By the grace of God, we have now begun the second half of the year which means that half of the year is already behind us.  We are so thankful to God that we are still alive, for the Lord has blessed and sustained us which has been my constant prayer.  As a church, God is blessing us to experience a lot of progress.

The Holy Spirit is moving mightily in each Worship Celebration (9 a.m. at the North Campus and 11 a.m. at the South Campus) every Sunday.  Although each Worship Celebration is shorter (1 hour and 15 minutes), they are so intense and awesome!  We encourage everyone to arrive at least 10 minutes beforehand for each Worship Celebration which is like being in a Spiritual Revival.

Because many of you are unable or uncomfortable currently to attend, we are still providing ways for you to experience our Worship Celebrations.  Our 11:00 a.m. Worship Celebrations are now live-streamed (YouTube and Facebook), and you can also enjoy them via our website (sjmbc.org).  Moreover, a podcast of our Worship Celebrations will continue to be available each Sunday at 2 p.m. or thereafter via our website (sjmbc.org).

St. John reopened on June 6th, and God has covered us with Jesus’ blood protecting us from illnesses and Covid-19 as we assemble carefully together.  I must commend everyone (especially the Ushers and Hospitality Ministries) who serves to keep everybody safe and comfortable each time we convene for corporate worship.  Until further notice, we are still adhering to our church safety protocols.

• Temperatures will continue to be checked and hand sanitizing will continue to be urged upon entering, social distancing will continue to be applied regarding where people shall sit and walk, wearing masks will continue to be strongly encouraged, utilization of restrooms will continue to be restricted to 2-4 people at a time (depending on the size of the restroom), and congregating before and after Services will continue to be prohibited.
• We are adhering to these safety protocols even though California (which is still in a state of emergency) has dismissed on June 15th its color-coded tier system, capacity limits, and mask mandates for vaccinated individuals in most settings.

We are scheduled to partake in The Lord’s Supper online this Sunday (July 4th) at 7 pm.  I still do not feel divinely led to officiate Communion in person yet.  Also, I am happy about the next scheduled time because my preference has always been to serve the Lord’s Supper in the evening since this was when Jesus officiated it in the Upper Room with his 12 disciples.  To participate, each believer will need some bread or a cracker, and each believer will need some grape juice (or something similar).  For more information, you may visit our website (sjmbc.org).

Our Church School (formerly called Sunday School) is progressing well, and we appreciate those of you who are participating, but we encourage more of you to participate.  Our Church School convenes Sundays at 2:00 p.m. and Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m.  The teachers and curriculum are the same as they have been.  Our teachers are doing a great job weekly preparing and presenting their lessons.  In order for St. John to continue to have a stellar Church School, more need to participate, so we appeal to everyone (members and non-members of St. John) to log on to our online Church School.  You will be blessed as a result, and you can choose the class that you desire to attend.

Our Administration Building is open Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4
p.m.  My staff and I are committed to assisting and serving you to the best of our ability.  In case you are unaware, the address is 3707 Bissell Avenue (Richmond, CA  94805), and the number is (510) 233-1779.

We thank so many of you who have been supporting St. John financially.  With everything that we are doing and trying to do, your financial contributions are needed.  We currently give in person during Sunday Morning Worship Celebrations, by mailing or dropping off our Tithes and Offerings at our Administration Building or South Campus, or by giving online through our website (sjmbc.org).  If you are financially able but not supporting St. John financially, allow God to bless you with more by giving today your Tithes and Offerings.

May God bless and sustain each of us.

Your Servant In Christ,

Dr. Kevin B. Hall, Pastor