(Psalm 118:23)
Greetings to each of you in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. I am so grateful to God for all that He is doing. Since the reopening of our church (almost 5 weeks ago), God has been moving mightily in each of our Worship Celebrations (9 a.m. at the North Campus and 11 a.m. at the South Campus), and we give Him the praise! I am so encouraged to hear so many discuss how blessed they are in our Worship Celebrations, for truly each Sunday feels like a Church Revival even though we are only assembled together for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Because many of our parishioners are still uncomfortable or unable to participate in person during our Worship Celebrations, we have made it possible for these individuals to worship with us in other ways. 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).
To accommodate these parishioners and friends, we have invested thousands of dollars in A/V equipment in order to live stream every Sunday our Worship Celebrations. Also, we have now staffed a videographer who is training volunteers for our A/V Ministry. Next Thursday, July 15th at 6:00 p.m., our Videographer will train new and existing volunteers at the South Campus to use the new cameras. Because we are striving for excellence as we are live streaming our Worship Celebrations, we need more volunteers that are willing to be equipped to operate our new cameras and serve in our A/V Ministry. Hence, if you are interested, please be present next Thursday for this session of training.
Since our church has invested thousands of dollars already to meet the needs of our parishioners and friends who are uncomfortable or unable to participate in person during our Worship Celebrations, we need all of you who are enjoying our live-streamed Worship Celebrations to be a good Christian and a good St. John member or friend by supporting financially our efforts to serve you. Don’t allow those who attend in person to finance a project that benefits you; instead, demonstrate your appreciation with your Tithes and Offerings. In general, we encourage everyone to support St. John financially. 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).
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 ask everyone to arrive at least 10 minutes before Worship Celebrations begin to ensure safe and comfortable seating.
Furthermore, we strongly encourage everyone to participate in our Church School (formerly called Sunday School) which 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, and the 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 via our website (sjmbc.org). You will be blessed as a result, and you can choose the class that you desire to attend.
Last but not least, our Administration Building is open to serve you Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. In case you are unaware, the address is 3707 Bissell Avenue (Richmond, CA 94805), and the number is (510) 233-1779.
May God bless and sustain each of us.
Your Servant In Christ,
Dr. Kevin B. Hall, Pastor