“God of grace and God of glory…grant us wisdom, grant us courage, for the living of these days…” (Hymn #577)
Dear friends in Christ…
It’s me again! I continue to pray God’s grace and peace to be with you, especially in these anxious times. Circumstances regarding the global pandemic have been changing rapidly since yesterday, calling for further response and caution from us all. We want to do our part to mitigate the spread of this virus and have been in conversation all day about how best to respond. At the urging of our Bishop, David Bard, the mandate of our Governor, and our care for your health and well-being, we are suspending all activities within the church building, including “in-person” worship, through the remainder of this month of March. We will continue to assess the situation and will regularly be in touch with you as the days go by.
While it means postponing Youth Worship and Confirmation, know that we will certainly look for the next best times to schedule both of these events and celebrate these special times with our youth.
For this Sunday, we will be sending you a time of devotion and prayer for you to view and share with your family. We will miss being together for sure! And even though we can’t gather within these walls, it doesn’t mean we can’t be the church outside these walls. In fact, we may discover some new ways of being the hands and feet of Christ out in the community! Perhaps we could:
- Check on a neighbor next door, to see if they are coping okay or if they need something.
- Make calls to those who are isolated and have a caring conversation.
- Continue to support your church with your prayers, gifts, service, and witness.
- Mail your financial contributions to the church or give online.
- Give respite to a parent or a caregiver, by offering to fill in for a time.
- Pray for those for whom this situation creates difficulty or loss of income or added stress.
- Prayer for those on the front line, caring for those infected with this virus.
- Thank the grocery clerks who are working hard to provide supplies.
- When buying supplies, get what you need without hoarding, so others might also get what they need.
- Breathe…pray…play a game…color…do a puzzle…make music…cook something…bake some goodies…
- Do something that you always wish you had time to do.
- Organize your files…clean a closet…put away the stacks of stuff.
- Limit how much news you watch – stay informed, but not saturated.
- Go outside and breathe in the fresh air.
- Do reach out to us if you have a need or a concern – we are still here! And it is our deep desire to care for you.
“Social distancing” is a new concept for us, isn’t it? But perhaps it is also an invitation for us to be the church and to care for each other in new and different ways. In fact, I would love to hear from you about the ways you find to “do all the good you can,” or ways in which someone has cared for you. My prayer is that we can ultimately trust in our Creator God to be with us…in our anxiety and fear, in our reaching out to one another, in these strange and uncertain times…and for us to trust that God’s spirit abides with us always.
Peace, my friends…to you and yours.
Rev. Marsha
“Don’t be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
777 West Eight Mile Road, Northville, MI 48167 Phone: 248-349-1144 Fax 248-349-0777
Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 9 am – 5 pm email: fumc777@fumcnorthville.org