Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
The government’s proclamations continue to change in
response to COVID-19, and our responses change, too, at Gloria Dei.
·
We will not be celebrating the Lord’s Supper
in our public worship for the next two Sundays. We hope to return to
our practice of weekly Communion on Palm Sunday (April 5), but we will assess
the situation over the next two weeks.
·
We will continue to live stream our services.
I am very thankful that Jeremy Russell has made that possible, and that Becka
got the liturgy posted, too. We will also provide DVD’s of our worship services
to those without internet access. If need be, we will supply a DVD player.
·
I will be posting some devotional material
throughout the week. You will find them at https://lotrittens.blogspot.com/.
There will also be links on the church’s Facebook page.
·
We want to stay in touch. Phone
calls will be made to check on all our members. We also encourage letter
writing to those from church you know will not be in worship. Look out for one
another. Loneliness is rough.
·
If you are at all sick, at risk, or exposed
to COVID-19, stay home! Please let us know so we can pray for you and
help you, but do not put yourself or others at risk.
·
Pray.
·
Wash your hands.
On a personal note. I want to say thank you to you all for
your patience. I hate to admit that I don’t know what I am doing in this
situation, but I don’t think anyone knows and we’re all muddling our way
through it together. I am extremely grateful for the wise guidance I have
received from Gill Solem; her expertise has been a great blessing in this
process. I also thank God for the many insights and great help from our staff,
ministry leaders, and members.
The strangeness of the situation has hit me hard a couple
times. I am thinking about Psalm 46, the Psalm that has been a part of our
Lenten Midweek services: God is our refuge and strength, a very
present help in trouble. When I read through this Psalm, I am
encouraged that our troubles have not escaped God’s notice. He is with us in
the best and the worst of life. I take heart that, in the end, everything will
be okay. Which is not to say that nothing bad will happen to us, but that, even
if it does we have hope in Christ’s resurrection. These days help me to look to
that resurrection when this frailty and futility will be cast off and we shall
be like Jesus.
God’s peace be with you!
Pastor Tritten
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