The present time feels a bit like a twilight period. The night of Covid lockdowns and restrictions is coming to an end and the new day of life after Covid is appearing. Of course there are still uncertainties as to how soon and how fully this new day will come, but in this country at least things are looking hopeful.
With this new dawning is the challenge to wake up and be ready for the day. Some people find waking up harder than others and some will find the return to 'normal' difficult too! But as a whole church we need to arise from what has been a kind of online slumber as we move into this new era.
The plan for St. Luke's is that from the end of June we can restart normal Sunday Services with Sunday Club and livestreaming. Then look to an even fuller restart in September.
How do we do that? Prayer, care, share.
First of all, please do be praying for the church as a whole. There will be many challenges and opportunities and without God's help our efforts will amount to nothing. From next Thursday (13th) there will be the annual Thy Kingdom Come prayer initiative between Ascension Day and Pentecost. See below for more details on how you can engage with this and please pray for the issues raised in the next two points.
Secondly, lets show care for one another. This will involve understanding and a willingness to offer practical support where we can. After over a year of many activities being closed some of our volunteers will no longer be able to help in the same way and others will need to step up into new roles. Some of the old tasks will be changed and there will be new tasks. to carry out. For example, this week we have made good progress in developing our Livestreaming set up, but we will need a team of people to operate it! At our annual meeting on 18th May, we will focus on the different roles that we need people to fill.
Thirdly, let us remember that we are called to share God's word with one another and the world around us. Over the last year we have learnt new ways to do that through technology and we will want to continue to make the most of those opportunities. Yet, as we return to in person services this is a good opportunity to consider inviting others who have shown an interest in faith over the last year to join us. Let's make the most of the opportunities we have.
