May
Dear Sisters and Brothers of Two Steeples Parish:
God bless you all as we continue to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Blessings to you who are able to stay “Safer at Home.” Blessings to you who still must go out and work. Please know that you are all in our prayers.
Through this time of sheltering at home, we have tried to reach out to you in a number of ways. If you are able to look at our Facebook Page and Website you have had the opportunity to watch 4 videos from our staff every week. Jim has done a great job with the Tuesday Tunes and Family Fridays. Loren and I each put a short weekly video together as well. Our Faith Five Devotions and Sunday Devotions are on our website and are also mailed out to people who do not use the internet. Jim, Loren and I are trying to reach out by phone to check in with you. (Please feel free to call any one of us!) And of course, you are in our prayers! Is there anything else that we can do to stay in touch?
So, when do we get back to normal? Well, the answer to that is not for a while, and when we do, normal will look very different. This week we have been looking at “Returning to Church” by the Wisconsin Council of Churches. It outlines 3 stages of Badger Bounce Back. The first stage does not begin until our “Safer at Home” is completed and we have, “Two weeks of declining case counts, widespread availability of testing, contact tracing, and no PPE shortages.” From that point, whenever that is, we have to move forward cautiously.
Those of us over 60 should continue to stay at home through all 3 phases. Even as churches open back up there will be limits on how many people can gather. They will have to be 6 feet apart. Singing is discouraged. It is one of the riskier things because it can spread virus droplets further than speaking. We would have to limit communion until we can find a way to do that safely. It is recommended that we do not touch hymnals or offering plates. And we will be asked to wear masks.
Truly a different world! But, as we are discovering, our church is so much more than a building. You and I are the church. Even though this pandemic has caused too much disruption in our lives and in our churches, it cannot in any way keep us from proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ in all that we do and in all that we say. It cannot stop us from loving each other and praying for each other. Right now, being a faithful Christian looks so different than it always has in the past! But God journeys with us guiding us and leading us to continue to be the church! And our loving God constantly opens our eyes and hearts to the message of God’s love.
God Bless You,
Pastor Linda
