Updates on Chapel Ridge’s Response to Coronavirus
Hello Chapel Ridge,
Since we drafted the email you received, and since the time we sent that email out, more information has come pertaining to the safety of gatherings. The board and staff have sorted and weighed through the information and have come to the conclusion that we will not meet Sunday in person. We will continue this difficult but necessary measure until Public Health, the mayor, provincial and federal government release us to do so. Yesterday the Government of Ontario released the following statement: “To help contain the spread of COVID-19, Dr. David Williams, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, has recommended the immediate suspension of all gatherings over 250 people because of this pandemic.” This is a hard decision but it is one simple measure Chapel Ridge can take to be loving to our community. Our attempts to flatten the curve of the spread of this virus is the most loving thing to do for the most vulnerable of our population. Please join with me in prayer for our city, province, country and global community.
This is a unique time. For this reason, Sunday will not simply go on as normal, but it will go on. We will be meeting digitally, but again it will look different than a normal Sunday.
https://chapelridge.ca/live/
https://www.facebook.com/ChapelRidgeFMChurch/
I will broadcast from Chapel Ridge with a very minimal team. There will not be a worship team, so with this in mind consider putting on worship music in your house at 9:30am to begin to welcome the presence of the Lord into your living room. Take this half hour to seek the Lord in worship and prayer. I will bring us a short devotional and word, maybe even some questions for you to discuss as a family, young and old. For those with young kids, this could be a really unique time to build into your children a family worship time. After this short devotional we are going to step outside of our normal routine, and normal comfort zones. We are asking those who are able, physically well, and willing to agree to a social distancing of 3 feet, to go outside for a prayer walk. This is not about praying in such a way as to be overtly visible, but rather a quiet prayer movement of people from Chapel Ridge lifting up their own neighbours and street up to the Lord. If you have never done this before it is simple. Walk with your eyes open! That should be obvious, but I have to be reminded to not leave dish cloths in the sink wet, so we all need help. Pray simple prayers of blessing on your neighbours. Ask God to bring peace and calmness to your street instead of hysteria and fear. Invite the Lord to stir you to pray as you walk. If there is a home that catches your attention, then stop there for a moment and specifically pray for the people inside.
If you are unwell to go outside and walk, then again digital support is there to help you. Consider pulling up a map, or better yet, google street view. To do this go to google maps, https://www.google.ca/maps. At the top left corner type in your home address. A column will appear to the left side of your screen. Click the photo of your house. This will bring up an interactive photo of your house, and with it you can navigate left to right. Of course just an aerial view could be all the prompting you need.
When you conclude, return home with your family and ask God to care for you and your family, then close your time together.
I am sure this could be a very meaningful time as a church family, even though we can’t be there together in person.
Be blessed Chapel Ridge!
Sincerely,
Pastor Luke