Sidebar – COVID-19 is NOT a plague sent or created by God. It’s not punishment. It’s not his wrath. He’s allowed it, and he is using it for his purpose and glory, but he did not initiate it.

Ok, let’s talk about Exodus. The story of the plagues is fascinating and goes into great detail. But there was a particular phrase in the story that repeated over and over and really jumped out at me. In Exodus 8:23 Moses says to Pharaoh these words of God – “I will make a distinction between my people and your people.” The phrase comes up again in Exodus 9:4 and yet again in Exodus 11:7.

Some translations say ‘make a difference’. Other versions say ‘make a distinction’ or even ‘make a clear distinction’. And in The Message it says ‘a sharp line between’ or ‘sharp distinction’.

I found it really interesting that God was pointing out that in this time of crisis, this season of chaos, that there would be a clear and noticeable difference between the people who did not follow him and the people who did. And it caused me to wonder about how we as believers are showing up right now. Is there a difference between us and the non-believers? Is there any distinction, let alone a sharp distinction, between how they are responding and how we are responding?

I think it’s a question we should all be asking ourselves.

I work in the church world, and I’ve had a front row seat to watch how the current season is being handled. No doubt this abrupt transition from meeting in person to online only didn’t FEEL good, but FEELINGS AREN’T FACTS.

When you’re trying to solve ANY problem, you MUST ALWAYS START WITH WHAT’S TRUE – THE FACTS. The truth is that across the board churches are seeing significant increases in online attendance, sometimes 5-10x more than their traditional in-person attendance. That truth, that fact, is huge. And it presents myriad opportunities. 

The big question going forward is who is going to take advantage of this opportunity and be successful, and who is going to ignore the facts and fail. Some churches have done an amazing job, have really embraced all of this and turned it into something positive. Others have completely shut down and are living in fear.

Why is that? What’s the difference in these churches? The same question can be asked about people and families. Why are some seeing all that is good and others are completely focused on the negative?

Almost nobody truly loves chaos, but one good thing about chaos is that it reveals some really interesting things about us. In fact there are 4 key things that are revealed by chaos. As I walk through them, apply each one to yourself, your work, your faith, and your family.

Chaos Reveals Character
In individuals, chaos reveals character. We quickly see things for what they really are. Things like work ethic, attitude, how we treat people, willingness to sacrifice, flexibility, etc… When we are confronted with who we really are we can either ignore it and stay the same, or we can take advantage of it as an opportunity to change.

Chaos Reveals Culture
Corporately, chaos has a way of revealing culture. This is big in any organization, a company, a church, even a family. Will this situation pull us together or apart? Will we fight and bicker or cooperate and work together? Can we be flexible? Great culture includes things like being proactive, innovative, being solution oriented, and teamwork. Great culture also includes the ability to see what you’re not doing well and quickly pivot to correct those issues.

Chaos Reveals Creativity
When we have great culture it means we are positive and innovative, looking for solutions, and that leads to creativity. Necessity is the mother of all invention and this crisis has necessitated some major innovations. We’ve seen it in our local schools as they have found creative ways to engage the students virtually. One great example of this that I witnessed was a scavenger hunt for things any home would have. It not only was fun and engaging for the kids, but it also taught them where important things are in their house, like the first aid kit and a fire extinguisher. Churches have responded with creative ideas like virtual choirs. Families have gotten creative with all of their down time, finding new activities to share together and looking outward to serve neighbors and others around them.

Chaos Reveals Christ
Chaos reveals who Christ really is to us. When we are faced with something difficult, we are forced to ask ourselves – what do I really believe? My pastor Chris Hodges says that belief dictates behavior. Another way to say this is that behavior totally reveals what we really believe. John 14:1 says “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me (Jesus).” What is our current chaos revealing about what you REALLY believe?

We typically think of this verse as something akin to a retreat. But the ‘pastures’ in Israel are very different than the ones we’re used to in the US. A pasture there is not a lush field of endless, green grass. It’s more like the picture above – desert sand sparsely populated with small plugs of grass. The visual here is much less about a spa-like retreat and more like just enough sustenance for the moment or the day.

I have also had a lot of calls with pastors and church staff who are seeking input and advice about what they CAN do. After a few of those calls this morning I was impressed by the Holy Spirit to put together a list of best practices that we are seeing across the country, and to share that with all of you.

The reality of this situation is that we all have a choice. We can play defense or we can play offense. We can be reactive or proactive. We can just survive or we can thrive. We can shrink back or show up! The Jesus we serve is the light of the world, and there’s no better time to shine than when it is dark.

The following list is of ten powerful ways we can SHOW UP!

1) Stick To Your Schedule – a lot of our churches are keeping a good bit of their schedule in tact and simply going to virtual gatherings instead of in-person gatherings. Consider using any number of online tools to help facilitate virtual gatherings for your people. YouTube, Facebook, Zoom, Skype and other similar tools work great for this kind of thing. The more you can do this the more you can maintain some sense of normalcy and community.

2) Keep A Personal Touch – Set up a system to call everybody. Use small groups, or classes, or deacons, whatever structure for pastoral care that you already have in place. And if need be, make assignments to leaders (10 each or whatever) and make sure everyone in your church is receiving a personal call. Consistency is key, so be prepared to do this at least once every week. And make sure they are reporting back any specific needs so that they can be prayed over and needs can be shared and met. Also make sure they are mining your people for stories of how God is moving. (see #4)

3) Promote And Share God Stories – mine your people for testimonies about how God is moving and miracles they are seeing. Look for stories of how God is moving in their families, what opportunities have opened up for them to witness, acts of service to their neighbors and communities. They need to be encouraged and reminded that in times like these the body of Christ can shine! This is what we’re made for, and they will be motivated, inspired and encouraged by every act of service, sacrifice and selflessness that you share.

4) Social Media Presence – for many churches maintaining a social media presence in the past has been done at a bare minimum, even considered a necessary evil. If you’ve ever felt the need to do more, NOW is the time. Your people are scrambling for information, updates, assurance and encouragement. This is the perfect opportunity to get good at using these easy and free platforms. Take advantage of this opportunity to stay in front of your people daily, offering them the solutions and encouragement they are looking for.

5) Share Needs – based on personal calls and other outlets find out what people need and get the church to rally together to help each other and the surrounding community. Who has extra toilet paper? Does anyone need help with errands? Or childcare? This is a win-win as it meets needs AND gives your people opportunities to serve.

6) Caring For The Vulnerable – one great idea we’ve heard about is churches with elderly populations are calling young, healthy folks into service to do grocery shopping and other errands for their senior adults and others who may be vulnerable so that they can stay in and stay safe. Providing this service for free helps people with fixed incomes and builds community. Obviously make sure that those serving observe accepted safety and cleanliness procedures.

7) Community Updates – many of our churches are working closely with local and state health officials to understand how to proceed week to week. You may want to have some announcements that promote these things, talk about general updates, when decisions will be made, what is being done behind the scenes, etc… People often trust their church leaders more than government officials.

8) COVID-19 Education – as leaders who can influence large groups of people, you may want to take advantage of this opportunity to educate people on best practices during the crisis. I know that we seem to be inundated with this type of information, but again, the reality is that many people are more likely to listen to you, their pastor/staff, than strangers they aren’t familiar with. And regardless of who is saying it, it absolutely cannot be said enough. Here’s a great example from my home church, Church Of The Highlands

9) Spiritual Best Practices – this is a great opportunity to lead your people towards best practices in their general spiritual walk as well as in some specific ways during this challenging time. Promote family devotionals, how to lead our kids right now, specific things they can be praying for, words of encouragement, etc….

10) Promote Electronic Giving – if your church has not embraced the power of e-giving, now is the time to start. If you are already using it as a regular tool, now is the time to promote it at a much higher level. Don’t wait to see what happens. Do it now. There are myriad providers out there who do a great job and make it super easy to set up. My good friends at Generis are offering free support and advice in this area. They are absolute experts in it and would love to help you navigate the subject. You can sign up for a FREE consultation with them by clicking HERE.

I hope you found at least one thing on this list that can help your church positively impact the lives of your members and your surrounding community. We would love to hear any additional suggestions that are working for you and your church. The more we can share and lift each other up, the better! And we’ll all come out even better and stronger on the other side!

I love and appreciate you! Please let us know if there is anything we can do to support you, your family, or your church. Just to make it easy, my direct email is kmarkclement@gmail.com, and you can call or text me on my cell at 205.965.7802. Let’s talk soon!

He has a big heart, and he loves to worship. He also pays super close attention to the message, sometimes even taking notes. But my favorite thing he does – every single week – is at the end of the message. Our pastor typically ends most services with an opportunity for people to accept Christ as their savior. And without fail – I mean every single time – Rivers raises his hand. It’s a beautiful thing to watch his little heart embrace Jesus over and over and over again. At every opportunity, if someone is asking him if he chooses Jesus, his immediate answer, without hesitation, is YES!

In Matthew 18:3 Jesus challenges us to take our cues from the kids – “And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” I think Rivers is on to something and it’s inspired me to think about three key ways we can all be raising our hand for Jesus.

The first way we can raise our hand is to simply choose Jesus every single day. The bible is clear that once we accept Christ our salvation is secure in him, but that doesn’t mean we don’t need to make a conscious and intentional effort to keep choosing him. Philippians 2:12 challenges us to ‘work out our salvation with fear and trembling’ and I think this is part of that process. It is the discipline of saying no matter what is going on, no matter how I feel, no matter what good or bad things are going on – I – choose – Jesus!

The second way we can raise and open our hands is to receive all that God has for us. First Corinthians 2:12 says that “What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.” God has so much to give us, and our receiving this is an ongoing, daily, sometimes even moment by moment process. We must raise our hands daily to say to God I want what you have for me, and I am submitting to you, making myself open to receive it.

The third way we can raise our hand is to say YES when he calls us. In Isaiah 6:8, when God is looking for someone to step up, Isaiah raises his hand and says YES, “here I am, send me.” Every day we have opportunities to say YES to God. Yes I will serve my family. Yes I will comfort a friend. Yes I will share with someone in need. Yes I will speak words of life and encouragement to those around me. Yes I will go and make a difference!

So I hope – like me – you will be inspired by Rivers, and the next time God has something for you, or something for you to do, you will raise your hand, be open to what he has for you, and you will say YES!