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This week, Christianity Today ran an article regarding the church's response to the Coronavirus taken from responses from pastors from across the country. Some were in the epicenters of the outbreak like Seattle while others were far removed from it. One pastor who replied from @DJJenkins from Studio City in Los Angeles wrote something I thought was appropriate for us as a church as well.    Here is what he wrote: (slightly edited for clarity)   

  1. Followers of Jesus don't need to fear. Our eternity is forever secure. 
  2. Our calling is to love our neighbor, sick or healthy. 
  3. Beware of xenophobic tendencies toward Asian communities/friends. 
  4. If you feel sick, please stay home. 
  5. Let us know so we can pray for you and/or send elders. 
  6. We will continue to gather every Sunday regularly, unless there are extraordinary circumstances. 
  7. We need to pray for God's mercy and wisdom for US and global leaders.   

These all apply to Bridges. There has been a call for churches to abstain from handshakes and other forms of contact for a while to protect the most vulnerable. Even if you are not concerned for your own health, you could unwittingly pass it on to others so let's abide by that for the next few weeks as we see what happens.   

As followers of Jesus, our lives are in His Hands and we can trust Him. He calls us to be wise and discerning and so we will be cautious and follow prescribed practices such as washing hands and restricting interaction. We will also continue to love and serve others through this time.   

If things change, we will contact you through the church app and email.    Please let us know how we can be praying for you. God is in control as always. We put our faith and trust in Him and refuse to fear.