We just want to take a moment to update you on the COVID-19 situation, which we are sure you are well aware is changing daily. On Wednesday 18th March the Prime Minister announced that there will be no indoor gatherings of more than 100 people. The Archbishop has decided that the Anglican Church in Sydney should suspend all public church gatherings until further notice.
To love others and protect those who are most vulnerable we will be suspending our public gatherings but we are not suspending church. We are as committed as ever to gathering together as a community. This situation provides us with a new and unique opportunity to gather together in a different and creative context. While we have been gathering in physical places, as best we can we will now meet together in virtual spaces until the time when we can start meeting together again in physical spaces. To this end we are going to try and keep three things in mind.
1. Jesus Changes Everything. So we still will continue to trust in Jesus and proclaim the message of the Gospel.
2. We will continue to share the truth and love of Jesus, person to person, generation to generation, culture to culture and place to place. And now we will add space to space. We will attempt to replicate our current places with new spaces online. Where possible we will look into meeting together in small groups until advised otherwise.
3. We will continue to disciple each other and be on mission together. We will make every effort to care for our church community and the wider public, especially those who are isolated and vulnerable.
so what are we doing?
postponing all gatherings
We will be postponing all our physical gatherings including FUSE and YOUTH until further notice but we will be live streaming all of our 6 weekly services this weekend on Facebook Live. To enable this we have launched Facebook pages for each campus so we can live stream each gathering at their usual time. You are invited to join us at Soul Revival Church at one or all of the following pages: Soul Revival Church Kirrawee; Soul Revival Church Woolooware, Soul Revival Church Yarrawarrah. We will also post a recording of our weekly sermons on our Pulse app. The Kids and Youth and Young Adults teams are also exploring ways to continue to connect online.
updating our website
We have updated our website with this News section. We will post all updates on this page and will also be using Pulse News, emails, SMS and social media to keep you updated.
missional community groups
We also meet together each week in Missional Community Groups. These groups are crucial for our community. These groups will be continuing to meet. Some groups may decide to continue to meet physically, while others will want to gather virtually.
postponing other events and groups
We will also be postponing some of our other groups and events. This includes postponing our choir, our youth camp and the AGM.
exploring new opportunities
Over the coming weeks we will be exploring ways to embrace new ways of connecting with each other using virtual technologies. We will communicate more about these opportunities as we work out the details.
We understand that at this moment, many of us may experience a sense of loneliness, fear and uncertainty. We want to support our Soul Revival Community as we all seek to share the truth and love of Jesus person to person, generation to generation, culture to culture, place to place and space to space. With this in mind, if you are experiencing any anxiety or you need to be in isolation, or if you get sick or know someone who needs help please contact us.
A much loved verse of Soul Revival is Matthew 22: 37-40 “Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
We are Soul Revival and we will continue to partner with Jesus as he builds his church. In a time of anxiety and fear, we continue to believe that Jesus changes everything and we will be praying for the strength to love God and love others. We invite you to join with us in praying for the sick and others who are impacted by COVID-19.