First, I am looking for volunteers to help shop for groceries for the under-served in our community. You may have read in last week’s messenger that James Island Outreach has had a surge of families requesting help. The JIO Ministry is in need of groceries and funds. We can help with both. Of course, you can do this on your own. We did have a good time when we made it a group mission. Anyone can join us in our shopping spree. I would love to have some folks who have never seen James Island Outreach go with us. The Executive Director is so gracious to give us personal tours and to explain how the ministry works. Days and hours are pretty flexible. This could be a great mission for a Connection Group, a family, an Awana group, Students, Joy Club, etc. With a little creative thinking someone could even find a way to make it an outreach event involving those we have yet to reach for Christ. Interested? Call the church office and leave your info. I will call back with the details.
Second, our staff is working toward re-opening in person worship on Sunday, September 6. The plans, at this time, are to only have two worship services. One will be at 9 and the other at 11. All the protocols we used will be in place with a few more! Remember that we stopped ingathering worship when basically all of our worship leaders and team had Covid-19 or were in isolation because of it. This happened at the time when South Carolina cases were spiking. Seem like an appropriate and necessary step to take. Now we are working on returning. Details will come as soon as we have them to share.
Third, we have asked 40 or so of our leaders to join me in writing a 40 Day Devotional. If all goes according to plans, this should be available at the first of September. The plans are for our Connection Groups to serve as our delivery system. I am looking forward to hearing what our Father has been saying to this group.
Fourth, I am looking for volunteers to help me put together a Day of Prayer. It is good and appropriate that we would have a church wide prayer effort at such a time as this. We have had several members to contract this corona virus. They have been young adults, median age and senior adults. We have had some hospitalized; several at home with severe symptoms; some with mild symptoms; and two members that died due to Covid-19. To make a dreadful disease worse, somehow Covid-19 and even the medicine to treat it have become political. I truly believe we are already praying. I want to invite you to join together in a focused prayer effort. I am working on a plan to have us sign up for some period of time. You could come to the church or pray wherever you are. We know that all things are possible for God. Let’s go before Him…together. More to come.
Blessings to you all,
Pastor Tom
