Fall 2020 Update

These are unusual times. Although scripture instructs the church not to give up meeting with one another, during a time of a global pandemic, one of the best ways to love God and love neighbor is to keep physical distance. It is this sacred regard for the health and well-being of others that informs our response as Christians to the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you are a regular participant in our congregational life, and if you are on our email list, you know that we meet in person outside twice in the summer, but then went back online due to an uptick in COVID-19 cases in Lucas County. You also know that we met in person inside once on October 11, but then went back online again after another significant uptick.

We as the TMC Leadership Team have said since the beginning that we would take a cautions approach. We indicated that we would follow the public health guidelines on in-person worship. If Lucas County was on level red or above, we would not meet. If Lucas County was on Orange or below, we would wait a few weeks to see if it remained low, and then we would consider meeting again in person.

Obviously, Lucas County continues to remain on level Red. Not only that, we are seeing major outbreaks across the state and country, in both rural and urban environments. In light of all that, we will not be gathering in person for worship for the foreseeable future.

Instead of pre-recorded worship service, starting on November 22, we will gather live together on Zoom at 9:30. Details about this have been sent out to our mailing list. If you have not received these notifications, or if you need further clarification, please contact the church office.

Plans are currently to conduct all our Advent and Christmas services online. This is disappointing, as this is a special time of the year for many of us. However, following Jesus and loving our neighbors compels us to make this sacrifice, and to make the best of an unfortunate situation. We hope and pray that we will still find ways of making worship at this time of the year meaningful and memorable (and the Worship Commission has some good plans in the works).

Let us continue to pray for the health of one another, for our city, our country, and our world. And while we all eagerly await a vaccine, let us not forget the power of prayer to the God who is the healer and sustainer of all.

Grace and Peace

Pastor Joel Shenk