You can’t go home again. Or as I heard one student put it in speech class, “You can’t go home again. Well, you can, but it’s not the same.”

The old normal isn’t coming back, not the way it was, at least not for churches. I’m not saying we’re going to be on lockdown forever. I am saying that things will be different, both for good and for bad.

Now is the time to start thinking about the way forward. How will your church take advantage of new opportunities? How will you rise to face new challenges?

The old saying fits here: “Failing to plan means planning to fail.”

A couple of resources:

• Ken Braddy’s questions for churches have been circulating widely. This is a must read! https://kenbraddy.com/2020/04/18/20-questions-your-church-should-answer-before-people-return/
• This video about VUCA times is short, but helpful: https://youtu.be/0uAKQXagwms

EDIT: Interim Ministry Resources has a whole section of articles on COVID-19 and the church. Looks helpful: https://interimministrypartners.com/covid-19-resources/

The most important thing is that we prepare ahead of time. Don’t wait until someone says, “You can all go back to the building!” to start thinking about what might have changed.

We had some excitement yesterday morning when we gathered for Bible study. We’ve been having some work done on the building, and several people noticed a strong smell of gas. We evacuated everyone to our Ministry Activity Center. We had a pot luck planned, so there were already enough tables and chairs set up.

While recognizing that it was difficult for some of our older members to make the trek from one building to another, and it was probably anxiety-producing for parents as they worked to locate their children, the resulting time of fellowship was wonderful. Hands down the best Bible class time we’ve had in a while, in my opinion.

Yes, we need Bible study. But we also need time to sit and talk with fellow Christians. Our well-planned services don’t always provide that.

I also think a little disruption is good in the life of a church. Especially when it turns out to be a harmless gas leak that was quickly controlled.

How was your Sunday?

Was in an interesting discussion the other day, talking about traditions of space in a church’s history. OK, we were talking about why people sit in the same pew year after year, even if that means sitting in a spot that is isolated from others.

When I was growing up, we always sat in the front section, toward the left. It was exciting when I was old enough to sit in the front middle with the rest of the youth group. After leaving for college, I would sit with the other university students on the right side of the auditorium whenever I visited.

At some point, my parents began sitting in the back. My dad had some health issues and would sometimes need to get up during the service. And you could park closer to the exit nearest that back section.

I was always a visitor when we sat in the back section. Not just because we were in the back, but that was part of it. It was a reminder that the congregation was no longer exactly the same as when I was growing up. Others of my parents’ friends had also rotated to the back. Almost no one sat where they did when I was young.

If you’re waiting for a deep theological point to be made, I don’t have one. A practical point would be to not make assumptions about why people sit where they do. And also, respect the fact that for many, where they sit has a deeper meaning than their mere proximity to the pulpit area.

Heard Carson Reed share some thoughts on church leadership this weekend. Really liked something he pointed out from Matthew. I’d never noticed the parallelism between these two passages:

“And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.” (Matthew 4:23)

“And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.” (Matthew 9:35)

Dr. Reed pointed out that these verses seem to describe the material that lies between them, showing how Jesus did three things:

• Proclaimed the kingdom
• Taught in the synagogues

(Dr. Reed compared this with spiritual formation)

• Healed every affliction

He then noted the similarity of thought with the commission he gave his disciples in the next chapter:

“And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons.” (Matthew 10:7–8)

His point was that these things describe what the church should be doing today.

A few of my own thoughts:

• I think the teaching and proclaiming actually were one thing, which explains why the teaching part is gone in Chapter 10.
• As someone else in our group pointed out, these verses also include the idea of going. Jesus didn’t set up shop and wait for people to come to him. It would have been easy to establish Jesus University and still teach and heal. Yet he went and told his disciples to go.

Anyway, I liked the way Dr. Reed related these passages. Any thoughts?