COVID-19 Update 

Updated Saturday, December 5, 2020

Due to the rise in COVID-19 cases and a desire to fully reopen, please stay home and worship online with us if you have:

• A fever higher than 100.4°
• A new cough or worsening chronic cough
• A new loss of sense of taste or smell
• Upper respiratory symptom such as sore throat, congestion, runny nose
• Headache or body aches
• Fatigue
• Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, etc. 

We look forward to seeing you again soon!

Updated Saturday, May 23, 2020

March 15 was our last service in this beautiful building. For the last two months, the church has been open although the building has been closed. But we are coming back to the building. Before you come back, we have a few guidelines to follow. We know you want to come back, but we ask you stay home if:

• You have any symptoms of being sick
• You have a temperature of over 100 
• You live with someone who may be sick 
• You just aren’t comfortable coming back yet

Entry To help keep yourself and others safe, we are asking you to wear a mask upon entry and exit. If you cannot or will not wear a mask, please keep a safe, social distance between people outside of your family. We have reserved the cafe entrance and restrooms nearest the sanctuary for our sweet senior saints and those with health concerns. The restrooms in our gym are for everyone else. Please be sure to wash your hands well and be mindful of the number of people in the restrooms at one time. We will clean them after each service.

Greeting For safety’s sake, we’re going to pause on handshakes, hugs, and fist-bumps. Greet each other with jazz hands, peace signs, air high-fives, finger guns, elbow bumps, toe taps, or a good, old-fashioned curtsy. Have fun, get creative, but please be sensitive to others during our re-entry.

Seating We have adjusted our seating to maintain safe, social distancing. We need to make room for everyone and every chair, so we will double stack the chairs we will be using for spacing. Please don’t move any of the chairs. We ask families to sit with families. Ushers and volunteers with lanyards will happily help you find a seat if you need help. When you enter, please go to your seat quickly and get ready to worship.

Giving Giving is a great part of our worship, but while COVID-19 is still on the loose, we are adjusting the ways we give. 

• Give online at vernonchurch.org/give
• Give at the lockbox in front of the office through the week

Worship God created us to worship. And we worship passionately. So feel free to worship God freely. Worship God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. The altar area is open for you to pray and worship. While you worship Jesus, try to be conscious of others. During this different time, please don’t lay hands on anyone until we move into future phases of reopening. Until we can all return safely to our Sunday school classrooms, our Sunday services will all be together in the sanctuary, beginning at 11 am.

Exit When our service is dismissed, our ushers will dismiss the rows to reduce social gathering. We need fellowship. I miss fellowship. But until it’s safe to fellowship close together, please keep from congregating in the lobby or in the sanctuary. Seniors and those with health issues are welcome to exit through the cafe entrance.While you’re on Apostolic Church property, maintain a social distance even outside the building. We will be fielding a team of volunteers to clean and sanitize the building immediately after service. Please respect their time by exiting as quickly and safely as possible. They want to get lunch, too.

If we are careful and safe, we hope to get back to normal quickly. But there are churches in these United States who have reclosed their buildings because of a COVID outbreak after they reopened. We want to reopen and stay open. Although this is a different day, it is still the day the Lord has made. As we are leaning from Philippians class, we will rejoice and be glad. There is much we cannot do right now, but maybe God is positioning His church to make room for all He can do. Maybe God is wanting us to see His sovereignty. To see that this church really is His church. Whether in your house or in this house, bring your worship, your hunger, your passion, your prayer, and together continue to glorify God and make disciples. In Jesus’ name. 

Welcome home.

Updated Thursday, April 30, 2020

Ohio’s stay-at-home order is scheduled to be lifted on May 1, enabling Ohio’s citizens to travel. We are still under strict social distancing protocols and expecting a spike in COVID-19 cases once Ohio reopens for business. As this week and the next progress, we will watch the weather and the trend in COVID-19 cases to determine if it is safe to host a drive-in service on Sunday, May 10, 2020 for Mother’s Day. Per the Knox County Health Department, this service would require all attendees to remain in their vehicles and maintain at least a six feet distance from other households. The church facilities will be locked to mitigate the risk of contamination. After the service, we will evaluate our plan for future weekend services during phase 1. 

We will continue our midweek discipleship online until we move into phase 2 of the Reopening America plan. Thank you for understanding and making our church and community’s safety our priority. Please continue your devotion at home, and keep praying for our leadership to hear from God for our church and city.

Updated Monday, March 16, 2020

Based on the recommendations of our local, state, and federal authorities, we will not be assembling on the campus of Apostolic Church for any meetings, socials, or services until further notice. We will live stream our Wednesday night Bible study at 7:30 pm. This will give you the opportunity to post comments and ask questions through Facebook Live. Since the stream is public, you do not need a Facebook profile to view. The link will be available on our homepage. Our Sunday format will be posted here as we approach the date.

Please continue devotion in your home each night at 7:00 pm through the end of our twenty-one day fast and beyond. The first-century church faced a similar inability to assemble, but they still glorified God and made disciples because their discipleship grew from house to house. When we cannot come to God’s house, God will come to our house. Keep praying for God to be glorified and His church to help bring peace in panic. 

Thursday, March 12, 2020

Today our Ohio governor signed an order prohibiting public gatherings of more than 100 people. This order does not apply to religious services. Based on the information we have now, we will plan to have service on Sunday.

We will continue to cooperate with local, state, and federal authorities concerning our safety. If you feel ill or are uncomfortable coming to church due to concerns over COVID-19, join us on our live stream at vernonchurch.org.

Our staff and volunteers will take appropriate precautions to ensure classrooms and learning areas are clean and safe. Please continue to monitor social media, Vernonchurch.org, and your email for further updates.

God bless and keep you. Jesus is in control. See you Sunday!