Worshipping together. Being a community. These are two of the most important things we do as a church. In fact, these are things that define us – they are part of who we are as a Christian congregation. “Make a joyful noise to the Lord,” the Psalm declares, “Come into God’s presence with singing.” And then Paul reminds us that we in the church are more than an ordinary group of people – we are more than a neighborhood or a club or even a family. “You are the body of Christ,” Paul tells us, “and individually you are members of it.”
But if worshipping together and being a community are centrally important to who we are, how are we supposed to be the church in a time when it is hard or impossible for us to gather together physically?
I am not a medical professional. So I have made the decision to trust those who are. Prominent experts are “cautiously optimistic” that we may have a vaccine for COVID within a year or so. And even if a vaccine does not materialize, it is very likely that treatments will get better over time – in fact, doctors already know more about how to treat COVID than they did a few months ago. We have all gotten through difficult times – both in our personal lives and also together as a country and a world. I have every confidence that we will get through this too. God is with us, both in the struggle of the present moment and also in whatever the future may hold. We can trust God to continue to bless us at Olivet Church as we seek to worship and to connect with one another.
Yours in Christ,
Ruth
Olivet now features E-Giving; an online service to allow you to make your donations in a secure way that also helps you track your donations over the year. Please see our E-Giving page on this website.
Olivet has completed the landscaping project that includes the Prairie Street side of the church from the main entry doors to the bell tower walkway. This includes a brick paved "reflection corner" with brick pavers that are engraved with names memorializing current and past members of the church or members of the community with links to the congregation.
This paved area features an inviting granite memorial bench in memory of Peggy Fredrick. The bench and a significant portion of the costs of the first phase of the landscaping project have been generously underwritten by Russ Frederick. In addition to the Fredrick donation, the Olivet Endowment Fund has provided $1,500 toward the project.
Please see some photos and detail on our Blog page within this website.
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