Phillip Jensen on how COVID19 changes evangelism

“This week on The Pastor’s Heart we talk big COVID changes: individualism and community, autonomy and submission, free press & censorship, materialism, wealth and its assumptions and the seriousness of life.

Plus the massive advantages for ministry and evangelism in a society which has much more time on our hands and is much more aware of the reality of death.

Plus we ask Phillip how Christian leaders can honour Jesus, loving the flock and reach the lost in the Corona season.”

– A very helpful episode of The Pastor’s Heart.

Southern Cross — April 2020 — now online

Southern Cross, the monthly magazine of the Diocese of Sydney, is available online in a digital version – while congregations are unable to meet.

From Archbishop Glenn Davies’s column:

“The sad reality is that the potential for infection could now be anywhere in Australia. The growth in community-to-community infection is of greatest concern as the origin of the virus is unknown, unlike those infected by contact with people coming from overseas. Therefore, more precautions are needed to combat COVID-19. More restrictions on our daily lives will become necessary if the viral spread is not contained.

What else can be done? Well, you might expect me to say that the missing piece is prayer – and it is. …”

– Read the whole column on pages 21 and 22.

Download Southern Cross from this link. (Depending on your device, the PDF file may end up in your Downloads folder.)

A choir decided to go ahead with rehearsal.

“With the coronavirus quickly spreading in Washington state in early March, leaders of the Skagit Valley Chorale debated whether to go ahead with weekly rehearsal. …”

– This story from The Los Angeles Times underscores the importance of not meeting, even though you feel fine.

And from the Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church, where the rehearsal took place:

“The article serves as a strong warning to heed the advice of health professionals and government officials to ‘stay home and stay healthy.’… ”

Photo: Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church.

Gentleness: A crucial virtue in stressful times, with Peter Orr @ Moore College

“As measures to contain Covid-19 are put into effect, many of us find ourselves in stressful situations. Some need to live in close quarters with others for long periods of time; for others, social contact is almost exclusively online. As a result, the Christian virtue of gentleness is more important than ever.

I have an in-depth discussion with my fellow Moore College lecturer Dr Peter Orr, who has been thinking long and hard about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, including in the area of gentleness. We chat about what gentleness is, why it matters, how God works this grace in our lives, and what it means to be gentle in these stressful times.”

– From Lionel Windsor at Forget the Channel.

We’re all building the plane while flying it!

“Hundreds of Sydney Anglican congregations have held church services via livestream or videoconference for the second week in a row, on a special day of prayer for the effects of the coronavirus. …”

– Russell Powell has a taste of what’s happening in Anglican churches around Sydney.

Locked Down Alone

“One third of the world’s population is now in lockdown. Across the globe, people everywhere are staying at home with their families and trying to find a new normal behind closed doors (while trying not to drive each other crazy)!

But what about those living alone? They are dealing with the lack of physical touch for weeks on end and have no one to keep them company in-person.

If you or someone you know is living alone and is about to go into lockdown, you’ll benefit from hearing wise words from those who have been living alone in lockdown for 10 days or more. From strict lockdowns in the Middle East, to tiny apartments in Paris or Rome, here are some thoughts about how seven single believers are handling this reality. …“ 

– Tim Challies shares some pointers from Lauren Moore in France.

See also:

Culture shock: Why everyone’s feeling it, and how to cope, with Margie and Simon Gillham. – Forget the Channel.

St. Andrew’s Cathedral Service 29 March 2020

Here’s this morning’s service from St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney.

Coronavirus and Christ

“It matters little what we think about the coronavirus. But it matters forever what God thinks. He is not silent about what he thinks. Scarcely a page in the Bible is irrelevant for this crisis.

Our voice is grass. His is granite. ‘The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever’ (1 Peter 1:24–25). His words in Scripture ‘cannot be broken’ (John 10:35). What he says is ‘true, and righteous altogether’ (Psalm 19:9). Listening to God, and believing him, is like building your house on a rock, not sand (Matthew 7:24). …”

– John Piper shares Biblical truth at Desiring God.

That page also has links to related resources on their website.

Archbishop Glenn Davies’ video for the special Day of Prayer on Sunday March 29

Archbishop Glenn Davies speaks about praying through the Coronavirus pandemic and a special day of prayer on Sunday March 29th.

Download to play during your ‘virtual church’.

“Prayer is our best weapon against the forces of darkness, and this virus, as part of the fallen world, is exactly that. God’s in control, but this virus is doing a deadly work around the world.”

The Archbishop encourages us all to devote ourselves to prayer (Colossians 4:2) – and to be specific in our prayers. A very helpful video.

If we all stream our services, will anyone ever come back?

“There are some who are concerned that when our churches once again open their doors, many people will be content to remain at home, having now experienced a virtual equivalent.

I am not concerned. I am not concerned that committed Christians will reject actual church for cyber-church anymore than I’m concerned that committed spouses will reject face-to-face time in favour of FaceTime.”

– Tim Challies addresses a worry some have.

Perplexed, Not Despairing

At Unashamed Workman, Colin Adams in Glasgow shares some encouragement for pastors in this testing time.

“Some preachers will be pre-recording their sermons today or tomorrow – or live streaming them on Sunday. Here is what we can pray for ourselves, or for those who preach.” – from Preaching, Not Despairing (5).

And related posts on his website.

Obedience to God and Love of Neighbour in the Face of a Coronavirus: A Christian’s Mandate

“Just this week, I spoke with a national reporter for a major newspaper who asked me why people, in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, are almost universally asking some of the most urgent and important questions any human being could ask.

I answered that God made all humanity in his image – and as image bearers, there are certain questions we cannot avoid. …

A crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic tends to jerk humanity into the most fundamental theological questions. …

the Christian worldview actually speaks to the crisis we now face and the issues of shelter in place and quarantine.”

– Albert Mohler finds clear help from the Bible in thinking through how Christians should act in this time.

Dr Richard Condie, Bishop of Tasmania, preaches on Psalm 91

Here’s the service of Morning Prayer from St. David’s Cathedral in Hobart, 22nd March 2019.

Bishop Richard Condie spoke on Psalm 91.

Something more important than lighting a candle

Writing from Canada, The Anglican Samizdat points out that there are more helpful things to do during the current crisis than to light a candle.

All Saints Cathedral Bathurst Morning Prayer for 29th March

Bishop Mark Calder, and the team at All Saints Cathedral in Bathurst, have produced this recording of Morning Prayer for Sunday 29 March 2020. Mark preaches on John 11. Share widely.

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