The Weekly Update

Week of March 22, 2020

A Word from Pastor Steve

Click on the icon in the the upper left hand corner of the picture to hear a word from Pastor Steve

A Word to Emmanuel’s ALIVE Worship Community

Greetings to our Alive Worship Community. We hope you will take a few minutes and click this link https://youtu.be/gqrLrlfcyBw from Jim, Jamie, Michael, and Mark. We miss coming together with you on Sunday, so we put together some words of encouragement, a prayer and a song for you. If there’s anything we can help you with in these challenging times please let us know. May the peace and love of Christ surround you and your family.

Greetings from the team at Emmanuel Communities and Emmanuel Academies!

With Social Distancing in place and all of us doing everything we can to contain the virus, we want to share some good news and brighten your day!

First, we want to say thank you for all the support you have provided since our founding, whether that has been in time, talent or treasure. All are appreciated and stewarded with the greatest care to bring about the optimal outcomes associated with the respective ministries!

We want to share that though we are all affected by Covid-19, we have not heard of any of the Emmanuel community members or friends being infected. We know of only one friend in her 50’s who has been confirmed and is recovering well at home after quarantining herself as soon as she knew she might be a carrier.

We are saying prayers for all of you, our greater community and world for fast healing and a return to some form of normalcy. We know the economy is suffering, investment values discounted, and unemployment and related challenges are spiking. We can be confident that we, America, and the world will survive and ultimately thrive. Just like with wars or storms, they do end; when they end, we pick up the pieces and work together with what we have. Because of gratitude for all that we have, we serve each other, our families and our communities. With faith, we can be hopeful and confident in tomorrow and the days beyond. Emmanuel Communities and Emmanuel Academies will be here to assist you, friends and our community however we may be able.

It seems like a long time ago that we made the decision and spread the word that the 2020 Celebration of Progress gala was being postponed. Though the gala is postponed and a new date has not yet been set, we together have much to celebrate based on the tremendous progress that has occurred over the past 12 months. The attached very brief presentation will give you a glimpse back to where we were 12 months ago, as well as a picture of where we are today. We will also provide an image of where we are continuing over the coming six months. (Although we are practicing social distancing, we are leveraging technology and other assets to ensure that, though our pace may slow a bit, we continue to move forward in all of our ministries and missions.)

Please view the short presentation video below:

Out of respect for the recent upheaval of all of our lives and the chaos in the stock markets, as well as respect for our friends serving on the Church’s stewardship committee, we are not asking for any financial support at this time. Both EA and ECI are sufficiently funded for the next few months. There will be plenty of time and opportunity when “the storm has passed”.

In the meantime, we want to yell boldly “Thank You” as well as pray confidently for health, peace, prosperity and more for you, our neighbors, friends, family and the world.

We also want to share a small gift with you. The video below is the choir from Barron Collier High School singing The Unity Song. The song was written by a pastor in California and then arranged for the HS choir by Director Todd Peterson. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Please stay well and stay in touch!

Deirdre, Laurie, Crystal and Howard

Weekly Virtual Schedule

All engagements on campus and at the park are suspended to the public until further notice. Please continue to engage with Emmanuel via our website, e-mails, and e-blasts, and livestreaming for updates and new ways to continue to be church together. For questions, please call the church office at 239-261-0894.