Dear Plymouth Family,
 
I have LOVED seeing you in worship these past six weeks! Baptism, live singing, outdoor fellowship, reuniting with friends, worshipping God outdoors and in our sanctuary...it has been a blessing! I hope that it has given you the spiritual lift it has given me. (And the timing of our new livestream couldn't have been better!)

And it is dispiriting to have the Delta variant intrude and cause some of us to feel anxious, fearful, and unsafe when we venture beyond our homes. I share your feelings..."Didn't we just come out of a pandemic nosedive?" ... "Will we ever reach a new normal?" ... "We've been vaccinated, faithful, and safe, why are we paying the price now?"

Our emotions may on a bit of a rollercoaster, and there is a heightened sense of anxiety in our society and community again, even if we aren't aware of them. (Our conference staff yesterday confirmed this is popping up in churches all over the Rocky Mountain Conference.)

What can we do about it? One thing is to be intentional about dealing with our emotions. If you feel upset with someone or sense despair with a situation, practice the pause: Close your eyes, take a couple of slow, deep breaths, clench and release your hands several times. Ask yourself what you are really, truly upset about; ask whether it's something you have control over, and if not, ask God to handle it. I'm finding this helpful because there is so very much that is beyond our control right now. It takes faith and courage to live positively in this moment, and Christians across the millennia have done just that during times of plague and pestilence, and we can, too. 

Knowing that our congregation's emotional and spiritual health is delicate right now, on Monday evening our Pandemic Team decided to stay the course in terms of worship and meetings for the time being. So, our services this Sunday will be at summer hours: 10:00 & 6:00 and then on August 29 (Jubilee Sunday), we will begin our new fall worship hours at 9:00 & 11:00.

The Pandemic Team is introducing a few tweaks so that we can continue to meet with the greatest safety possible:

• Coffee Hour will happen exclusively outdoors. (Stay in Fellowship Hall and you'll risk being whisked outside by a deacon! 😉 )
• Communion will not happen within any of our services for the time being. Instead, you may join one of the ministers for communion in the Memorial Garden off the West Wing at 10:00 each Sunday beginning August 29.
• Anytime you are at Plymouth, you must wear a mask and observe social distance. Our staff will only unmask when working alone in their offices. Masks are available at our entry doors. 
• In-person meetings are still allowed, but please open windows and doors for ventilation when you are meeting. Consider using a larger room if distancing is an issue. (Barb Gregory can help you schedule the Fellowship Hall, North Room, Forum Room, or Fireside Room.)
• For our upcoming memorial service, guests must be masked and use social distance, and refreshments will be available outside following the service. 

I am grateful to Mel Huibregtse and the members of the Pandemic Team for seeing the big picture and for keeping our safety as a congregation at the forefront. They continue to use the best information available from the CDC, Larimer County Health, and their own experience to make the tough calls to keep us as safe as possible.

We all know that there are no guarantees in life and that our tradition is replete with stories of acting on faith and not relying on the illusion of security that things like wealth, health, material comfort, and even family can provide. God is with us through all of it and will continue to be. May you sense God's presence this and every day and continue to live in faith and courage.

Shalom,

​Dear Plymouth Family,
 
Are you ready for another pivot? Neither am I, but it seems as though that is in the cards…though not such a hard pivot as we’ve taken in the past. Our Pandemic Team met yesterday afternoon to chart the course for our congregation as we navigate the Delta variant together. The CDC continues to provide new counsel about how we can best keep one another as safe as possible, and we are using that as guidance.
 
First, here are some changes in Sunday worship:

• You may know that we have a new professional livestream system in the sanctuary just last week! You are welcome to worship from home at 10:00 a.m. (or watch our recorded evening service on digital delay). Go to plymouthucc.org/streaming for links or look in your Saturday evening worship email.
• Masks are required for everyone in worship…we have extras at each door.
• Pews on both sides of the sanctuary will be open during worship, and every other pew will be blocked off. (You may sit on left or right.) We are now using social distancing.
• Prayers of the People will no longer be a “contact sport,” so try a gentle Japanese-style bow or wave the peace sign at your fellow worshippers.
• Families with kids: We know some of you are staying away until your kids can be vaccinated, and we affirm your choice. If you choose to worship in person, we have set aside the Fellowship Hall with socially distanced seating and individual activity tables for kids, so feel free to use them. The nursery is currently open for infants, and precautions are in place.
• Communion will be available at 6:00 with precautions.
• Outdoor Coffee Hour returns this Sunday! On both the sanctuary lawn and the Lake Street patio, Coffee will be poured for you in compostable paper cups. Individually wrapped sweetener and half-and-half will be available. Please do not congregate in the Fellowship Hall after worship…we’re trying to keep you safe!
• Jon our Outdoor Service at Rolland Moore Park at 10:00 on August 15. Feel free to mask and use social distance there. We will be serving individually wrapped ice cream and popsicles after the service. (There is no 6:00 service on that day.)

 
More pivots:

• Staff and volunteers will be masked indoors during the week, unless working alone in an enclosed office.
• Outside groups will still need to fill out vaccination affidavits (available from Barb Gregory) and those attending must also wear masks indoors at all times.

Thank you not only for your patience and cooperation, but for your encouragement and participation as we move through this together. Working to prevent the spread of the virus is not so much about “me and mine” as it is about “us and ours.” Thanks for caring for your neighbor and for yourself!
 
Be well,