The world has changed. This sweeping pandemic has altered our world and sent us into shelters to hunker down and wait. And so we wait. But here is the catch: if all we do is wait for the world to settle back down again into what we knew and how we did things, we will have waited in vain. Simply sorting out how to do services online and offer ways for people to connect via Zoom is not enough!

This upheaval is not a mere blip on the screen, a momentary interruption of our normal lives. This upheaval is the beginning of a new environment, a brand new normal. Those who study infectious diseases are emphatically clear that it will be months before we emerge from our shelters. Using the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918 as a general guide, I would suggest that we are at the beginning of a lengthy season of “darkness” and uncertainty. What will follow this season remains to be seen, but it will certainly alter what church looks like and how we practice the way of Jesus. What should leaders do as we enter into this uncertain and challenging time?

In part, we could do the following:

1. Through embracing our grief and practice of lament, we embrace the loss of what we knew. Take time to acknowledge that the world has changed and that church life and ministry is altered. Name that loss to each other and to God.

2. Intentionally identify the assets and gifts and resources present in your congregation. Then express gratitude for what you have. God has not left you bereft of resources. There are people, relationships, skills, creativity, wisdom, financial assets, and so much more in your congregation. Be thankful for those assets!

3. With hope in God’s transformative purpose in the world, begin to imagine how your congregation can partner with God in being and doing church in this emerging season. In short, adapt and innovate. This third move requires hope – but hope is the currency of the people of God!

I want to express myself clearly here. As we draw near to Easter, I am declaring that we live deeply into God’s story. The grief of Good Friday and the hope of Resurrection Sunday need each other. Our task is to let our loss call us to pay attention to the ways God is inviting us to partner with him in the world. I am inviting you to engage in a prayerful imagination for the ways in which we innovate to pursue God’s mission. Such work rests in hope!

I deeply appreciate the stories filtering into the Siburt Institute offices. I know that already many leaders and congregations are doing so much in adapting and adjusting to the changing reality that is now on us. Through my interactions with leaders, I know you are unsettled, yet you continue to lean into hope. I want you to know how much you encourage me!

May God’s peace be with you.