DETAILS ABOUT REOPENING TRINITY GRACE CHURCH THIS SUNDAY, MAY 10.

While we have much to be grateful for as a church, these past 6 weeks of isolation—& all of the ways COVID-19 has affected each one of us—have been difficult.

Last week the State of Tennessee began to gradually reopen, starting phase 1 of 3 phases to Reopen Tennessee Responsibly. Churches are permitted to resume in person meetings in a limited capacity in this first phase.

We desire to meet together in person as soon as it is possible & wise. Among other reasons, we take very seriously God’s command to not neglect gathering together (Heb. 10:25), the gathered church as the unique dwelling place of God by the Spirit (Eph. 2:22; 1 Cor. 3:16; etc.), & the refreshing up-building effect of spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12:7-11; Eph. 4:15-16).

In addition to general guidelines to Reopen Tennessee Responsibly, Governor Lee includes extensive, informed “Guidance for Gathering Together in Houses of Worship,” while at the same time affirming every Tennessean’s religious freedom & right to practice religion “according to the dictates of their own consciences.”

After reviewing these guidelines & getting counsel from members, health professionals, & other local pastors, we believe now is the time to reopen Trinity Grace in a limited capacity.

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY LIMITED?

We will resume our Sunday morning worship service this coming Sunday, May 10, but we will do so in a limited way with the following changes.

We will not offer TGKids for at least 3 more weeks. Like always, the children are welcome to stay in the service. After enduring livestream, a little wiggling is a welcome change! We will have another room available for parents to go with their children during the service if necessary.
We will operate at 50% capacity of the building’s capacity. Since we are unable to meet at TWU for at least the next several weeks, we will be meeting at Ramble Creek & will be able to meet the state’s recommendation with our average attendance.
We will maintain 6 foot separate between rows. We will also encourage families to maintain similar separation from family groupings on each row.
We will ask each person to a wear a mask. While this is not our preference, it is consistent recommendation & an important way for us to love our neighbors. So, please bring your mask! We will some extra onsite for those in need.
We will ask the sick to stay home.
We encourage folks 65 years old or older or with pre-existing conditions to prayerfully consider staying home.

In addition, prior to the service, we will disinfect all handles, services, & restrooms.

Even with all those limitations, we believe now is the time to reopen Trinity Grace & resume worshipping our great God together each Sunday.

That said, we will continue to:

livestream our Sunday service on trinitygraceathens.com or our YouTube channel.
limit other in person meetings to under 10 (e.g., Men’s & Women’s Community Group meetings) & utilize Zoom for larger gatherings.

SHOULD YOU COME?

Since we are reopening in this limited capacity, you may feel uncomfortable about attending for a number of reasons.

As we talked about when we studied Acts 15, we must be close-fisted about some things & open fisted about others things.

We are close-fisted on the gospel & ready to defend the truths of the gospel & our calling to preach the gospel. We are open-fisted on many other things—nearly everything else. Given the real threat & broad uncertainty COVID-19 has introduced into our community, along with the wide-ranging views of combating it & reopening America, this is a moment where we should be open-fisted.

You are free to decide for yourself & your family when it would be appropriate to resume attending our Sunday morning worship service.

If you have any questions or would like more clarification, please don’t hesitate to talk with me (Walt) or one of the pastoral residents.

Join us this sunday at 10:30am at ramble creek.

We will be unable to meet at TWU for at least 4 weeks.

Until we return there, we will be meeting each Sunday at 10:30am at:

Ramble Creek Wedding & Event Venue

277 County Road 437

Athens, TN 37303