The current plan for reopening is for worship gatherings only. There will be no student, children’s, or preschool activities during the government’s Phase 1 and 2 reopening plan; also, for the time being, our Connect Groups will continue to meet virtually.

PLEASE RSVP TO GUARANTEE YOUR SEAT IN SERVICE.

We will post the sign up on Facebook and in an email the Monday before the weekend worship services.

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Reopening Guidelines

Please take everyone’s temperature before leaving for church. PLEASE STAY HOME if anyone in your family has experienced any of these in the last week: Fever, Cough, Shortness of breath/difficulty breathing, Chills, Muscle pain, Sore throat or New loss of taste or smell

Seating is limited to allow for 6 ft social distancing.

Phase I is not for everybody. If you are elderly (we will let you define that for yourself), have underlying health issues or a compromised immune system – please stay home. We will continue to offer online worship for those that should not return yet or have decided not to return right away.

DOORS OPEN: The doors will open 15 minutes before the beginning of each service. If you line up outside you must maintain 6 feet of social distancing between family units.

Once the doors open please move directly to the Worship Center or Fellowship Hall and find a seat. Please know that some seats will be marked off and not available. We are asking that you sit together with those in your home and not with others outside of your family unit.

SEPARATE ENTRANCES: Enter through the door marked with your ticket assignment.

• Fellowship Hall – Enter through the single door to the left of the Worship Center entrance.

• Worship Center – Enter through the main doors marked “Worship Center”

Please Wear a Mask. All attendees will be asked to wear a mask. We recognize this is somewhat controversial but ask that everyone please wear a mask for the protection of yourself and those around you. Please bring your own mask if you can but a supply of disposable masks will be available as needed.

Bathrooms: Please go before you come to church. The bathrooms will be open but will need to be cleaned and disinfected after each usage. The service will be shorter than in the old days – you can make it through!

The Worship Service will be the only on campus activity in Phase I. There will be no Children’s Church or Preschool, Children or Student Ministries.

For Parents:

1. Please closely supervise your children. We know they will want to run and see their friends or grandparents but under the current situation we ask that they stay with you at all times.

2. There will be no Children’s Bulletins or Crayons so please bring activities for your children as needed.

At the conclusion of the service please promptly exit the building. We will be cleaning and disinfecting the building after each service. This includes wiping down all flat surfaces, door handles and spraying down the chairs with a quick drying disinfectant.

If after attending one of our services you are diagnosed with Covid-19, please contact the church immediately. 804-739-3001

Do’s and Don’ts

Do’s

• Greet each other but practice social distancing

• Sit together with your family unit only

• Leave three seats between you and the individual/family on the same row

• Utilize Hand Sanitizer that will be available

• Sing out in praise to our Lord – yes even through a mask

• Listen to instruction from Swift Creek Staff and Safety Team

• Drop your tithes and offerings in the new offering boxes as you exit

• Email Pastor Monty with any decision God is leading you to make in the service – pastor@swiftcreekbaptist.org

• Invite Guests to attend our services – we will reserve some seating for guests

• Bring your coffee from home – we will not be providing coffee

Don’ts

• Shake Hands – I know this is difficult but let’s be safe during this Phase

• Hug

• Invade other people’s personal space – maintain six feet of distance

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Thoughts on Reopening…

Thank you for praying for us as we have made critical, difficult decisions about reopening the church. I am grateful for you and your faithfulness to Christ and the church. Also, let me assure you that we, as your pastors, have not made these decisions lightly, but have truly sought God’s wisdom and guidance. There are many factors that have played into the decisions we have made. We appreciate your understanding of these factors, that are rather complicated, and your patience and understanding of the decisions that have been made. 

As we reopen, we sincerely want to do everything we can to keep all of you safe. Therefore, we will follow the recommended reopening guidelines given by health and government officials. Please read these guidelines closely. We strongly ask you to follow these guidelines as we reopen. When we gather again for worship, we are all in this together! We’re on the same team (Jesus’ church), and we must all do what is best for one another. So, I’m asking you, as followers of Christ, to abide by these precautions out of love for Jesus and His people. So, whether it’s social distancing, or not hugging and shaking hands, I ask you to follow the guidelines out of love and respect for others. 

Phase 1 and 2: Distanced In-Person Services and Live Streaming

Thirdly, the reopening survey that many of you filled out (thank you for doing that, by the way), indicated that 210 family units (representing a total of 621 people) would choose to worship in person at the first opportunity or immediately with concerns and precautions. As you know, the governor has given churches freedom to worship at 50% capacity. However, this does not mean we can have 50% of our worship center filled because we must incorporate the six-feet social distancing guideline. Factoring in this six-feet rule, our worship center could only hold approximately 120 people. Therefore, we would need to offer 5-6 worship services, which is impractical for many reasons. Having said that, we would also like to continue offering our worship services online, even after the pandemic.