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Sunday’s service is planned to be outside at Ron and Joyce Truman’s house. The forecast is not looking promising, so I will send an email announcement out around 6 pm Saturday night to let everyone know where we will plan to have service. Again, the plan is to have it at Ron and Joyce’s house outside. If we have to cancel, we will go to the church for service.
I’m praying the weather cooperates! If we have to cancel, we will announce when we will do the picnic and baptism. Thank you, Pastor Bart Hi everyone!
Please check out the following video. It discusses our re-opening plan and what we would like to do to help keep everyone safe. https://vimeo.com/427596112 We plan to worship again together on June 21. If you choose to worship together, please follow the guidelines mentioned in the video. Please stay home if you are feeling ill or are at a high risk for COVID-19. While the numbers have been going down, it is still a very serious disease that we need to take seriously. Videos will still be provided online. I miss you all! Bart Central Wesleyan is planning to re-open on June 21, 2020
If you are high risk for COVID-19 or have pre-existing conditions, please feel free to stay home. As a matter of fact, if you are in the higher risk categories, we encourage you to stay home. We will provide a video recording of the church service with the goal of posting it online Sunday afternoon/evening. We do not want anyone venturing out that will feel unsafe or be too much at risk. We realize COVID-19 is a serious disease that can be lethal. Please, if you are uncomfortable coming to church, stay home. Watch the video of the service. We will look forward to seeing you again when it is safer. If anyone is ill, please stay home. If you have a fever, a cough, or other respiratory illness, please stay home. This also applies to me as pastor and any leaders in the church. For so long, we have “toughed it out” when we have felt ill, but now it warrants a different consideration. It will not be the same. We are going to take measures to keep us as safe as possible when we come back to worship together. We will not have Sunday School until further notice, as people are closer in smaller areas during Sunday School classes. The following procedures will be followed:
We are also asking that everyone practice social distancing. What do we mean by that?
If we all do our part, we can gather and worship together. Again, if you are high risk please consider staying home. Or, if you are taking care of anyone high risk and do not want to risk it, please feel free to stay home. While we can take all these precautions, it does not eliminate the risk. We want to eliminate the risk as much as possible and worship safely. I look forward to seeing you soon! Pastor Bart  Electricity was connected for our church sign today. Here is a night picture of the sign literally minutes after it first turned on. Thanks be to God for providing such a wonderful sign! Thank you to all of you as people of the church who have given to make this happen. And it sits right on Michigan Avenue!
Hello everyone!
I have just a couple announcements for you this morning:
Thanks! I hope to talk with you soon! Stay safe, and I’m praying for you all and God’s protection and hand to lead us out of this pandemic. Pastor Bart Hello everyone,
I hope and pray this message finds you all safe and healthy. I know that we are living in unprecedented times. There is nothing any of us could have done to fully prepare for this, and I know it’s tiring and frustrating for all of us. I’m not complaining, just want to say this – hang in there! We will get through this. I look forward to the day when I can worship together with my church family. I know we always say the church is not the building, but it’s the people. That is true, but part of that is the gathering of people. I miss the gathering. I need to share about our food distribution. Our FOOD DISTRIBUTION has always been funded by donations from our church body above and beyond our normal tithes and offerings. We had a few years where we brought in much more than we spent, and we saved that money. Those funds have helped pay for a new roof, new doors, our security cameras and many other projects including the food distribution. With the state of church right now, those funds are also helping keep us going as we cannot meet. Please prayerfully consider what you may be able to give to the food distribution. This ministry gives food to 40 families per month, and they leave with 2-4 bags of groceries every month. It costs us roughly $4,200 each year to run this ministry. The Food Bank is offering a matching grant through May 31st of this year. For every dollar we invest, the Food Bank will match 10%. In other words, for every $1,000 raised we are credited with an additional $100. We have paid ahead the last several years, and it’s a blessing. There is one difference with this year: the Local Board of Administration (and I’m in agreement as pastor) do not want to rely on our savings to make sure it operates at the same level. In other words, we need to raise the funds. Currently, $340 has been given so far without even asking for it. We currently have a credit of about $1500 from last year’s investment. If we raise $2400 in the next five weeks, it will cover the program for the coming year. Please prayerfully consider what you can send in or pay online (www.cwc-jackson.org). Again, this has always been above the general funds of the church. Thank you! In His service, Pastor Bart Hello everyone,
I want to update you all on what’s happening (or not happening) with church. Each Saturday, a new message is posted on our website (www.cwc-jackson.org) in place of our worship service. We are not holding church services, and it looks like that will extend into May at this point. At 11 am on Sunday, we have a conference call to touch base with familiar voices. Email the church if you need the number at [email protected]. Thursday, April 9, 2020, we will have our Maundy Thursday Service together via conference call. Again, email if you need the number. Service will start at 7 pm, and we will reflect on the Last Supper and the price Jesus paid for our sins. We will take communion together, but you will need to supply your own supplies: juice or soda or water or another drink along with bread or crackers or cookies (girl scout cookies would be my recommendation) for the bread. Hang in there. We will get through this with God’s help, and I look forward to seeing you all soon! And yes, I know soon is a relative term. Stay safe and healthy! May God bless you all through this time. Pastor Bart P.S. There will be no Food Distribution or Love Closet in April. Hello everyone,
The March 22 message is now online and ready for your to view. Simply scroll down on the home page to "current sermons". Underneath that title, simply click on the words "March 22 Be Strong and Courageous" and it will take you to the message. Also, please remember the conference call at 11 am tomorrow. The line will be open starting at 10:50, and the number has been shared via email to our announcement list. If you have the number and know some others don't have email to get the number, please feel free to pass the number along. I am praying for you all. I pray that God will keep you safe and healthy, and that you will sense His hand on your life through these moments. I look forward to touching base on Sunday, and I hope you find our virtual church model one that helps you through these days of uncertainty and social distancing. May God bless you all! Pastor Bart Dear Church Family,
Right now, we are living in unprecedented times. With the spread of the coronavirus, we have seen our lives changed drastically as people live in fear and panic. We have been introduced to the words “social distancing” and we are seeing many things being limited. One of those limitations relates to how many people can gather together, and that number is shrinking all the time. Last week, it was 250. As of today, that number is 50. And the CDC along with our government is asking for people to keep it under 10. With that said, the Local Board of Administration decided tonight that we will not gather physically at the church for the next few weeks. We will keep you posted as we get closer to the “all clear” date for people to gather again. Each week, there will be a video message from me that will be available via link from our website (www.cwc-jackson.org). A link will be sent via email along with directions on what to click to watch. It won’t be the same as gathering together for church, but hopefully it will help us be encouraged through these stressful and uncertain days. Let’s be clear on one thing: the church is NOT closed. The doors to the building may be locked on Sunday, but that is only a building. YOU are the church. This is a great opportunity to live out faith despite not being able to get together. Look for people to love on while maintaining social distancing and safety precautions. We all know people who can use a phone call to check in, and now’s a great opportunity to love others amid so much concern. Who knows? God can use this to break through, so let’s pay attention and look for others we can show love to. I look forward to gathering with you all soon. For the time being, we will need to connect in other ways. I’ll keep you updated along the way. Praying for you all, Pastor Bart Hello everyone,
As you know, our country and world has responded in many ways to the COVID-19 virus. Some are responding in panic, others are saying not to worry about anything, while there are several other responses in between. Here is where I stand as pastor and we stand as a church board: we need to be diligent in how we protect ourselves and others from spreading the virus while maintaining peace and a level head in how we do that. Jesus said he gives us peace (John 14:27). My prayer is that we live in that peace and we can shine to those around us during this tumultuous time. It seems like every hour is bringing another thought, another community message, another outbreak. With that said, the LBA has decided to suspend all ministries EXCEPT our morning worship service until further notice. Personally, I hope to return to our normal schedule on Palm Sunday, but that is not a guarantee at this point. We will worship at 11 am on Sunday. The CDC has not recommended faith communities stop meeting at this point, and our governor has only limited groups of over 250 from meeting together. As long as we feel it is safe and advisable, we will worship together. Our only request is that we hold off on shaking hands until this threat has been minimized, and communion may look a bit different for us. To reiterate this message, Sunday School, youth group, and the chimes choir will be on hold for the next few weeks. The food distribution will be cancelled this month along with the Love Closet. Also, Family Feud will be rescheduled to a later date. We hope this is a short interruption, but also will be following guidelines and procedures by our leaders in the Wesleyan Church, our government leaders and the CDC. The best way to avoid this disease is very similar to how you avoid the flu.
There are many more resources to look at regarding this illness (Henry Ford Allegiance is a good resource). We are also working to make sure our church is clean and sanitized for those who are able to come worship. I have two more things to say as your pastor. One, this virus is more of a threat to those with compromised health and older people. If you find yourself in these categories, please use your best judgment whether to venture out. I care more about your health than if you can make church the next couple weeks. I’d love to see each and every one of you, but also care about you enough to say stay home if you’re not feeling well or have a heart condition or diabetes or another chronic illness. Or, stay home if you’re concerned about coming out. Two, I want to remind you what Hebrews 13:8 states. It says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” We just had a message that talked about the fact that God still reigns, and we serve a great and powerful God. He is not surprised by this, nor is he intimidated by the moment. Let’s trust in Him. Let’s be smart and level-headed together. And let’s get through this together. I thank God every time I remember you all, and I’m thankful to be your pastor. We will get through this together with God’s help! Pastor Bart |
AuthorBart Hall has been pastor at Central since June of 2006. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Wesley Seminary. He is passionate about following Christ and living the life God desires for us to live. He is married to his wife Kristy, and they have two sons. Bart loves sports, reading, golf, and playing games. Bart also serves as a local hospice chaplain. Categories |
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