" We must once again tighten restrictions..."
Last night after Benjamin was asleep, I was preparing for a Help Club Bible study. I popped my head into Chris’ office and found him deep in thought, scribbling notes and sending messages at the same time. He was watching President Ramaphosa’s “Family Meeting” speech addressing the 3rd wave of COVID-19 in South Africa. The president wisely declared, “The massive surge in new infections means that we must once again tighten restrictions on the movement of persons and gatherings.”
Tighter restrictions would be enforced starting that very night. We were glad it was only Tuesday because it meant only 50 people could be in the church building at a time. We were already right on the edge of the previous restrictions we’d been adhering to - with 100 in our auditorium and a total of 200 spread throughout the building. We needed to make a plan for Sunday!
There was a temptation to be fearful and think, “We just started gaining momentum! We just started growing. Good things are happening! What now!?!” Instead, we paused and thought aloud together what we wanted the final result of this temporary restriction to be. That was easy: for people to feel closer than ever to Jesus and their church. Corporate worship and Sunday morning gatherings are optimal but not necessary to reach that goal. Suddenly, we felt a surprising excitement surge through us - wondering what God could do if we just leaned in to Him and each other. Would He actually make us stronger? Could we actually grow deeper and wider in a time such as this?
Chris and I decided to sleep on it, get up early to pray, and then come together to make a final plan regarding church meetings. Then we’d go online live with our church and share our plans. It was AWESOME. We had 50 people online, not including the family members watching along with them. Our excitement grew even more.
Deep down we know church happens every day. I think this just might be a launchpad for church to happen every day in a lot of different ways. Let’s go, Church!
Here’s our Southpoint “Family Meeting” where Chris and I laid out the plans. You’re part of the family too!