Full Reopening Update for Calvary Chapel Stone Mountain from Pastor Sandy:
The last few months have been a long road. Having closed our in-person services in March, in May we began reopening incrementally, to different segments of our church family. On May 3rd adults without kids were invited back. On May 17th our Middle Schoolers rejoined us. On May 31st we provided Sunday School for our grade school children. Each time we opened wider we were ready with volunteers and new precautions. And then this past week we saw our small groups meet here at the church in a disinfected building and with social distanced seating. So far, no one that we know of has attended one of these church gatherings, and then tested positive for Covid-19.
Recently, Governor Kemp extended his Public Health State of Emergency for “the elderly and the medically fragile” another thirty days until July 12th. Covid-19 has certainly attacked greater numbers of this demographic than anyone else, and the governor’s caution is understood. But we trust the senior members of our fellowship to know how to make proper decisions for themselves, so beginning next Sunday, June 14th, we’ll open the Calvary Chapel doors to everyone in our fellowship who wants to attend – all ages. We’re excited to be reunited with friends we’ve sorely missed.
For the foreseeable future, we’ll maintain the same practices we’ve had throughout our reopening. Our sanctuary seating will be arranged for social distancing, we’ll greet each other with waves not hugs or handshakes, face masks and sanitizer will be available to everyone, ushers and children’s ministry workers will be required to wear face masks, we’ll disinfect common surfaces between services, the restrooms will be limited to one person at a time, and other precautions will be taken in the building. Our grade school children’s ministry will be held outside under the pavilion. While the preschool and nursery will be spread out over several classrooms to keep the children in smaller clusters.
Although we’ll continue to have two services on Sunday at 9:00 and 11:00, for the time being children’s ministry and preschool will be offered at the 11:00 service only. This allows our senior members a service to attend, where they can avoid exposure to children. And since social distancing in all our services has limited our seating, you’ll need to reserve a spot for you and your family. This is for your convenience. We don’t want anyone to come to church and not have a seat. Go to our website, calvarycsm.com, and click the green “welcome back” button to reserve your spot.
As we fully reopen our Sunday services and mid-week small groups let me discuss a real possibility. At some point, a Calvary Chapel Stone Mountain worshipper may test positive for the Covid-19 virus. If that happens we hope the person will immediately contact the church and let us know. Even if asymptomatic, they will be required to quarantine for fourteen days, and will not be allowed to return to church until their quarantine is over. In the meantime we will fog with disinfectant the areas of the building where the person was present (we have purchased a CDC approved fogger). The building will be deep cleaned before the next service.
Throughout this crisis we have maintained our belief that the Bible puts a high priority on in-person worship. We felt the pandemic in March and April warranted a temporary quarantine, but under current conditions we now believe the benefit of in-person worship outweighs the risks. You may not agree. We understand. When to return to in-person church is a choice each of us must prayerfully consider. To avoid leaving anyone out we will continue to broadcast a quality livestream of our Sunday services on all the social media platforms. If you don’t feel comfortable attending, we want you to enjoy worshipping with us online.
Thank you for your prayers, patience, and financial support during this unprecedented time. The people of Calvary Chapel Stone Mountain have shown their commitment to the Lord and their love for one another. We love you and are praying for you and your family.
– Pastor Sandy Adams
