It hit me Wednesday night, March 11, as I was going to bed. I was ‘checking the scores’ of the night’s NBA basketball games when I saw the league had “suspended” the regular season because of COVID-19. I thought, “if a multi-billion dollar business thinks it’s in their best interest to shut it all down, then we’re all going to have to shut it all down. Even the church!”

For two months, I had followed—perhaps more closely than I usually pay attention to international stories—the progress of this epidemic as it bloomed from Asia and made its way to Iran and Italy. I remember the day the United States had its first confirmed case was the same day South Korea reported their’s. And ever since, this pandemic has felt like a slow motion flood. It is that time of year, after all. Living on the Mississippi River, we know what it’s like to dread another spring rain, knowing it will only raise floodwaters even higher, also knowing snow is still melting upriver, compounding the problem. And there’s nothing we can do about it.

On Thursday, March 12, I had resolved to cancel gathered worship for that Sunday. At noon, I had a monthly lunch meeting with other area pastors. Only one other felt they needed to close that Sunday, which made me wonder, “Am I crazy? Am I overreacting?” But by Friday morning, almost all of us had cancelled gathered worship.

And so began a new way of being Church: Zoom meetings replace small group conversations. Live streaming worship into people’s living rooms replaces gatherings of hundreds in our sanctuary. Daily posts to social media become the primary way a pastor remains pastoral.

And yet this new Church we have formed (almost instantly) is rooted in the oldest practices Christians have shared. We pray daily together, even if it is in the ‘comments’ section of posts! We sing and offer confession and share in an offering, even if it is done without looking another human in the eye. We show kindness to each other, from at least six feet away. And we get creative. One of our members, upon completing a course of chemo, had neighbors ring bells from his driveway!

The body of Christ is love personified. We say something like that often and oftentimes they feel no more authentic than mere words. It is in times like these, though, that our Christian claims and phrases are elevated from monotonous to profound. As we sing the Kyrie, we have never meant it more: “Lord have mercy! Christ have mercy! Lord have mercy!” When we proclaim the peace of Christ during streamed worship where we could all feel fear and desperation, those words have never felt more counter-cultural, “Peace be with you!” We are being the church.

And the staff at First Lutheran are serving you, our members and the community well, too. Each and every staff person at First has risen to his occasion. Our musicians have provided their ministry to bring beauty into an ugly moment. Bridget Crave had to shift the entire small group model into a new online and over the phone model. Finding people to serve the warming shelter hasn’t gotten easier, either. And yet she has persisted. Tamara continues to provide her friendly and helpful presence to those who call. Dave, our custodian, is finding all kinds of little projects that have needed to get accomplished. Our preschool teachers and Beth, our Sunday School Superintendent are working to continue to teach the story to our kids. Kathryn and Pastor Karyn and I are doing our best to keep people connected. And our communications director, Andy Stutesman has tirelessly worked triple-time to create a live stream product and SO MUCH MORE that has as good a quality as any other ELCA church in our synod and beyond.

Here’s my newsletter message in a nutshell: crisis reveals truth. And this COVID-19 crisis has revealed that the people of our church continue to be the church no matter what, even now… no, especially now! And your church staff continue to serve you energetically and creatively, not just to offer comfort amidst a storm, but to equip you to serve others in your household, neighborhood and beyond. Your faith and witness to Jesus is essential for SO MANY during this time. May you be given the words, the courage and the creativity to harness the power of the Holy Spirit in your relationships, now more than ever!

Wash your hands,