Coronavirus Update
It was a blessing last Sunday to gather as a church family, despite the physical separation necessitated by COVID-19. Many who participated in our first live streaming worship service have shared how good and comforting it was to worship our Lord together through prayer, song, and hearing his Word. In times of crises it is good and necessary to comfort each other by helping one another focus on the God of all comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3)
The mayor and governor have just implemented a Safer at Home order. This is the first time that many of us are experiencing an extreme measure like this. In the midst of all these changes, we keep our hearts and eyes focused on our sovereign and mighty God who is always in control (Psalm 46:1-2). We pray for God’s comfort and healing for those who are battling this disease and for the families who have lost loved ones because of it. We pray for God’s provision and peace as businesses close and asresources are being impacted. We pray that we would grow in our intimacy of God’s love, fellowship and presence as we stay in our homes. And ultimately, we pray that God would make himself known and that in the midst of all that is happening, people would come to saving faith in Jesus.
Our Heavenly Father cares for us and calls us to care for one another. We have the opportunity to care for one another in such a way that the light of the Gospel shines through Crossway Church. We encourage you to...
Pray. To supplement your personal prayer life, we want to call us to pray corporately as a church family on Wednesdays. Further details will follow. Although we cannot meet together physically, our hearts are united in spirit when we pray.
Worship. Sunday worship service will be livestreamed for the foreseeable future. The format will be as it was last week. In anticipation of Safer at Home order, we have been preparing for ways to stream the service without having to gather even our small crew at church. You’ll notice starting this Sunday that the three service participants - worship chairman, worship leader, and preaching pastor - will each be leading their parts from their homes. We will continue to stream this through Facebook live.
Love One Another.
Physical assistance. If you or someone you know in the church family need assistancepicking up groceries or other essentials, please contact Erick Liong. He and a team ofpeople in our church are available to help.
Financial assistance. If you are experiencing financial hardship, the Lord has blessed thechurch with financial resources to share. Contact one of the elders for assistance.
Reach out. Pray for others, then call, text, email, write a letter (remember those?) towhomever God brings to mind.
Disciple One Another. We encourage all small groups to continue meeting. We have found online video conferencing to be a good option and are securing a resource for the church family to utilize to facilitate such gatherings. It will soon be available to the small group shepherds. Also, by meeting together in your groups you can consider how your group might pursue the “love one another” encouragement.
Be Outward-faced. The needs within the church family are many. Yet we know the Lord also calls us to be salt and light in the world around us. We will be intentional about contacting the immediate neighborhood to let them know we are here for spiritual support, also collaborating with our ministry partners in meeting other needs.
Be Radically Generous. Please utilize the online giving option recently made available. Access it through our website, https://www.crosswaysfv.org/giving. We of course welcome the continued use of checks. Please mail your gift to P.O. Box 330069, Pacoima, CA 91333. Your support helps us to faithfully fulfill the above calling.
The physical church office will for the most part be closed, but the staff and pastors will continue to do ministry remotely and can be contacted through our church emails and personal phones. Contact information can be found in the church directory. You may also leave a message at church as voicemails will be retrieved regularly.
In this season of uncertainty, please know that your pastors are available for counsel and prayer. May we all together seek the Lord and wait upon him with confidence.
For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalm 62:1-2
Your brothers and fellow servants,