Oxford Presbyterian Church

May 7, 2020

Dear sisters and brothers,

You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever. (Psalms 30:11-12 NRSV)

The Easter Season is still underway, and the above conclusion to Psalm 30 is befit for the great reality we celebrate, that Jesus Christ lives and has conquered, and consequently our hope is real. Yes, the quarantine and pandemic season is also still underway, and the resultant sufferings we and the world endure are great. Yet the words of Paul from the Epistle to the Romans remind us to hold fast to the Easter truth: “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18) The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the overwhelming demonstration that this pandemic, as awful as it is, has indeed been overcome. So take heart, not in a manner that would deny the suffering all around, but rather in a manner that witnesses to the hope all of us have in Jesus Christ.

On Tuesday of this week, Governor Roy Cooper signed an executive order that has begun a phased easing of restrictions on travel, business, and gatherings. The easing of restrictions in this first phase means that gatherings for worship are no longer prohibited, as long as recommendations for the promotion of social distancing and transmission reduction are observed. However, a close read of the document reveals that much of the rationale for easing restrictions on churches derives from First Amendment rights, not from reduction of risk. Just because we can congregate does not mean that we should congregate. Businesses do not have the same kind of protections that we as a church have, and therefore they are still under considerable restrictions because they are accessed by risk instead of rights. Therefore, I am asking for your patience to let our ad hoc Committee for Reopening the Church to fully prepare us for our return to congregating. As I said last week, that committee is tasked with making sure we leave no stone unturned with regards to safety, and that we have policies and procedures in place to govern us when we are in each other’s presence in the church. As the work of the committee progresses, we will keep you updated. In the meanwhile, keep praying for the work of committee. Thank you.

So, for another week, our ministry of social distancing for the sake of loving one another and loving neighbor continues. Continue in your patience and perseverance. Continue to call and check on one another. Continue to be lifting up prayers for each other and all that are impacted by this dreaded virus.

As always, your elders continue to be our shepherds and hold all of us up to God in heart and prayer during these days. If you have need of anything, please let your elders know so that we can share in whatever burdens you may be experiencing.

This Sunday, we continue the era of live-streamed worship via Facebook Live. Our service begins at 10:00 a.m. 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.

Our worship will be broadcast from my home without professional lighting and sound, and will be captured by my iPhone. It isn’t necessarily high-tech, but it is the worship gathering of the Oxford Presbyterian Church, and it consists of most of the gifts we have always shared when we are together: prayer, song, word.. If you have prayer requests or announcements, please email them to me (opcpastor@ncrrbiz.com) or text them to me (919-323-7192) and they will be included in the worship.

As before, I will be sending out our Sunday worship bulletin on Saturday evening complete with hymns and sermon so that you may have your own house-church worship. The important thing for all of us these days is not how we are worshiping but rather the fact that we are worshiping. God gifts us whenever and wherever we meet with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 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.

Regarding offerings, Oxford Presbyterian Church 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.

Here is our schedule for the week:

Fifth Sunday of Easter, May 10, 2020:

Scripture reading: 1 John 2:7-27

Sermon Title: “Because You Know It”

10:00 a.m. – Worship via Facebook Live. The stream can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Oxford-Presbyterian-Church-152011345379561/

Mission of the Month – Our monthly mission emphasis for May is Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. The offerings are used for communities both near and far that have suffered natural disasters. Some of these funds are already being used to help marginalized communities that have been hard hit by COVID-19 outbreak. Online gifts can be made here à https://pma.pcusa.org/donate/make-a-gift/gift-info/DR000148/.

Announcements:

• · May 14th – 5:30 p.m. – Book Club discussion of Paul: An Apostle’s Journey via Zoom
• We have resumed our local book club via the easy-to-use (for the most part!) teleconferencing technology of Zoom. We are reading Douglas Campbell’s short and readable biography of one of the key witnesses in the New Testament, Paul: An Apostle’s Journey. If you wish to join us, please let Alan know.

Prayers for: Becky and Isabella Baird, Betty Baynes, Michael Boyd, Ann Currin, Larry Delfs, Linda and Mike Diamond, Randy Downey, Julie Gaydon, Diane and Fred Heath, Hannah Hobgood, Sue Huggins, Cotina Jones, Barbara Laurent, Carlis Laws, Will Newcomb,  Greg and Kellie Price, Lynn Stone, Kathy Webb, Allison Evans Woodlief

Happy Birthday to: Abby Hamilton – 14th; Benjamin Parham – 14th; Sue Hinman – 14th

“I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)

All blessings in Christ,

Alan

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