Last year around this time, we were excited. We just accomplished 5 years of ministry as a new church plant in the city of Eastvale. 2020 was the year we were going to move by faith to greater heights. Yet God had different plans…

COVID-19. One word that would forever change the entire family community state nation world overnight. Last year around this time, we had to gather temporarily for one Sunday at a business warehouse owned by one of our church members. The following Sunday, the entire country was on lockdown. We had to adjust and switch everything over to livestream.

Here is our very first livestream service recorded:

That was edited and put together literally within 2 entire 24 hours with little to no sleep. It was done last minute without warning given that everything was immediately locked down that first week of the pandemic here in the United States. It was exhausting for the first few weeks until we got accustomed and adjusted with the new schedule.

The entire year of not having normal “church” has really tested my faith and the faith of others. I think about the meaning of church. The word is from the Greek word, ekklesia which can often be referred to as a called out assembly. Church is not a building, a club, business, an organization, etc. If the pandemic taught Christians anything it ought to be that church is more than just a building, more than the programs, more than the fancy media or setup, etc. It is the body of believers gathering together to worship God and preach the gospel. Hebrews 10:23-25 encourages us to uplift one another and to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together. We gather on Sunday to worship the Lord. Worship consist more than music, it involves everything else that you witness on a Sunday service. Yet the most important part of worship is the expounding of Scripture. On Sunday, this is through the expository preaching and exegesis of God’s Word. After all, we are reminded in 2 Timothy 3:16 that all Scripture is God’s word and inspired by Him.

It’s been quite an experience gathering outdoors for the past several months now. I guess this is how the early church in the first century gathered for church haha. Gathering at the parking lot of the community center isn’t a terrible experience. In many ways, it has been a tremendous blessing. Almost our entire church will come out on Sunday, it is good to see all of them on a weekly basis. We’ve experienced extreme heat, extreme rain, extreme cold, and for the first time this year: extreme wind. It was so windy, we had to adjust everything and all the preaching and singing inside the church trailer instead of the bed of the truck. With all that said, I can’t help but praise God for giving us the opportunity to still gather and worship Him. There is nothing greater than giving God all the glory and honor He truly deserves.

The faith of our church family has edified me throughout the past few months. Their faith and consistency has been an encouragement. We’ve had great attendance and involvement even despite the pandemic. I’m also thankful for the encouragement from our teenagers. Our Youth Group has grown spiritually and numerically over the past year and it’s amazing to see around 15-20 teenagers gather outdoors every Sunday morning and faithfully be a part of our Zoom Youth Bible Study every Thursday evening.

(Before anyone assumes, we have and will continue to keep our precautionary safety measures in place. This includes wearing mask and keeping social distancing for the time being. We are also gathering outdoors only for all services and events per CDC recommendations. Everything we are doing is following what is recommended by the health experts.)

Moving forward, I’m not quite sure what God has planned for the church. There are also huge adjustments that are being made that I’ll explain in the blog at a later time when it is appropriate. All I know is this, our church has grown in faith tremendously this past year. I’ve personally grown in faith this past year as well. I can attribute it to the pandemic and of course the trial our family had to deal with concerning my mom’s battle against cancer and her passing in November. I don’t know what to make of all this but I do know that I am excited to see what God has in store for all of us in the next few months. I believe there are great things in store. God is good, all the time.

Let us remain faithful unto the Lord.

• Keep going to church whether it is in-person or online livestream.
• Keep reading the Bible on a daily basis and spend time in prayer.
• Keep sharing the good news with others.
• Keep talking about the blessings and what God has been doing.
• Keep being kind to one another and encourage others.
• Keep the faith.