COVID-19
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." Psalm 46.1
1. Please be careful
We are advised to wash our hands frequently for 20 seconds at a time. This is one of the most important things we can do at the moment, as well as using ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ when we cough or sneeze. Reminders of this advice will be in church and in the toilets.
Do please take care of yourself. If you need to self-isolate, or know of others who are doing so, please let us know – you can email or ring me, details above. We aim to keep in regular phone or email contact with those who are unable to leave their homes.
2. Please be prayerful
We know this is new territory for all of us. There are lots of reasons to be worried, for ourselves and for others. Please remember that God has not changed, nor is he ignoring us. We can all continue to trust him, just as Paul learned the hard way, and taught the Philippian church: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4.6-7
As a very practical point, it takes a little over 20 seconds to say the Lord’s Prayer. If you say it each time you wash your hands, it will help you get the timing right!
3. Please be kind
Do also keep an eye open for other people. If you know neighbours who might be in need, you might like to pop a note through their door to let them know they haven’t been forgotten. You may also be in a position to volunteer to help them in some practical way, but please remember point 1 in doing so!
Resources
It may be that at some point we temporarily suspend services or you may find yourself needing to self-isolate. Below are a couple of simple services of prayer which you can use at home, either alone or with others. If we have to suspend services entirely we will still try to ring the church bell at 10.15am on Sunday mornings to remind the community of our regular worship.
Radio
You may find the regular services on Radio 4 helpful.
The Sunday Service is broadcast at 8.10am.
The Daily Service is broadcast on long wave or DAB at 9.45am.
TV
Songs of Praise is usually broadcast on Sundays at 1.15pm
The Church of England also has daily set services of prayer on their website which you can follow:
https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/join-us-service-daily-prayer