Covid-19 Update #3
Good Afternoon Mosaic Family,
We hope that you are all hanging in there.
Let’s start with the main update:
ALL Mosaic gatherings are canceled through March 29th.
That is no small groups or gathered corporate worship.
This should come as very little of a surprise. We will continue to monitor the news and will update all of you concerning the weeks beyond that as we make definitive plans. In observance with what is recommended, it looks like no corporate worship gatherings will be happening for several weeks past that, but we will continue to attempt to be creative in how we navigate all of this.
Though small groups are not meeting in each other’s homes, our groups are going online through Zoom. If you are not in a group, click this link here and that will take you to the page with all of our groups. You can just as easily respond to this email and we will get you connected. This is a great opportunity to get plugged into a group.
Some other upcoming online events:
We are organizing an online prayer gathering for Tomorrow (Friday) at 11:30a. We will be using Zoom for this as well.
We are also working on another live online gathering of sorts Sunday at 10a. This will look different than this past Sunday and obviously much different than our normal Sunday worship.
Be on the lookout via social media for more details on how to participate.
Other Resources:
Check out the website: mosaicbirmingham.com for some new updates. We have a feed where we will keep all news and schedule updates as well as an archive of emails and announcements.
Kyle and Johnathon will be blogging a couple of days out of the week and providing other devotional resources through something that we are going to call "The Pastoral".
The Mosaic Kids team will also be providing resources for the kiddos while they are couped up. If you follow us on Instagram a small activity was posted on Tuesday, and more will be coming.
We also want to extend ways to help. We have provided a form online to make reaching out a little easier. You can check that out here. We have set it up in such a way that you can fill it out for yourself or someone else you know in need.
Kyle, Johnathon, and the other Elder families alongside of our small group leaders will be doing their best to check-in, please know we are available for phone calls and Facetimes and any other way we can be "present" with you as we navigate this so do not be afraid to reach out.
For our extroverts, we get that the social strain could already be starting to settle in. We are being forced to shut down our social lives and find ourselves trying to figure out new rhythms, and the reality of it all, whether an introvert or extrovert, is difficult. This is unprecedented in our lifetime and it is completely normal to feel thrown off by it all, the unknown and strangeness of it all can be exhausting. You may be acutely aware of exactly how this is making you feel and why or possibly you find yourself unable to name what it is that is “off,” yet you still feel it deeply. I want to say this … that is okay. Many in our very own community are being forced to change and cancel things they had been planning and preparing for. This week alone, Tim and Christin Lewis had their beautiful baby boy and all of that looks different for them than it has for others in our community. We collectively were looking forward to weddings this spring with members of our community and now like so much else it looks different. New jobs, job transitions, anniversaries, birthdays, senior semesters of college, all of it looks ... different, not how we had planned or hoped or prayed it would look. It is all odd and we are not going to pretend otherwise.
It may be really easy to ask right about now: “Where is God in all of this?” I challenge you over the next few days to move past that question and begin to ask that the Spirit would help you to see God in the midst of all of this. I’m going to stay away from the sweeping claims of “I think God is doing this to _______.” But, what scripture bares to be true again and again, and what I know from my own life of apprenticing after Jesus, is that in all things God is gracious to teach us and lead us deeper into relationship with him even in the midst of the craziest and most unforeseen circumstances.
At the start of observing Lent this 2020, I don’t think any of us were aware we would be giving up so much. We know Lent as a wilderness season, but who knew that we would really journey into a tangible wilderness moment like this? We want to encourage all of you to still find yourself getting on with the spiritual practices that shape us and form us. Lean into the prayers and season of Lent, continue to abstain from those things you gave up and seek to be near to the Lord. It can be easy in this time to be given over to fear and anxiety, but we must remind ourselves that God is near.
But I would recommend to also be aware of how easy it is to be given to amusing ourselves into oblivion. We so often talk about how we wish we had time to pray or time to read - the next few weeks will provide a lot of time. And as discussed we will be doing the best we can to provide resources and guidance.
And to conclude with a little reminder, we will still be fasting as a community tonight through tomorrow at 3:00p. Let our time of fasting and prayer be towards all of this. Standing with the poor and those who are going without in all of this, let us fast and pray for wholeness and healing, ask the Lord for wisdom and insight for our elected officials and medical teams working through all of this.
We hope to "see" all who will be available to make it online tomorrow.
Respond to this email or send a message to theupdate@mosaicbirmingham.com if you have any questions! We love you all and so grateful that through all of this we are still Mosaic and still the family God has called us to be.
Grace & Peace