Guiding Principles
We understand that this is a complicated time for our world and community. In light of the guidance provided by local and federal health officials and concerns of our SVCN family, The pastoral staff, with the support of the Church Board has developed these guiding principles to help us prepare and act for the future.
1. We are the Church.
2. We are a people of hope.
3. We are committed to our community both inside and outside of our walls.
COVID-19 information is changing rapidly. Please make sure to check this page frequently to monitor how SVCNaz is responding and ways you can help. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Pastor Sharon at snorman@svcnaz.org or 989-754-2000
If you'd like to learn more about the COVID-19 virus:
1. We are the Church.
2. We are a people of hope.
3. We are committed to our community both inside and outside of our walls.
COVID-19 information is changing rapidly. Please make sure to check this page frequently to monitor how SVCNaz is responding and ways you can help. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Pastor Sharon at snorman@svcnaz.org or 989-754-2000
If you'd like to learn more about the COVID-19 virus:
June 3rd Update - Statement on Re-Opening the Building
The staff wants to thank everyone who joined in the day of prayer but also have been continuing seeking God in prayer through our pastoral transitions and this pandemic. God has helped us to remain faithful in what he has called us to. We have continued to worship as a gathered body, each week, we have continued to worship through His word as we have studied Scripture together, we have continue worship through serving our community as we continue our 4 Carrollton focus, and we have faithful worship through our giving through tithes and offering. SVCNaz you have responded to God’s call to do not grow weary in well doing and we are so thankful for your faithfulness in worship.
We firmly believe that this faithfulness will continue as re-open the building on June 14th for in person worship. We have longed for this day and we are so happy to finally come to a point where it will be a reality. Over the next 10 days we will be sharing what it will look like when we we return on the June 14th. It will be different but we that God will help us focus little on the differences and more on the fact that we can again worship together in person.
Open up activity in the building in phases. Phase 1 starts June 14th. We encourage each of you to read the document below for information on the plans for re-opening and the practices that we will being instituted. We look forward to seeing you on June 14th!
Praying continually and trusting God,
The pastoral staff
The staff wants to thank everyone who joined in the day of prayer but also have been continuing seeking God in prayer through our pastoral transitions and this pandemic. God has helped us to remain faithful in what he has called us to. We have continued to worship as a gathered body, each week, we have continued to worship through His word as we have studied Scripture together, we have continue worship through serving our community as we continue our 4 Carrollton focus, and we have faithful worship through our giving through tithes and offering. SVCNaz you have responded to God’s call to do not grow weary in well doing and we are so thankful for your faithfulness in worship.
We firmly believe that this faithfulness will continue as re-open the building on June 14th for in person worship. We have longed for this day and we are so happy to finally come to a point where it will be a reality. Over the next 10 days we will be sharing what it will look like when we we return on the June 14th. It will be different but we that God will help us focus little on the differences and more on the fact that we can again worship together in person.
Open up activity in the building in phases. Phase 1 starts June 14th. We encourage each of you to read the document below for information on the plans for re-opening and the practices that we will being instituted. We look forward to seeing you on June 14th!
Praying continually and trusting God,
The pastoral staff
May 25 Video Update
May 22 Update
This afternoon, President Trump officially announced that places of worship are considered essential and have permission to reopen immediately.
While we are pleased to hear this from the executive level, we feel that is in the best interest of our congregation to proceed cautiously. During this crisis, we have made (and will continue to make) decisions based on honoring God, honoring our authorities and protecting our people.
While we know that many of us are anxious to return to the building, we want to assure you that our pastoral team, with the support of the church board, has been researching all available “re-opening” information in order to determine what that will look like for us in the coming weeks.
With that said, our services will remain online for the time being. In the next few days, our pastoral staff will be giving a more detailed update. Please make sure to keep a lookout on social media, our website and in your email.
We are asking you to continue to remain in prayer. As we navigate the days ahead, we encourage you and want to remind you of three important truths:
Praying continually and trusting God,
The pastoral staff
This afternoon, President Trump officially announced that places of worship are considered essential and have permission to reopen immediately.
While we are pleased to hear this from the executive level, we feel that is in the best interest of our congregation to proceed cautiously. During this crisis, we have made (and will continue to make) decisions based on honoring God, honoring our authorities and protecting our people.
While we know that many of us are anxious to return to the building, we want to assure you that our pastoral team, with the support of the church board, has been researching all available “re-opening” information in order to determine what that will look like for us in the coming weeks.
With that said, our services will remain online for the time being. In the next few days, our pastoral staff will be giving a more detailed update. Please make sure to keep a lookout on social media, our website and in your email.
We are asking you to continue to remain in prayer. As we navigate the days ahead, we encourage you and want to remind you of three important truths:
- We are the Church
- We are a people of hope
- We remain committed to our community both inside and outside of our walls
Praying continually and trusting God,
The pastoral staff
May 10 Update
As we look ahead to the day when we receive clearance to hold public gatherings and we can meet again; we are considering what that will look like for our location. As the pastoral staff met last Tuesday to consider an extensive list of questions it quickly became clear that input from our SVCNaz family would be important in creating an action plan for re-opening and the weeks following. So we believe a survey is appropriate for you to fill out. This information will allow the congregation’s collective voice to be heard and valued without making any unfounded assumptions. We believe this will give us a broader sense of a best approach. After the survey is compiled and analyzed, we will use this information along with information from our local and state governments and the Michigan District Church of the Nazarene to make the best decisions on what re-opening will look like for SVCNaz.
Please use the link below to take the survey. Your responses are anonymous. The survey takes about 4 minutes to complete and will close next Wednesday, May 20th at 11:59pm.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
As we look ahead to the day when we receive clearance to hold public gatherings and we can meet again; we are considering what that will look like for our location. As the pastoral staff met last Tuesday to consider an extensive list of questions it quickly became clear that input from our SVCNaz family would be important in creating an action plan for re-opening and the weeks following. So we believe a survey is appropriate for you to fill out. This information will allow the congregation’s collective voice to be heard and valued without making any unfounded assumptions. We believe this will give us a broader sense of a best approach. After the survey is compiled and analyzed, we will use this information along with information from our local and state governments and the Michigan District Church of the Nazarene to make the best decisions on what re-opening will look like for SVCNaz.
Please use the link below to take the survey. Your responses are anonymous. The survey takes about 4 minutes to complete and will close next Wednesday, May 20th at 11:59pm.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
March 29 Update
Dear SVCN family and friends,
Information continues to unfold for us as we navigate these COVID-19 waters. Per Gov. Whitmer's order, the building will remain closed through April 13th. We are continuing to livestream through Facebook during this time. Churches are seen as an essential service to the community's health so we will be working with a small crew of less than 10 to make our live streams happen each week.
As we continue to do life together, while apart, we want to make sure you know how to stay connected during this time.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
Dear SVCN family and friends,
Information continues to unfold for us as we navigate these COVID-19 waters. Per Gov. Whitmer's order, the building will remain closed through April 13th. We are continuing to livestream through Facebook during this time. Churches are seen as an essential service to the community's health so we will be working with a small crew of less than 10 to make our live streams happen each week.
As we continue to do life together, while apart, we want to make sure you know how to stay connected during this time.
- Call Lists - If you would like your name added to a call list click here. Your name will be added and you will recieve a call from one of your church family. If you would like to have a list of people you can call on click here. A list will be forwarded to you from the church office.
- YouTube Channel - Not on Facebook? That's okay, you can still view our Sunday services on our Youtube Channel. Click here to view and subscribe. Weekly services will be posted by 3:00pm every Sunday.
- Face-to-Face Connections - There are several virtual ways to connect face to face with one another. In addition to Facebook messenger, Here are a list of options
- Zoom – zoom.us – Free up to 100 participants. Zoom is an awesome tool for face to face connections. Participants have the option to show video, share their screen, or even call in via phone.
- Marco Polo - Is an app that combines the best of texting, social media and video chats - all in one private, easy to use app. Marco Polo is vastly more practical. You never play phone tag and you don’t have to schedule blocks of time just to say hi. Marco Polo gives you tone, context and certainty that your message was heard. Just like text messaging, you can communicate on your own time. Marco Polo is face-to-face, so you end up understanding each other better and feel much closer. And if you find yourself in a place where you can't use video, you can still send photos and texts on Marco Polo. Download the the App Store or the Google Play Store.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
March 20 Update
Dear SVCNaz family and friends.
It has been a week now and some of the fog has cleared and we have a better view of the immediate days ahead. Earlier this week our district superintendent informed the Nazarene churches on the Michigan District that we will close our buildings until April 1st. This means we at SVCNaz will be continuing to Live Stream on Sundays and will also be looking at creative ways to ensure that we are remaining connected although we must live at a distance.
Here are a few things we are doing to stay connected:
We understand that this is not easy but we trust our God who is able to help us navigate through the hard stuff. Please continue to remain prayerful and remain in his word. We are convinced this is the best way to navigate this journey we are on.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
Dear SVCNaz family and friends.
It has been a week now and some of the fog has cleared and we have a better view of the immediate days ahead. Earlier this week our district superintendent informed the Nazarene churches on the Michigan District that we will close our buildings until April 1st. This means we at SVCNaz will be continuing to Live Stream on Sundays and will also be looking at creative ways to ensure that we are remaining connected although we must live at a distance.
Here are a few things we are doing to stay connected:
- More engagement in social media, such as Facebook and instagram. Many of you frequently connect using those mediums so we have increased our social media footprint.
- Call lists. We understand that several of you do not utilize social media so we have developed a call list of those who are not so they can be contacted through out the week by someone from the church. If you are interested in making phone calls, please let us know. We can provide a list for you.
- Virtually meeting. We are utilizing virtual meeting resources like GoTo Meeting, Zoom, FaceTime, etc. to have staff meetings, do planning, hold discipleship huddles and just hang out. COVID-19 is leading us confined alternative ways to connect and so far they are working. If you want to learn about some of these let us know. They are easy and simple and can help us connect.
We understand that this is not easy but we trust our God who is able to help us navigate through the hard stuff. Please continue to remain prayerful and remain in his word. We are convinced this is the best way to navigate this journey we are on.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
March 14 Update
Dear SVCN Family and Friends.
In the last 12 hours more information has continued to unfold concerning COVID-19 and its impact. In light of this new information, the pastoral staff feels it is prudent and proactive to cancel our services for this week. We will, however, live stream our service on Facebook. So, although we will not be in the building we can still be connected.
We want to assure all of you that we are bathing these decisions in prayer and extensive deliberation as we strive to provide the best course of action for the entire congregation while being exceptional neighbors within our community and respectful to the leadership of our government.
Again, we want to share the words of a fellow Nazarene pastor who articulates so well our hearts: “We want to remind each of us that fear spreads faster than any virus can. With so much emphasis about the Coronavirus on the news and social media, it is imperative that we are wise, but not paralyzed by fear. Currently, all of these steps are simply proactive and preventative. We want to encourage each of us to not allow anxiety or panic to rule the day and keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus. Stay in the Word and your ear tuned into the Holy Spirit as we would during any other season. The wisdom of the Lord is essential and applies to every possible scenario that we may encounter.”
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
Dear SVCN Family and Friends.
In the last 12 hours more information has continued to unfold concerning COVID-19 and its impact. In light of this new information, the pastoral staff feels it is prudent and proactive to cancel our services for this week. We will, however, live stream our service on Facebook. So, although we will not be in the building we can still be connected.
We want to assure all of you that we are bathing these decisions in prayer and extensive deliberation as we strive to provide the best course of action for the entire congregation while being exceptional neighbors within our community and respectful to the leadership of our government.
Again, we want to share the words of a fellow Nazarene pastor who articulates so well our hearts: “We want to remind each of us that fear spreads faster than any virus can. With so much emphasis about the Coronavirus on the news and social media, it is imperative that we are wise, but not paralyzed by fear. Currently, all of these steps are simply proactive and preventative. We want to encourage each of us to not allow anxiety or panic to rule the day and keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus. Stay in the Word and your ear tuned into the Holy Spirit as we would during any other season. The wisdom of the Lord is essential and applies to every possible scenario that we may encounter.”
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
March 12
A letter from the pastoral staff
Dear SVCN family and friends,
We have all watched the rapid developments concerning the Coronavirus over the last few days. As your staff, we wanted to gain as much information as possible and then prayerfully consider how God would have us respond. Our first and immediate sense is that we have no need to fear but to be wise in providing information and taking proactive and preventative steps to ensure the safety of those who enter our building..
With this mind, we want to communicate with you about how we are seeking to address the Coronavirus issue. Based on our average Sunday attendance, we fall within the state guidelines for continuing to hold gatherings. As a church family, we want to be ready to help you be confident and comfortable to attend, if you so choose, Sunday service and discipleship huddles throughout the week.
Children’s Ministry
Miss Wendy and the children’s ministry team are working diligently to ensure our children’s wing, preschool classroom and nursery are clean and safe for you and your family. We currently take the following steps before, during and after the use of these areas in order to prevent the spread of germs:
Updated Precautions
In addition to our normal weekly cleaning of the building, for the upcoming weekends, we're adding the following precautions:
Along with these steps, to prevent the unnecessary spread of germs in a gathering of people, we also recommend familiarizing yourselves with these CDC and World Health Organization recommendations:
The staff will continue to monitor updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). We are looking to partner with local officials and medical professionals to formulate a preparedness plan. This plan will change and adjust based on the updates we receive.
Lastly, in the words of a fellow Nazarene pastor, “we want to remind each of us that fear spreads faster than any virus can. With so much emphasis about the Coronavirus on the news and social media, it is imperative that we are wise, but not paralyzed by fear. Currently, all of these steps are simply proactive and preventative. We want to encourage each of us to not allow anxiety or panic to rule the day and keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus. Stay in the Word and your ear tuned into the Holy Spirit as we would during any other season. The wisdom of the Lord is essential and applies to every possible scenario that we may encounter.”
We hope to see you this Sunday as we welcome our DS, Rev, Kevin Hardy who will be sharing the Word of God with us.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
A letter from the pastoral staff
Dear SVCN family and friends,
We have all watched the rapid developments concerning the Coronavirus over the last few days. As your staff, we wanted to gain as much information as possible and then prayerfully consider how God would have us respond. Our first and immediate sense is that we have no need to fear but to be wise in providing information and taking proactive and preventative steps to ensure the safety of those who enter our building..
With this mind, we want to communicate with you about how we are seeking to address the Coronavirus issue. Based on our average Sunday attendance, we fall within the state guidelines for continuing to hold gatherings. As a church family, we want to be ready to help you be confident and comfortable to attend, if you so choose, Sunday service and discipleship huddles throughout the week.
Children’s Ministry
Miss Wendy and the children’s ministry team are working diligently to ensure our children’s wing, preschool classroom and nursery are clean and safe for you and your family. We currently take the following steps before, during and after the use of these areas in order to prevent the spread of germs:
- Team members follow hand-washing procedures and children are instructed to wash their hands after using the bathroom.
- Team members place items in a separate bin after children finish playing with them and those items are disinfected before returning them to the play area.
- Team members use disinfecting wipes to sanitize any items that come in contact with a child’s bodily fluids
- Team members in our nursery spray changing pads with disinfecting solution and wash or sanitize hands after each diaper change.
- Team members disinfect tables, chairs, countertops, crawling mats, and large toys during and after children have used the room.
- Any fabrics, like blankets, that are used by babies are used only once and then are machine laundered using pediatrician-recommended detergents.
Updated Precautions
In addition to our normal weekly cleaning of the building, for the upcoming weekends, we're adding the following precautions:
- Our custodial team will be doing a deep cleaning of the facility.
- We will be placing hand sanitizer and tissue throughout heavily trafficked areas in our buildings.
- We encourage waving and smiling rather than handshakes and hugs.
Along with these steps, to prevent the unnecessary spread of germs in a gathering of people, we also recommend familiarizing yourselves with these CDC and World Health Organization recommendations:
- wash your hands often with soap and water or use hand sanitizer;
- avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands;
- cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing;
- stay home when you are sick or have a fever, cough or shortness of breath
The staff will continue to monitor updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). We are looking to partner with local officials and medical professionals to formulate a preparedness plan. This plan will change and adjust based on the updates we receive.
Lastly, in the words of a fellow Nazarene pastor, “we want to remind each of us that fear spreads faster than any virus can. With so much emphasis about the Coronavirus on the news and social media, it is imperative that we are wise, but not paralyzed by fear. Currently, all of these steps are simply proactive and preventative. We want to encourage each of us to not allow anxiety or panic to rule the day and keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus. Stay in the Word and your ear tuned into the Holy Spirit as we would during any other season. The wisdom of the Lord is essential and applies to every possible scenario that we may encounter.”
We hope to see you this Sunday as we welcome our DS, Rev, Kevin Hardy who will be sharing the Word of God with us.
Praying continually and trusting God,
The Pastoral Staff
(Pastors Brent, Sharon and Bill)
