March 17, 2020 COVID-19 UPDATE:

Online Service: Due to the new instructions being passed down by our governor of gatherings over 50 people now restricted, we will for the time being move our Sunday services to being entirely online. Unlike last Sunday when some chose and were able to attend the service in the building, this Sunday the only option will be to view the service online. This is not ideal, as this is not the church body coming together to worship and encourage each other, but we are thankful for the ability we have to still gather through an online service. If you know of someone in our church family who is unable to stream the service, please let Pastor David Hinz know.

Stream live on our website: Watch Live.

March 14, 2020 COVID-19 Letter from our Pastor:

It is difficult to know where to begin as I know this letter will be one of many letters that have been posted concerning the COVID-19 virus. There has been an onslaught of information and announcements over the past week, and in many ways the situation has changed on an hourly basis which has made it difficult to know how to plan as church leadership. As leadership of the church we have been attempting to gain information from different sources (government and medical), so that we can make an informed decision.

This morning (March 14), the pastors and deacons gathered to prayerfully consider how we respond to our purpose to glorify God, our command to honor our government, our desire to love one another, and our concern for our testimony in the community. We know our God is in control and we know we are to respond in trust of God’s sovereign plan and love for others in need, but a call that says we need to trust God, is not a call to ignore the potential danger or put others in unnecessary danger.

In light of all that, the following decisions have been made regarding our church ministries until further notice:

  • Morning Services: Our only service at the church building will be our normal 9:00 a.m. morning service. This service will be adjusted in many ways to minimize contact and with the focus being on online streaming as we know many in our church family will be choosing to be a part of our service through streaming the service.
  • No Children’s Ministries or ABFs (adult Bible Fellowships): There will be no children’s ministries, nursery, ABFs, or evening ministries. We welcome families to stay together throughout the entire worship service, utilize one of the cry rooms, or take part of the service through on-line streaming.
  • Attendance: We know each individual has to consider numerous factors as they think through all their activities right now, and as a church we respect that different decisions will be made. We are encouraging those who are in a higher risk age group or have pre-existing issues to utilize our online streaming (if unable to stream the service we will make sure you receive a recording of the service). For those who are feeling ill or have recently traveled from high risk areas, we are asking that you show love for your brothers and sisters in Christ and take part in the service through online streaming.
  • Encouraging Community and Care: Even though many within our church body will be unable to gather with us, we want to be intentional in encouraging care for each other and community. We are working on online discussion forums to be able to participate during the service and share prayer requests with the church family.
  • Online Giving: An aspect of our worship is also our offerings to God. To allow those who are unable to gather physically with us to still worship God through giving, we will be enabling an online giving platform in the next few days. Once that has been establish, we will pass on more information.

Church family, please pray. Pray for your church family, pray for the community that God placed us in right now to minister to and proclaim a gospel of hope to many who are in fear, and pray for our gospel partners of which many of them have been dealing with the impact of this virus for months.

Communication will be vital for the life of our church in the coming weeks, so please do not hesitate to reach out to the church office (info@firstbaptistwb.org), a pastor, or deacon if you need specific prayer, physical help, or if you know of another in our church family who could use assistance. In the coming weeks we will each have to be more creative and intentional to be faithful to love one another, encourage one another, and care for one another.

I’m encouraged that these events are not the first events that have caused Christ’s church to adjust. Far greater challenges for the church have arisen over the centuries, yet in all of that Christ’s church has continued to exalt God, edify believers, and evangelize the world.

In Prayer,
Pastor Luke Love