Hey Church! I hope you and your family are finding ways to make the best out of a bad situation. As I talk to many people, I find that the church morale is good and people are actually finding more time to devote to Bible study, personal devotion, and prayer.
How often have you said, “I wish things would slow down? Our lives are too busy.” Well, now things are slower. But, there is a shelf-life on how long we are going to be in a shelter-in-place mode, and too soon we are going to be back to our normal, hectic lives. Make special memories with your family in the time you have been given. You will be glad you did!
Our president has extended our social distancing through the end of April. Therefore, we WILL NOT have in-house services until the guidelines are lifted. That means we will continue to worship “assembled” through weekly online streaming and recordings, Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings. Please remain faithful in staying connected through our corporate worship.
Folks, as I spoke on the Living Above the Chaos livestream this morning, I shared from Ephesians 2:10 that God has already equipped His church for adversity. We are built to shine! I want to encourage you to be a light in the lives of others who are inwardly focused and are only concerned about how all of this is affecting them. Be a voice of hope and encouragement. One member, wanting to serve in some way, but being limited due to a compromised immune system, determined that she could make a difference by contacting people from her Facebook friend list every day. She is letting them know that she is thinking of them, asking if they have any needs, and praying for them. What an awesome way to minister and maintain community! You are built for this! Now go shine!
Finally, I want to close with an encouragement that all of us remain faithful with our giving – both tithes and offerings. As a church we have ongoing payroll, maintenance, and administrative needs. Also, a percentage of our budget is designated for our Pearl River Baptist Association, Mississippi Baptists, and the Southern Baptist Convention. We also support our local Save-A-Life. In addition, before we entered shelter-in-place and social distancing, we had just begun to promote our Annie Armstrong Easter Offering. Our goal is $5000. People depend upon our faithfulness. You may mail your tithes and offerings to the church office, slide an envelope under the office door, or give through our website online.
The staff, deacons, and I are available for you. Please don’t hesitate to phone us on our cell phones if you have a need.
I love and miss you!
Bro. Dan
