With the growing concerns of the coronavirus, we want to help equip all of our churches with some excellent resources on the subject. Below are several links which may be helpful:
- To answer your most common questions about the disease. See: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-we-know-coronavirus/
- To give you spiritual and historical perspective on this global pandemic. See: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-we-know-coronavirus/
- To help your church adapt to new restrictions on social interaction and public meeting. See:https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/church-online-coronavirus-age/
As the coronavirus spreads in the U.S. and several state and local governments are asking large groups not to gather, congregations are facing a situation many have never considered.
In response, the LifeWay Leadership team has developed pandemic response resources that are being made available for free to assist pastors and church leaders. Check out this link for more details:https://factsandtrends.net/2020/03/11/free-coronavirus-response-training-and-resources-available-for-churches/
The SBC Great Commission Council is calling all Southern Baptists throughout more than 47,500 churches to commit to a dedicated time of prayer this Sunday, March 15, 2020 for God, in His mercy, to stop this pandemic and save lives, for our governmental leaders, and to protect our missionaries. You can find the details at this link: http://www.bpnews.net/54460/greear-floyd-entity-heads-issue-call-for-day-of-prayer?fbclid=IwAR0tgLuDxNLDUYgbCRCYxjZs18yY9MCtHEpJs3x4VWwv0DdFohf4yAggvTI
The CDC has also come out with some guidelines for churches gathering this week: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/organizations/guidance-community-faith-organizations.html?fbclid=IwAR1VvbE-TH8hA9qBK61nGSeYoCrvj30T-sAgXAa9XL3io5uvrcWlp9AOXlM
Ultimately, according to the latest information from the Kentucky Department of Health : “The current risk for COVID-19 to people in Kentucky is low. Evidence to date indicates those most at risk for becoming ill with COVID-19 are: Those in close contact with someone with a confirmed COVID-19 infection, including healthcare workers and those who have traveled in the past 14 days in countries with ongoing community spread of the virus.”
We pray that this information helps you in regards to ministering to your congregations during this unprecedented time.