First Baptist Church’s Five-Stage COVID-19 Response Plan
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW TO THE FBC PLAN
To accomplish the mission and vision of our church, we will always seek to discern a word from the Lord and submit to God’s directions, whenever and wherever possible, as long as it is within the direction we discern from the Lord, we will seek to partner with our community.
The elders and leaders of FBC respect and trust the autonomous decision making authority of every born again believer and of those called by God to be parents and grandparents who have responsibility over their families. We request that all your decisions be made through prayer and with a mindset of graciousness and love for your neighbor. With that in mind, we ask you to please remember the words of the Apostle Peter from 1 Peter 5:5-7 (ESV), “Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
We are called by God to lead you as servant shepherds, not with a heavy-handed or legalistic approach. Our plan is to trust that you are walking in the Spirit unless you publicly demonstrate something other than the fruit of the Spirit in your words or deeds (Galatians 5:22-23). Thank you for partnering with us as we partner with our community in these difficult and confusing days. We are walking by faith, with prudence, for the thriving of our communities to the glory of God.
Please join us in prayer as we present to our congregation the FBC Five-Stage COVID-19 Response Plan. The bottom line is that we do not return to anything close to full functioning until FBC’s Stage 5, so please understand that each stage is a small step towards that. This is a plan and it can be modified as we learn more. FBC’s Stage 1 is what we have been doing for 2 months, FBC’s Stages 2 & 3 will see very minor changes with our preference being that you continue to worship from home, FBC’s Stage 4 is a transition and will have more significant changes as people start coming back to regular worship services and ministry opportunities in the building. Please read through this carefully and ask questions as you have them, after you’ve read through the whole plan.
Before we go into a lot of details, please know that we understand that the Governor stated Stage 2 would begin on May 4 and that churches can open on May 8. We made the decision to extend FBC’s Stage 1 for one week to ensure all planning, communications, and preparations are of God and are done properly. With that said, nothing changes for this Sunday, May 10. FBC’s Stage 2 will begin with Sunday, May 17. Thank you for trusting us to do this right and true, not rushing anything. We believe this is a good partnership decision as the Governor prefers for churches to continue asking people to watch online in these early transition days because how we respond today will determine how we can move forward in the coming days.
The State Guidelines for Places of Worship:
- Ask all individuals who are 65 and above or who have an underlying at-risk health condition to stay home and watch services online.
- Ensure 6 feet between individuals or family units of the same households during services
- Space and mark seating, alternating rows when possible
- Clean between each service and disinfect high-contact surfaces regularly
- Place hand sanitizers in high-contact locations (e.g. bathroom, entry, exit) and ask staff, members, and guests to sanitize their hands before entering the building
- A face covering is required before entering the building (modification per the governor’s executive order)
- Consider placing signage telling staff, members, and guests to not enter if they are symptomatic or if they have tested positive for COVID-19
- Implement non-contact greetings
- Avoid handing out materials
- Keep cafés, coffee, and other self-service stations closed
- Establish safe protocols for any communion and collection to avoid contact
- Dismiss services in a way that supports social distancing
- Place readily visible signage to remind everyone of best hygiene practices
For information on the governor’s more complete 5-stage plan, go to