Reopening Update || 8.6.2020

Good afternoon LCAH–

We hope that you and your family are well, and finding ways to experience the joy of the Lord in this challenging season. One of our goals as a staff has been to maintain clear communication about where we feel God is leading us as we navigate the COVID 19 pandemic. Many of you recently completed a survey on reopening so we wanted to send an update based on your responses and some questions that were raised. But first, we want to say THANK YOU you so much for your input, your prayers, and your perseverance in staying connected with one another. We are proud of the many ways you have risen to meet the challenges of this moment!

How we gather on Sunday mornings is a significant aspect of our life as a church community. One of the clearest results from our survey was that, whereas a majority of us feel comfortable gathering outdoors, most of those who responded shared they do not feel comfortable at this point with in-person gatherings indoors. Given that data, and the fact that we do not know at this time whether Auburn Elementary will be available for rentals, we have not yet set a target date of resuming weekly in-person Sunday worship.

Based on your input and what we have been discerning as a staff, in the coming months we will:

• Continue virtual Sunday morning services and other virtual opportunities for prayer and connection
  • Prayer meetings on Facebook live (Tuesdays @ 7am and Thursdays @ 7pm)
  • LifeChurch Cafe on Zoom (Sundays at 10:00am)
  • Lunchtime Conversations on Facebook live (every other Wednesday at 12:15pm)
  • Weekly Community groups (including Roadmap to Reconciliation book study groups)
• Host additional outdoor worship services. Our next outdoor service is coming up on August 16th. Like our first outdoor service, we will cap our attendance at 100 people, seat family groups 6 feet apart from one another, and strongly encourage masks. Register at: lcah.us/outdoorservice
• Host certain gatherings outdoors in small groups. For example, currently, one of our Roadmap to Reconciliation book study groups meets outdoors at a park along with our Young Adults group on Monday evenings. We plan to schedule additional periodic outdoor gatherings and for those who feel comfortable, encourage you to reach out to one another to spend socially distanced time together outdoors!

While we eagerly hope for a time when it is safe to reconvene each week for worship, we are convinced that God is still at work in and through us in mighty ways, building his kingdom through LCAH. We celebrate that God has added new members to our community in these past months. We celebrate the impact of our conversations of COVID 19 and systemic racism, and the way God has used these events to contribute to a movement of greater engagement of racial injustice in the church. And we celebrate the many ways you have served your neighbors, whether through the My Covid Response initiative, or in other creative ways. We love you and trust that God will continue the good work He began through LifeChurch Auburn Hills and see it through to completion!

LCAH Staff