Dear Hamilton Mill UMC Family,
Although it's impossible to know how we'll one day look back on this chapter of life known as the 2020 pandemic, I feel certain that the defining characteristics of our church will be perseverance, grace, and faith.
I have been overwhelmed and humbled by the many phone calls, emails, and letters from church members to express support, encouragement, gratitude, and confidence in our church leadership's ability to navigate the uncertainty of the last three months.
So, above all else, let me start by offering a profound word of thanks to each of you for all the ways that you have helped us BE the church during such a challenging time. It has always been true that Hamilton Mill UMC isn't the building, it's the people. However, during this season of social distancing and separation, you've truly exemplified what that means to gather, grow, and go in a whole new way.
Second, I want to thank our church staff and leadership for the countless hours of prayer, conversation, and discernment that has been invested in our church reopening plan.
It's been an amazing privilege to meet with our HMUMC health advisory team, our administrative council, and church staff and leadership teams to engage in some incredibly fruitful conversations about how to reopen our church safely and with the health and well-being of all of our church and community members in mind.
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Phase 1 - Starts June 7 - Livestream worship from Worship Center
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Phase 2 - Starts July 6 - Onsite Gatherings/Funerals/Outdoor in-person worship
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Phase 3 - Starts August 9 - In-person worship in Worship Center resumes
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Phase 4 - Starts September 8 - Additional missions and ministries resume
As I've thought about the image of a roadmap, I've come to realize that it's apt for a number of reasons. First, it's because we have a clear starting point and destination and along the way there will be some expected checkpoints and mile-markers.
But also, like any good set of travel plans, there's always the possibility that we'll hit some unanticipated delays or necessary detours on our journey. Because the circumstances around the pandemic are ever-changing, there may be some unforeseen future developments that will affect our plans and cause us to readjust our route accordingly.
But the good news is, no matter how many tweaks we have to make to our roadmap or if the ETA is altered, the destination never changes. Our ultimate goal is to have all of our buildings open and our missions and ministries resumed, so we can continue to live out our calling to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Of course, if there's one thing we've learned in the process of creating this roadmap, it would be that reopening the doors of a church is different than any other business or organization. After all, our ultimate responsibility isn't to shareholders, revenues, bottom lines, or profits; it's to God and taking care of God's people.
What that means then, at the very least, is that our guidelines for reopening have to be shaped by far more than state laws or federal mandates, but by Jesus' greatest commandment to "love God and love your neighbor as yourself."
Therefore, in an effort to reopen our campus in a way that is rooted in love, we've also created a
Roadmap to Reopening Covenant. Throughout the Bible, covenants were used not only to establish a promise between God and God's people, but also within the community of faith as a pledge of mutual love, support, and commitment to each other.
My hope is that this covenant will serve as the foundational basis for all of our reopening plans. Not only does it outline what we can expect of one another as we return to church, but it's also a pledge that our love for God and one another will be our guiding motivation in all we do.
The reason this is so important is because I'm well aware that we'll have no shortage of opinions about our roadmap. No doubt, some will think we're reopening too soon, while others will be adamant it's not soon enough. Some will think that our guidelines are too restrictive, while others will think they're not stringent enough. And, of course, some will rightly point out the gaps, holes, or flaws in our plan that we inadvertently missed or neglected to address.
Because this is our first-ever attempt at reopening our church doors in the midst of a global pandemic, I am absolutely sure that our plan will be wholly imperfect and wonderfully flawed. But it's in times like this that I'm comforted by the words of that ubiquitous, old bumper sticker: "Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven."
In other words, we wouldn't be anything if it weren't for grace. So perhaps that's one more thing we can covenant to practice, embody, and extend throughout the reopening process. In a world that seems to grow more divisive and divided by the day, let's strive to be a church of inexhaustible grace to one another.
I hope you know that your pastors and church staff are so looking forward to welcoming you back to worship whenever you're ready. In the meantime, know that you are loved, you are missed, and you are prayed for everyday!
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Jeremy
