COVID-19 News and Updates

A Covenant leadership team is monitoring the COVID-19 situation with a focus on the safety of participants and staff. Today's update follows a careful review of government directives and advice from medical experts.

• The Early Childhood Education Committee canceled Vacation Bible School for this year.
• All camps for July and August are canceled, including recreation camps (Yes I Can basketball, Junior Jammers music camp, Soccer Shots, Ricky Price Basketball) as well as Preschool Summer Fun Days.
• Depending on state/local guidelines, the Rec Wing will re-open Aug. 1 for personal fitness by appointment. Director Kevin Harper will offer a once-a-week outdoor exercise class beginning the week of July 6.  
• The Covenant campus will remain closed for staff, small group meetings and in-person worship gatherings until Phase Three at the earliest.

We ask that you be patient with our careful planning and pray for our world and its leaders.

"Would you like to hazard a guess as to when we'll worship together again?" she asked with a smile.

She had joined the volunteer work crew cleaning the church (specifically, scrubbing the lectern with a toothbrush!) during our on-campus hiatus, and I could hear the longing in her voice. I answered the best I knew how, "At first, I thought it would be April 1st. Then I thought June 1st. After being wrong twice, I think I'll stop guessing." She gave me a knowing glance and went back to work.

I thought it was hard to close the campus. All the meetings, groups, services and plans had to be quickly altered, and it required a flurry of activity. However, I had no appreciation for how difficult reopening the campus was going to be. The questions were practical and theoretical, individual and communal, logistical and theological. Do we start age-specific services? Do we ask people to sign up for worship? Do we require masks?

If so, what do we do if someone shows up without one? If we learn that someone with COVID-19 attended a service, what responsibilities do we have to inform others and what process will be followed to get the word out?

Fortunately, Covenant's Session - our elected governing group of Elders - has wisely appointed a Re-Opening Task Force which has since been meeting multiple times a week. These good people have recruited additional subject matter experts - mostly medical, some legal - to advise and guide them in making the best decisions regarding the short and long-term needs of the church. This group will guide our re-opening in conjunction with the Session.

I'm thankful for the collective wisdom of our congregation's leadership, especially their "love of God and love of neighbor" approach to decision making. It may mean that our re-opening process is a bit slower and more deliberate than some would prefer, but it will also mean that we are being deliberate about calibrating various - and sometimes competing - perspectives. It also may mean that we'll need to sacrifice personal wants and wishes in service to the larger good, especially when it comes to following the new guidelines now in place. Many churches are taking this approach, and I know we will support these decisions.

In the meantime, I would remind us all that Covenant Presbyterian Church is very much open. We are supporting mission partners at home and abroad with enhanced support for feeding programs. We are holding funeral services, youth groups, Sunday School classes, mid-week studies and worship services.

And, may I add, I've been richly blessed to get a deeper look at the character of this congregation. To a person, our congregation members have been grateful, supportive, sacrificial and constructive. Attendance at online worship has been promising. Year to date giving through April was actually higher than the prior five years. And many of you have found new ways to serve as we make the necessary pivots in our work and service. It makes me miss you all the more. For now, let me just say thank you very, very much.

We ask you to continue to pray for our Re-Opening Task Force and Session as they chart the way forward. It will certainly become more complex in the days ahead. These are dynamic and will most certainly change over time. But for now, we will abide by them.

We also ask you to pray for the world, our nation, our state, and our city; pray for those who are sick -- especially those in forced isolation -- and their families. Present limitations make grief uniquely difficult, and I encourage us all to do our best to strengthen the ties of love that bind us together.

With gratitude and hope,
Bob

Worship online on Sundays at 9:30 and 11 a.m.

See faces and chat in breakout rooms during breaks in the service as part of an interactive 9:30 a.m. worship experience via Zoom.

Sign up to receive Covenant One Takes, weekday video reflections from the ministers sent to you via email.

Discover places, people and practices that influenced Christianity as we know it today. A weekly series led by Grace Lindvall and Ian Clark welcomes all from June to August.
June: Places of Faith

• Discover the political and economic landscapes of ancient cities Thessaloniki, Galatia, Rome and Corinth. What lessons can we draw to better understand today's climate?

July: People of Faith

• Meet important - but often overlooked - contributors such as Moses, Mary, Noah and Lydia. How did their contributions influence the early Christian movement?

August: Practices of Faith

• Consider the meaning behind fasting, pilgrimage, evangelism and prophecy. Why do we still talk about these things after 2,000 years?

Join the crew to help provide food for those in need. In order to participate, you should be 17 or older and not in a high-risk category or caring for anyone who is. Afternoon shifts are available.

This year, Covenant's Freedom School has been redesigned and will be held in the parking lot at the Sugar Creek Library, rain or shine. Covenant is committed to help prevent summer learning loss by sponsoring this site.

We are asking for two volunteers to each provide 50 snack bags with different items each day (total of 100 bags each day). Snacks can go in individual paper bags (decorated or not decorated) or in Ziplocks. Simple welcome notes, drawings or cards are welcome as well. Please no specifically Christian messages

As hospitals and retirement communities limit visitation, we ask that you call or write to us for special needs regarding pastoral care, illness and isolation. You can contact Katherine Kerr or any member of the pastoral staff.

Stephen Ministers are companions on your journey, even if it simply means talking on the phone after a tough day. Click here to learn more.

We're building a web of prayer that lifts up our friends, church family and those most vulnerable. Trust that someone in your Covenant family is lifting you up in prayer, too. Sign up here to commit to a specific time to pray.

A group of volunteers led by Todd Capitano is offering to deliver groceries and essential items for elderly people and those who are confined at home. Click here to contact Todd.