COVID Update: Still Not Ready...

 
Dear Church Family,

I met with the Deacons of Quaker Gap Baptist Church on Tuesday evening, June 16th to discuss plans for the future regathering of our church body in light of the national COVID-19 crisis. We have decided by consensus to continue our current strategy throughout the months of June and July. We will meet at the end of July to discuss plans for August, taking this one month at a time.

Please understand that we are dealing with a fluid situation. If we were to make this decision based on our preference – we would already be together in the building. But there are more factors involved than simply what we want. The number of hospitalizations and deaths related to the coronavirus persistently rise in our neighboring counties. We continue to be cautious in our approach, not wanting to endanger anyone in our church family or create a situation that will affect the community at large. Our decision has been affirmed by local health specialists.

In the meantime, we continue to offer Sunday Worship Services and Wednesday Evening Bible Studies online, as well as periodical blog posts. We encourage adult Sunday School classes and Small Groups to meet in the picnic shelter or at other outdoor locations if possible. You are welcome to join a class, even if you have never attended Sunday School. Our children participate in Zoom meetings on Tuesday evenings at 5:30 PM, as well as lessons sent by email. The Youth Group has been meeting in the Picnic Shelter on Thursday evenings at 7 PM. Please take advantage of these opportunities for fellowship, or just pick up your phone and call folks within our church body to say hello. Deacons are engaging in periodic phone calls and front porch visits, as well. Our Administrative Assistant, April Ragan, continues to serve the church from our office. She would be happy to assist you with any questions you have regarding any of these opportunities.

We are putting together a Regathering Committee to think through all of the necessary plans for opening the church building in days to come. Please keep this committee, your church leadership, as well as our school and local leaders in your prayers as we navigate these decisions. Thank you for your understanding. As always, we are open to hear from you if you would like to share an opinion on these matters.
​
Finally, thank you for your enduring faithfulness to your church family. Because of your ongoing support, we are able to keep ministering in spite of these circumstances. My prayer is that this time in the life of our church body will unite us, motivate us, and propel us in days to come as we love God and love our neighbors in Christ-like ways.