In the meantime… In the meantime… It’s a phrase that indicates things are not what they were nor are they what they will be. Between our past and our future, we dwell…in the meantime.
It was just months ago that First Baptist Greenville was filling her pews each Sunday, planning meaningful Holy Week/Easter Services, putting the final touches on Summer programs, and…well…you get the picture. At some undetermined point in the future, we will again gather, to worship, celebrate Holy Days, and engage the enjoyed array of ministries offered by our church. Right now, however, we are in the meantime.
In the meantime can be a productive time. It has for the staff of First Baptist Greenville. In the meantime, our Children and Preschool ministers have generated a proposal to staff and fund enhanced ministries to our special needs children. Our Spiritual Formation and Outreach Office has helped establish Zoom connections for many small groups in our church, as well as begun planning for how this technology can be used to reach our members who live at a distance. Our Facilities Staff have deep cleaned the expansive square footage of our campus, removed and cleaned vents in our Sanctuary, and completed many needed repairs. Our Missions, Affiliations and Neighborhood Partnership ministries have increased the expenditure of energy and money to meet immediate needs in our community. Our Pastoral Care staff have written more cards, made more phone calls, and answered more emails than we could count. Our Youth Ministry team has paraded past homes, met with teenagers in their yards, stayed in constant communication with the Youth Family, celebrated our graduates, and reshaped summer programming to fit an online context. Our Finance Office has helped many of you find new and safe ways to ensure your tithes make their way to the church’s ministries. Our worship leadership has worked to provide creative online services for our membership and have undauntingly forged ahead with plans for the future – gathered or not. Our AYMC staff have thoughtfully kept us moving and have also constructed a schedule for expanding building usage within the safest of parameters.
In the last few months, we have learned a lot, expanded our reach, tapped the depths of creativity, felt the frustration of limits, missed sharing space with all of you, and have committed ourselves to doing our best…while we live in the meantime.
—Jim