As CBF/GA partner congregations and pastors continue to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in their communities, the staff of CBF/GA is compiling and vetting resources from trusted government and Christian sources. This page will be updated as often as possible, but if you have any suggestions, please send them to Jody Long, Executive Coordinator, at [email protected]. Please check this page regularly for updates.

 

Resources for Re-Opening Churches and Resuming In-Person Gatherings:

• Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Resources for Resuming – A curated collection of resources gathered by a task force of CBF leaders and pastors to help congregations discern ways to resume in-person gatherings.
• CBF’s Coronavirus Emergency Relief Fund – CBF’s presence and partnership among marginalized communities continues even in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.  Many of these communities have been especially hard hit during this crisis and access to food and basic essentials are being threatened.  Your gifts go to helping those persons and communities meet needs and find hope.
• The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Guidelines for Cleaning and Disinfecting Your Facility – Attention to cleaning and disinfecting our congregations will be key for successful re-opening and resumption of activities.
• Cleaning Protocols for Churches – COVID-19 – This resource, developed by a CBF/GA partner congregation member who owns a successful cleaning supply company, offers good guidance for approaching a plan for cleaning your congregations.
• 48 Questions for Your Church To Consider As It Plans To Re-Open – This initial blog post by Ken Braddy garnered much attention on social media. Braddy, the Sunday School Director for Lifeway Resources,  has updated with more thoughtful and serious questions your congregation and its leadership should be asking before you reopen.
• Businesses and Organizations Confront Legal Issues with Re-Opening – An article from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution about the legal concerns many business owners have with re-opening.  Churches and church leaders should also consider some of the legalities and responsibilities of re-opening congregations.
• Churches Should Not Be The First to Re-Open – An interesting, thought-provoking article from Christianity Today, a popular Christianity news and feature article magazine.  Because of the age of many who attend our worship services and are members of our congregations, churches should exercise extreme caution when opening.
• How Will Churches Financially Survive This Season? – Some congregations are doing better than expected, in regards to giving and financial stability, during this pandemic.  Others aren’t doing well at all.  This article from The Washington Post looks at the dynamics that many of our partner congregations face.
• Many Georgia Congregations Stay Shut Even As Governor Opens State for Business – This USA Today article explores the delicate line many congregations across Georgia are walking as our state begins re-opening for business and other gatherings like church.
• Life is Whacked (Un-Whack It): 6 Steps for Intentionally Redesigning Your Life After COVID-19– This is a FREE resource produced by Rev. David White, Connections Pastor, at Johns Creek Baptist in Alpharetta, a CBF/GA partner congregation.  This is a great resource for small groups. David has also developed a FREE companion workbook for guided self-reflection.
• 10 Considerations for Reopening Church – A good article by Dr. Rhonda Abbott Blevins, Pastor of Chapel By The Sea, Clearwater Beach, FL and longtime CBF supporter.
• Interim Plans for Reopening Businesses and Places of Worship – Guidelines from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention that could be helpful for churches as they plan to reopen.  The guidance for places of worship begins on page 7 of the document.
• Church Mutual Insurance, whom many CBF/GA partner congregations use for their church insurance needs, has developed several resources for churches as they begin to re-open.  Recommendations for a Safe Return to Worship and this “Next Steps” Guide for continued use of what we’ve learned during this season of isolation can be helpful resources.
• Jim Chittom, a member of a CBF/GA partner congregation and owner of a multi-site janitorial and commercial cleaning supply company, helped develop this Cleaning Protocols for Churches – COVID-19. It is especially helpful for churches as they plan for the level of cleaning and disinfecting that will be needed as members return to the church and its buildings.
• Concerns over the role of congregational singing as churches re-open have been expressed for some time.  The National Association of Teachers of Singing and the American Choral Directors Association hosted a much-talked and extremely well-attended conversation about the future of congregational singing.  A follow-up article that distills the pertinent information from the conversation can be found here.

Video Conversations Concerning COVID-19 Responses:

• A Conversation With Pastors about Re-Opening Congregations
• A Conversation With Pastors and Church Leaders about Cleaning Protocols to ensure as safe of an environment as possible

Youth Ministry Resources

• CBF Youth Ministry Network Facebook Group – membership fee applies to join the CBFYMN but well worth the investment, even beyond this crisis!
• Doing Youth Ministry During a Pandemic – from Fuller Youth Institute of Fuller Seminary
• 5 Ways to Help Teens Manage Anxiety About the Coronavirus –  Opinion by Lisa Damour, in The New York Times
• Notes from CBFYMN Zoom Conversation on March 17, 2020
• www.thethoughtfulchristian.com is providing its annual downloadable Lenten study pack for FREE – Youth Participant Handouts and Youth Leader Guides
• Naming Loss and Gratitude With Young People in These Uncertain Times – good article from Fuller Youth Institute of Fuller Seminary

Children’s Ministry Resources

• CBF Children’s Ministry Network Facebook Group – FREE resource that is well worth your time to explore and join, even beyond this crisis!
• Illustrated Ministry – FREE weekly faith formation resources
• Flyaway Books has a full list of free and downloadable activities like an origami butterfly, a paper airplane, parable-themed coloring pages, and more. Also, if you have some of their children’s books, there are discussion guides you can use with children at home.
• Each week, www.thethoughtfulchristian.com will be providing, via email, a free story with corresponding activities and a pack of five coloring pages from the children’s curriculum, Growing in Grace and Gratitude. Palm Sunday resources from Growing in Grace and Gratitude.

 

Online Giving

CBF/GA recognizes that some of our partner congregations currently do not have the capability to offer online giving, which can be vital to ongoing ministries during this season of physical separation due to COVID-19. CBF/GA, in consultation and agreement with some of our partner congregations, is offering our online donation platform as a vehicle to receive gifts, tithes, and offerings from individual church members and distribute them back to these partner congregations. If your congregation does not currently have an online giving platform, and would like for CBF/GA to assist you in this process, please contact Rachel Greco, [email protected], for more information.