7/19/2020 Update from Pastor Cameron

Greetings! Time for a weekly update!

We are continuing in both online and in person worship at this time. I am thankful for all of the work that everyone has done to make this possible.

Prayers for our schools would be greatly appreciated, as schools across the country are figuring out how to safely begin soon.

So, onto the things we need to know about returning to worship. We will need to practice social distancing. People will need to be seated six feet apart and everyone in attendance must wear a mask at all times. There cannot be any exception for mask wearing while in the building, unless you have a valid medical reason. With that, it is strongly recommended to continue online or in print instead of in person. There will not be congregational singing yet, and the conference is recommending not having any live music at this time. There are also no responsive texts or communal prayers at this time. We also cannot pass anything between people. No shaking hands, passing the plate, hugs, etc. I will need to inspect the churches to make sure that everything is ready, including having seating marked. This will look a little different, but I am confident we can do it. There is also a special note that for those who are older, have a respiratory illness or injury, or have a compromised immune system, you are strongly encouraged to check with a health professional on if you should be out. I will continue to provide printed materials for anyone who wants them and am at least planning on having the sermon audio continue to be posted. I have decided to try to keep doing video for the time being. If you have any questions at all, please contact me! I’ll do what I can to help.

There are copies of the Upper Room available in Greenup in the box and at Cottonwood. You can also find the current issue online. The new Sunday school quarterly is also in the box for whoever is interested.

I will be continuing to have our worship services online and in print! A printed copy of the service including the weekly sermon will be available online and in print. The sermon audio will be uploaded weekly as well. If you’d like to be updated when it is available, it is on Spotify, Google Play, and iTunes. I will also post updates to the church Facebook pages every week. If anyone you know is not getting a copy and would like one mailed, please let me know. I am trying to get them mailed out weekly.

Also, in this time we are still working to keep the bills paid, our missions supported, our apportionments met, and our outreach working. As such, we do need your continued financial support as part of the church. Offerings may be sent to your local treasurer or to the PO Box listed below. I can also arrange to pick them up if I am delivering anything to you. I am personally grateful for all your continued support in this difficult time. I cannot stress enough that the church is still active and we are still together.

Please see the CDC website for information on the Coronavirus. If you do go out, please follow all distancing guidelines, and if you can, cover your face. Please let others know, and together we will all see this through safely. This is a very real and very serious pandemic. Please do not share false information about it. It only works to undermine the people doing the dangerous work of trying to keep us all safe. If you have any questions, I am happy to answer them or direct you to a source that can.

Lastly, a brief note about myself. If you’ve been wondering what all I’ve been up to, this is quite a bit of work for me. Currently, I put my sermon together during the week while also being a single father with little ones about. What you might not know is that I’ve never memorized my sermons but have always used an outline. This has always allowed me to let the spirit guide me. I still use that format to initially write my message. I now record my sermon mid-week. I then transcribe the audio so that I can have a printed version. I then use this to put together the printouts for the week. I then put together the bulletins for all three churches. On Saturday I do printing, and I record the video for the week and use the audio from it so that it will be available on Sunday morning. You may have noticed that I am reading my sermons right now. That is because with having 3 in person services, a printed copy, and the audio and video available, I am trying to make sure that all of them are consistently the same. It also helps me to gather my thoughts better right now. I know this is different from how I normally present, and it may feel a little different, but it is the best way for me to present a consistent message throughout the week.

Please stay safe. You are all in my prayers. I will keep you updated as best I can. If you have any questions, feel free to contact your Church Council Chair or myself.

Rev. Cameron D St.Michael

https://stmichael.pw

cdstmichael@outlook.com

(316)530-3182 (call or text)

PO Box 54, Charleston IL 61920

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