“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;
and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him,
and he shall direct thy paths.”
(Proverbs 3:5-6)
A Change Of Plan
I greet each of you as God’s servant in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. On yesterday (Thursday, July 15th), I discussed how the seating at both campuses will be modified this Sunday.
Because of an uptick of Covid cases and the Delta Variant which now includes California, I must rescind what I stated. We will not change our seating arrangement. We will continue until further notice to maintain our church safety protocol as we have done since we reopened.
In Los Angeles County, masks will be mandated indoors starting Saturday amid the coronavirus spike, and these cases are also locally increasing daily. For a while, we were doing so well (especially in Northern California) that we were gradually preparing to mitigate our church safety protocol; however, since the coronavirus and the Delta Variant are becoming worse each day, we cannot even project what the status will be like by Sunday.
I realize that this is disappointing to some because many of you have shared with me your displeasure with our current seating arrangement. Some feel that since the resurgence of cases is allegedly among people unvaccinated, people who are vaccinated should not have to adhere to our current protocol.
Please know that, as your Pastor, I am doing all that can to accommodate all of St. John. I really wish we could increase our seating capacity at both campuses, but we cannot at this time because it would not be safe or wise. In the meantime, let us continue as we have done: In-person corporate worship for many and online worship (live streaming and podcast) for even more. I believe God is going to move mightily again this Sunday!
My apologies to those of you who are disappointed after reading this, for your feelings are highly regarded. Unfortunately, in every pastoral decision that I must make, I cannot please everyone, so please continue to pray for the Pastor daily entreating God to lead and guide me concerning our congregation.
May God bless and sustain each of us.
Your Servant In Christ,
Dr. Kevin B. Hall, Pastor