Oxford Presbyterian Church

June 4, 2021

Good evening everyone,

On Sunday morning, we finally will be gathered together in our sanctuary at 10 a.m. to share in Word and Sacrament after our long absence from one another. Please read the attached letter and policies and recommendations sheet from our Reopening Committee. For the sake of loving one another, there are a few things we will need to observe while we are together. Rest assured, the gift of presence is worth the observing some common sense precautions!

The service will also be broadcast via Facebook Live. If you have a computer or tablet or smartphone with an internet connection, you should be able to receive the stream. You do not need to have a Facebook account to participate. Our stream appears on the church’s Facebook page which is here à  https://www.facebook.com/Oxford-Presbyterian-Church-152011345379561/. If you miss the broadcast, the service will remain on our Facebook page for the next several days.

Please note, in certain web browsers sometimes our livestream does not appear due to bugs on the Facebook side (meaning they have to make repairs). So far, we have found Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Apple Safari to be the most reliable browsers for our livestream (more than Microsoft Edge or Microsoft Internet Explorer). If our livestream does not appear on Sunday morning, try a different browser and see if that makes the difference. Thanks.

Also Sunday morning, we will have a short, outdoor worship service that will meet at 8 a.m. on the parking pad behind our church. If you want to come and remain in your automobile, you may park in the office lot next door and turn your FM radio dial to 89.5 and you will be able to listen to the worship service.

Our worship is also still broadcast on WCBQ 1340 on the AM radio dial at 3 p.m. on Sundays, If you are not a computer hound, then the radio broadcast of our worship is an easy way to listen in and participate. If you know of someone in our community that does not do computers or finds them frustrating to use, please let them know of this alternative. Please note that when we return to congregational worship, the radio broadcast of each service will be aired the following Sunday (June 6^th worship will be broadcast June 13^th, June 13^th worship will be broadcast June 20^th, and so on).

As always, the Sunday worship bulletin will appear in your emailbox late Saturday evening or early Sunday morning, complete with hymns and sermon so that you may have your own house-church worship. Worship is always critical, but especially at a time like this. Our faithful witness in this difficult time and world is nourished by lifting our hearts to the Lord. As always, you can listen to sermons through our website right here à https://oxfordpres.org/media/#sermons, and at The Oxford Exchange, found here à http://theoxfordexchange.blubrry.net/.

Our website, www.oxfordpres.org, has calendars, newsletters, the OPC WEEKLY, sermons, and even ways to give your offerings (right here à https://oxfordpres.org/give/). It is a great resource in times like these.

Oxford Presbyterian Church also has an offerings drop-box situated next to the door on the back side of the church at the top of the ramp if you want to drop off an offering. Or, you can mail offerings to Oxford Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 652, Oxford, NC 27565. They will be collected and deposited.

2^nd Sunday of Pentecost, June 6, 2021:

Scripture reading: 2 Corinthians 4:7-5:5

Sermon title: “The Light Moment of Our Affliction”

Thanks to Judy and Lindsay and Kathy Webb for leading our music

8:00 a.m. – Worship outdoors on the parking pad behind the church with communion

10:00 a.m. – Worship in sanctuary with communion and also broadcast via Facebook Live. The stream can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Oxford-Presbyterian-Church-152011345379561/

3:00 p.m. – Worship broadcast on WCBQ 1340 AM

Mission of the Month – Our monthly mission emphasis for June is Families Living Violence Free (FLVF), which works for lasting prevention of violence within the home. Donations can be made anytime during the month.

Announcements:

• 9^th – 12:30 p.m. – Midday Scripture and Prayer (and coffee!) on our parking patio behind the church
• 10^th – 5:30 p.m. – Book Club meets via Zoom

 Volunteer opportunity: ACIM (Area congregations in ministry) is in need of volunteers who can unpack boxes of food and place food items on shelves. Times to serve are Tuesday and Thursday at 6PM. Saturday mornings are also a possibility. If you would like to serve, please call ACIM at 919-690-0961.

Prayers for: Frank Anderson, Becky and Isabella Baird, Betty Baynes, Michael Boyd, Cynthia Broaddrick, Linda and Mike Diamond, Randy Downey, Julie Gaydon, Marlene Grenier, Boyce Harvey; Fred Heath, Hannah Hobgood, Terry Hobgood, Cotina Jones, Barbara Laurent, Miriam MacDowell, Sis McCarty, BK McCloud, Donnie Messer, Ally Milton, Jeanette Owen, Jason Parkin, Greg and Dottie Price, Mike Reavis, Lynn Stone, Melvin Weaver, and Alice Evans Woodlief.

Happy Birthday to: Ben Hobgood – 9^th; June Howell – 10^th; Marty Newell – 11^th

¹ I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
² I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness;
for you have exalted your name and your word
above everything.
³ On the day I called, you answered me,
you increased my strength of soul.
⁴ All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O Lord,
for they have heard the words of your mouth.
⁵ They shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
for great is the glory of the Lord.
⁶ For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly;
but the haughty he perceives from far away.
⁷ Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve me against the wrath of my enemies;
you stretch out your hand,
and your right hand delivers me.
⁸ The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands. (Psalm 138 NRSV)

All blessings in Christ,

Alan

Reopening Committee Letter

Oxford Presbyterian Church
June 4, 2021

I was glad when they said unto me: “Let us go into the house of the Lord.”

Have we ever been more ready to speak these words? Have we ever meant them more sincerely?

We are writing to share the wonderful news that, upon the latest statements of the CDC, Governor Cooper, and the OPC Reopening Committee, the Session has approved the resumption of indoor, in-person worship. Barring unforeseen circumstances, we will gather in the sanctuary this Sunday, June 6, at 10:00 a.m.
As we have done since the beginning of the pandemic shutdown, we will work to love and serve one another as sensibly and safely as possible. To that end, a listing of policies and recommendations accompanies this letter from our Reopening Committee. These policies and recommendations stem from the Interim Guidance for Places of Worship and Religious Services recently issued by the NCDHHS (the Committee has not operated under the pretense that they themselves are politicians or public health officials!). We ask that you read them and hope you observe them in the spirit that the Apostle Paul spoke to the Corinthians: Everything is for your sake, so that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

In addition to the indoor, in-person service, other options remain in place to enable everyone to participate in worship in the way each may feel most comfortable.
• 8:00 a.m. Sunday outdoor worship on the OPC parking pad
• 10:00 a.m. Sunday worship Livestream broadcast on Facebook
• 3:00 p.m. Sunday worship radio broadcast on WCBQ 1340 AM
As we enter into this phase of reopening, may we be inspired to reach out to our OPC brothers and sisters to share joys and sorrows, gifts and needs. May we rejoice in the freedom to be together in body and in Spirit.

Blessings,
Your Committee on Reopening: Ellen Gould, Walter Gould, Terry Hobgood, Sharyl Shelton, Kathy Webb, Alan Koeneke

Interim Policies and Recommendations for Oxford Presbyterian Church’s Return to Congregational Worship
The gospel of Jesus Christ does not discriminate between who is vaccinated and who is not. One’s status in this matter or belief surrounding this matter in no way, shape, or form inhibits access to the gifts that God gives us as the people of God. Everyone is welcome. That said, the free gift of God in Jesus Christ calls forth an ethic from us, a commandment from the Lord himself: Love one another as I have loved you. It is in light of this commandment that the following policies and recommendations be observed.
• It is asked that we distance 6ft between groups who do not live in the same household.
• For the time being, there will be no singing of congregational hymns and singing of responses as risk of viral spread is increased by intensified respiratory effort.
• For the time being, all persons participating in in-person, indoor worship will need to wear face coverings with the exception of infants and children under the age of 2.
• All are asked to observe the guidelines posted around the building.
• Groups wishing to meet at the church during the summer months (Presbyterian Men, PW, Session, etc.) are encouraged to meet outdoors when weather permits. If conditions force meetings to move inside, groups should practice social distancing in the Fellowship Hall sitting at round tables. If meals are to be served, they should be ordered and served as individual plates.

Interim Practices in OPC Indoor Worship Services
• Communion will take place as a component of worship. Individual service of pre-packaged Communion elements will be available for worshipers and will be distributed without personal contact.
• Offering plates will be available at points of egress for worshipers’ convenience. Plates will not be passed.
• Bulletins will be available electronically and as hard copies. Hard copy bulletins will be available for pick up at the entry points of the sanctuary.
• A time for children will be included in the sanctuary during indoor worship. For the time being, children will remain in the sanctuary with the adults who bring them. At a later date, we will resume having a nursery.
• Christian Education opportunities will be offered in various formats during the summer months. At a later date, we will resume having breakfast and Sunday School.

Remember to utilize our website! – www.oxfordpres.org.

Also, if you are on Facebook, please friend us here:

And if you are on Twitter, please follow us here: