In Genesis 2, God says, “It is not good for the man to be alone...” In Hebrews 10, the Word of God says, “Let us not give up meeting together as some are doing.”

We have all been through a rough time since March 15. This pandemic has cost us in many ways - not just those who were infected, but in school and work shut-downs. The toll on substance abuse, mental illness, suicide, and domestic violence has risen exponentially.

Here at Immanuel, in a few short days we were running online Sunday, Lenten, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter worship services. We have kept up and are still doing online worship thanks to Richard Duhachek, Steve Butterbaugh, and Mike Joseph, who have done all the “tech” work to make those worship services available.

Within ten days of starting online worship, we were offering drive-thru communion, and by the end of May we started “in” sanctuary worship services. Saturday worship was, and still is for those who are at high risk of catching the virus. On Sunday mornings, we offer both an 8:00 and 10:30 worship service.

We have spaced seating so people are not near each other. We wipe down all hard surfaces between each service, and we offer communion effectively and safely. On July 5, we held an outdoor worship in the garden area on the west side of the facility. It was well attended with social distancing and safe communion practices.

Now many schools have opened on either a full or part-time basis. Many of our members have responded positively to a survey to begin Sunday School and other activities in the fall, being as safe as we can. The good news is that, to date, we have had no reported outbreaks of the virus.

In short, what I have been laying the groundwork to say is, “IT IS TIME FOR US TO COME BACK TO WORSHIP!” If you in the at-risk group, come on Saturday morning at 10:00 where everyone wears a mask. If you are not at-risk, join us at one of our regular times on Sunday for worship. We NEED TO BE LOVINGLY CARED FOR BY GOD AND EACH OTHER. On September 6, we will have one outdoor worship service at 9am. Bring lawn chairs, a blanket, and the kids. It is TIME to get back to WORSHIP.

Veritas,

Curt