separated spaces in our building (we have a letter from the PHO approving this).
I am excited, and nervous. We are hearing from other churches that this experience of separate smaller gatherings does not have the same feel as, “normal”, so we are working hard to understand how best to serve you, and God willing, if things go well this weekend to open up these three separate areas to people from our church community starting on August 16. The SIGN UP if you would like to join us will be made available through this email next week, on August 11, and we ask that you sign up for ONLY ONE WEEK at a time, and that you wait until the end of the sign up period for the next week, before you sign up again as we try to understand the demand on space, and how best to provide this opportunity to all. Also, if you know people who are not computer literate, please share with them, and they can sign up by calling the office during office hours and our admin team will sign up online for them. Watch for the sign-up connection, August 11, 2020 for Sunday, August 16.
Please know we are following the PHO’s guidelines as we do this, and are seeking to do our best to hold together the importance of the safety of people, love for our community, obedience to our government, and by far most importantly submission to Jesus, our LORD. We will publish the guidelines for joining together next week also in this email.
We know many of you feel uncomfortable gathering physically, and we encourage you to continue to join us online.
We know that many of you are vulnerable, and we encourage you to stay safe, and continue to join us online.
If you feel any symptoms of sickness please stay home and get better and continue to connect with us online.
We know that many of you have been wanting to meet for a long time, and will be very excited to come on a Sunday morning, we encourage you to sign up (please only one week at a time, as we want to measure demand, and give everyone a chance to come) next Tuesday and to join us as we seek to exalt God together.
We continue to encourage you to meet as Growth Groups, or smaller groups, and stay connected. The longer this pandemic goes on, the more important this is! Please reach out, make a phone call, send an email, CONNECT, for it is as each of us owns our responsibility to love in this way that we can make sure NO ONE falls through the cracks. We are hearing of groups that are gathering in homes to watch together on Sunday, and others organizing online watching parties, and this is GREAT! Keep it up, as we try to be creative in our obedience of God’s commands to stay connected.
What do we want from you, as God’s people at CBC as we take the next steps in gathering?
- Pay Attention to next Tuesday’s email, where we will offer ways to sign up. There will also be the steps we are taking to follow the PHO’s counsel and keep people safe, so please make sure you have read those if you sign up. ONLY THOSE WHO ARE REGISTERED CAN COME.
- Pray for safety and satisfaction. There are other churches in Canada who have started to meet (in smaller groups of 50 or less) and many are finding difficulties as people struggle with different views and as the “new normal” is not as satisfactory as the old. Please PRAY for our congregation, that we will stay united, loyal to Jesus and His bride, and loving to one another.
- Pursue Love. We know that as varied as the views are on the pandemic and how a church should respond, that Jesus command for LOVE is clear. So, the one response we guarantee is right, is self-sacrificial love, especially if someone has a different view than you. The more mature you are, the more you will, “live a life of love” (Ephesians 5:1-2), so we are asking each of you to take the, “MORE MATURE ROAD” and be gracious with all.
Elder Led Prayer Meeting: Reminder that we are gathering together on Wednesday nights for prayer at 7:00. If you are longing for Fellowship and desire to help us move forward pursuing greatness in God’s way, please join us in the Fellowship Hall for prayer.
A number of you have been asking the question, “when is it right to disobey the civil authorities”. This is probably because of what some churches and pastors in the states have published recently, so God willing we will be putting out a Bible Study on this, COMING SOON TO A WEBSITE near you. So if this interests you, we will seek to give you an answer from God’s Word that is loyal to Scripture and avoids cultural pressures.
Daily Bread: We still receive THE DAILY BREAD devotionals, and have a number of copies available, these can be picked up during office hours, and will be available in the Admin Foyer.
Sunday Is Coming:
As we continue our journey through the Psalms, please make sure you are sharing with others what you are learning, as staying connected is essential, and your part in that key.
Text: Psalm 18
Title: The LORD Is My Rock
This Psalm gives us “the last words of David”
- Why is it important that we know that God is safe place to run too, when we are in need?
- What does it mean that God is our strength?
- What does God being our ROCK signify for you personally?
- How can you introduce God to your stress?
- As you reflect on this Psalm, share with someone else what you have learned from it.
Privileged to serve God with you, and be connected in God’s family to you,
Pastor Rob