If you are not able to attend, please note that sermons will continue to be available online. 

Important Details of the Indoor services:

• Two church services held in the sanctuary; one @ 8:45 AM and the second service to commence @ 10:45 AM.
• On-line services will continue to be made available for those that cannot attend.
• RSVP procedures will be required to indicate which service you would like to attend to a maximum of 70 people/service. Please contact the church office if you are planning to attend indicating preferred service and the number of people in your party.
• Seating is a floor plan of squares to recognize social distancing requirements and seating will be pre-assigned based on the RSVP listing and the group sizes. Ushers will assist in helping you find your seat.
• Please take your coats and other belongings with you to your seats and exit out the indicated foyer doors immediately after the service.
• Under Phase 3, masks are mandatory indoors and the exemption for medical reasons will be recognized.
• There will be no nursery or any children’s programs.
• There will be no bulletins and we will continue to collect an offering in our donation box.
• One washroom will be available during the service and only one family is allowed at a time, similar to what is being done in our outdoor services.
• The chairs and washroom will be sanitized between services to ensure everyone’s safety.

Need for Volunteers: To assist us in making these two services available, we still require volunteers to assist with the cleaning between services. If you are willing to help, please contact the church office or Pastor Jake at your earliest convenience. 
We also have a need for additional Ushers to help with the two services, so if you are willing to help in this capacity, please contact John VanDeKraats.


God's Blessing to everyone, 
Vineland Missionary Church

The Lord has blessed us with good weather so far for our outdoor services and we plan to continue with this format for next three weeks, weather permitting.

If you are not able to attend, please note that sermons will continue to be available online. 

Important Updates:

This coming Sunday, September 13th, we will be sharing communion together during the service and you are asked to bring your own elements of juice and crackers for the people in your bubble. If anyone forgets, we will have some provisions available.

The weather does not look promising for this weekend so a decision will be made early Sunday morning and if the service is cancelled, a call-out will be made to all those that have registered.

If you are planning to attend the outdoor services, please follow Niagara Health services COVID regulations and implement social distancing measures of 2 metres (approx. 6 feet) at all times and if you are unable to do so, please wear a mask. 

Indoor services:

The Board met Thursday night to review the results of the telephone survey and make a decision regarding the future and format for holding indoor services. The results of the survey indicated a strong desire by the church family to get back together in some manner. 

The objective of the Board was to structure a plan that maximizes the opportunity for as many church family members as possible to worship and fellowship together, in a safe environment. 

The “church” is not the sanctuary, the service format, or the pews… the church is the gathering of people who love Jesus and each other. We are the church. And so we must do everything that we can to focus on the unity and love that we have for each other, especially in these challenging times. May we have grace and patience with each other as we navigate moving forward with this re-opening plan.

• Starting on Sunday October 4th, two church services will be held in the sanctuary;
  one @ 8:45AM and the second service to commence @ 11:15AM.
• On-line services will continue to be made available for those that cannot attend.
• RSVP procedures will be required to indicate which service you would like to attend: to a maximum of 70 people/service.
• Pews are being removed to accommodate the maximum seating capacity of 70 people per service. Seating arrangements will be made using chairs in a floor plan of squares to recognize social distancing requirements. The size of the squares will vary to recognize different family/social bubble sizes and the Ushers will assist in seating.
• Under Phase 3, masks are mandatory indoors and exemptions for medical reasons will be recognized.
• There will be no nursery or any children’s programs.
• There will be no bulletins and we will continue to collect the offering in our donation box.
• One washroom will be available during the service and only one family is allowed at a time, similar to what is being done in our outdoor services.
• The chairs and washroom will be sanitized between services to ensure everyone’s safety.

Need for Volunteers:

To assist us in making these two services available, we require volunteers to assist with the cleaning between services and the running of slide presentation during service. If you are willing to help, please contact the church office or Pastor Jake at your earliest convenience. 

God's Blessing to everyone, 

Vineland Missionary Church

We are finally going to meet face-to-face to share some fellowship time and I hope you are planning to attend!! 

Our choice for an outside service is the best way to minimize the risks to everyone yet allow us to move forward and the rules that have been put in place are to ensure that we stay compliant with Niagara Health Services directives and keep everyone safe.

If you are not able to attend, please note that sermons will continue to be available on-line as we have been doing for the past months. 

Service details:

• August 9th (weather permitting); 
• maximum number of people that can attend the service is 100; please RSVP by phone to the church office no later than Thursday 3PM to reserve your circle
• service will start @ 10:30, please aim to arrive @ 10:15; service will follow our normal VMC format; there will be no bulletin or any form of handouts
• registration is required upon arrival; an usher will record your attendance (contact tracing info) to ensure we stay within the gathering number restriction
• circles will be painted on the ballpark grass with a 2-meter social distancing requirement between circles
• all circles will be the same size and you will be allowed to gather within your own “social bubble” inside the circle (if enough space allowed)
• please bring your own lawn chairs or seating equipment for use in your circle
• you are not allowed to move between circles and must avoid all physical contact at all times outside your circle
• if you would like to participate in congregational singing during the service, you will be required to wear a mask. While masks are not mandatory for outdoor services, we ask that you abstain from joining in the congregational songs if you are not wearing a mask (some masks will be made available)
• masks are now mandatory inside all buildings (children under 5 excluded) so if you require use of the washroom, wearing a mask will be required
• only one family will be allowed to use the washroom at a time; an usher will monitor an outdoor line-up and provide sanitation spray
• at the close of the service, the ushers will administer a dismissal protocol; there is to be no social gathering outside the circles after the service

Bible Class will continue in the tile room on Sunday evenings @7:00PM; social distancing guidelines will be followed; if you plan to attend, please RSVP by 3PM of the applicable Sunday via email to Jakub.hron@gmail.com. According to Niagara Region COVID guidelines, because this is an indoor gathering, wearing a mask is mandatory. 
 

The Board and the Elders are looking forward to the opportunity to gather again as a church family but we must ensure the safety of everyone. 

God's Blessing to everyone
Vineland Missionary Church

Opening Plans:

As of this Friday, Niagara is entering Phase 3 of the Provincial Government’s reopening plan which stipulates that places of worship will be allowed to reopen indoor gatherings with an attendance limit of 30% of building capacity and an attendance limit of 100 people for outdoor gatherings.

1. What does this mean to VMC?

To implement our original plan for outdoor services in the ballpark, the Board made the following changes and has provided the following list of restrictions for outdoor gatherings:

• commence our outdoor summer services on August 9th (weather permitting); not July 26th as originally posted
• circles will be painted on the ballpark grass with a 2-meter social distancing requirement between circles
• maximum number of people that can attend the service is 100; please RSVP by phone to the church office no later than Thursday 3PM to reserve your circle
• registration is required upon arrival; an usher will record your attendance (contact tracing info) to ensure we stay within the gathering number restriction
• all circles will be the same size and you will be allowed to gather within your own “social bubble” inside the circle (if enough space allowed)
• please bring your own lawn chairs or seating equipment for use in your circle
• you are not allowed to move between circles and must avoid all physical contact at all times outside your circle
• service will start @ 10:30, please aim to arrive @ 10:15; service will follow our normal VMC format; there will be no bulletin or any form of handouts
• if you would like to participate in congregational singing during the service, you will be required to wear a mask. While masks are not mandatory for outdoor services, we ask that you abstain from joining in the congregational songs if you are not wearing a mask (some masks will be made available)
• only one family will be allowed to use the washroom at a time; an usher will monitor an outdoor line-up and provide sanitation spray
• at the close of the service, the ushers will administer a dismissal protocol; there is to be no social gathering outside the circles

These rules have been designed for everyone’s protection and if we can all follow them; we will be allowed to continue the services for the balance of the summer.

1. Bible Class will commence in the tile room starting Sunday night July 26th 7:00PM; social distancing guidelines will be followed; if you plan to attend, please RSVP via email to Jakub.hron@gmail.com by 3PM on Sunday July 26th. According to Niagara Region COVID guidelines, because this is an indoor gathering, wearing a mask will be mandatory. 

The Board and the Elders are looking forward to the opportunity to gather again as a church family but we must ensure the safety of everyone. 

God's Blessing to everyone
Vineland Missionary Church

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 

Quick updates about what is happening at our Church:

1. Opening Plans
   • We are now entering Phase II of the Provincial Government’s reopening plan which stipulates that places of worship will now be allowed to reopen under the 30% of building capacity restriction, including social distancing measures (2 meters) between families in planned seating arrangements. All children’s ministries and nurseries must also remain closed which means we need to plan for all attending family members in the church sanctuary seating capacity.
   • What does this mean to VMC? The Board reviewed the capacity of our sanctuary and with the required spacing between pews, they calculated that the maximum number of only 12 families that could attend our services. 
   • Based on these requirements, the Board has decided not to try to reopen and we will wait for further changes in the governing guidelines and reassess. for the balance of the summer, the Board has decided to implement the following measures:
     1.   continue with our on-line ministry services for the balance of the summer
     2.   commence outdoor summer services on July 26th (weather permitting) in the ballpark where we can accommodate more people under the social distancing restrictions; if successful, we will continue in this format until the end of August
     3.   commence Bible classes in the tile room starting Sunday, July 26th; attendees limited by social distancing seating arrangements, RSVP responses will be required
     4.   commence some summer activities for the youth using the portable

                        The Board and the Elders are anxious for the opportunity to gather together again        

as a church family but we must ensure the safety of everyone. More detailed information will be forwarded next week on the procedures and guidelines that will be put in place to accommodate the above plans. 
           _____________________________________
 

                2. Job Posting - Interim Children’s Ministry Director 

• We are happy to announce that Gordon Nichols has decided to accept the Elder’s offer to take on the additional responsibilities of the interim Children’s Ministry Director during Heather’s maternity leave, starting in September.
   

God's Blessing to everyone
Vineland Missionary Church

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 

News Flash:

The latest word from the Provincial Health authorities is that we are now entering phase 2 of their business reopening plans and even though churches will now be able to commence worship services; it is limited to 30% of our building capacity.

The Board and the Elders are in no rush to reopen as there are many things to consider and implement. We want to ensure the safety of all the people involved so until we are aware of the guidelines associated with reopening and can implement all the necessary regulations/restrictions; we will move slowly.

We will commence development of a reopening plan at the next Board meeting on June 22ndand will communicate how we plan to proceed. 

Quick Updates on our Ministry programs:

1)  On-line Church Service Ministry(Jake & Mike)

· responses to the online services has been slightly less that last couple of weeks; everyone is encouraged to “tap-in”; if you are having any difficulties with the DVD’s or accessing the zoom service, please contact Gordon or Pastor Jake.

2)  Prayer Ministry (Gordon)

·  reminder Thursday prayer session at 10 am

·  we have been having 5 – 6 people attend these sessions and there is always room for more

·  join the Zoom Meeting by clicking this link: https://zoom.us/j/132902592or calling this number and entering the Meeting ID when prompted:

1-647-558-0588; Meeting ID: 132 902 592

3)  Children’s On-line Ministry (Heather)

· responses continue to be very favorable with TREK on-line ministry with about 35/45 views per week. 

·  TREK on-line ministry will continue throughout the summer

4)  Outreach Ministry (Mike & Deacons)

· Deacons have been reaching out to the congregation to check in on everyone and so far, we are blessed to note that we still have no known cases of the corvid virus.

· if you are not receiving a contact from a member of the Deacons or if you are struggling in any way and need support, please call Mike @ 905-980-0275

Special Prayer request

Diane Greer has been passionately administering our prayer chain activities for some time and is providing a wonderful ministry to all those in need through the power of prayer. It is important not just recognize the importance of this ministry but to take a moment in prayer to support Diane. She has been suffering and living with extensive pain on a daily basis for sometime and it is at a point now where there is no medical pain relief that is working. Diane would never ask but as a church family we need to lift her up in prayer and ask for God’s intervention and healing to provide relief and a solution for her challenges.

Please remember to Pray 

· for all those in our church that are impacted by work stoppages

· for those that are living alone during this time of isolation and restricted travel

· for those in need and not able to fend for themselves 

· for all those in the medical field and other essential services that are working so hard to keep us safe

· that our church family will remain healthy and free of any virus illness

God's Blessing to everyone

Vineland Missionary Church

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Update from the Board on financial and corporation matters and decisions that were made as we start the commencement of our new fiscal year. May 31st was the last Sunday in our 2019-20 fiscal year and we will now commence preparation of our yearend financial statements. If there are any ministry leaders or staff who have outstanding receipts for activities from last year, you are requested to submit them to Lacy at your earliest convenience.

With the commencement of a new fiscal year, there are two main items that require membership attention: 

· approval of the 2020-21 Budget Plan 

· the election of new members to the restricted roles on the Slate of Officers

At the Board meeting on May 24th, the following resolutions were passed which outline how we will address the above items:

1)  Financial Budget: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the close of our church and the uncertainty regarding when we will be able start our church activities again; it is impossible to establish a firm budget plan for 2020-21.

Therefore, the Board approved by resolution the following financial management strategy which will be used until we are able to commence normal operations again and we are able to have a formal budget plan approved by the membership.

· Continue operation under previous year (2019-20) budget’s financial arrangements and conditions with planned spending on essential requirements and costs ONLY

· Continue to operate with current staffing levels until such time that the Board determines that it is not in the best interests of the church to continue to do so and approves any required changes

· Apply for and administer any and all eligible government programs for financial assistance

· Board will prepare and approve quarterly forecasts of planned expenditure plans and will communicate the financial status to the Membership on an ongoing basis

Based on that commitment, our 1st quarterly forecast for the period June to August is as follows. Due to the eligibility for wage subsidies in April & May, we have a current cash position of $76,392.77 and we are forecasting a cash position of $53,893.80 at the end of August.

This is only possible through the ongoing generous support of the church family.

2)  Slate of Officers: In accordance with the by-laws, the Board approved the following church members to the Slate of Officers restricted roles commencing June 1st, 2020.

· Board - Frank Unrah and Terry Good

· Nominating Committee – Marlene Ysseldyk

· Missions Committee – Jay Palaniuk

The Board also appointed the following people to non-restricted roles:

· Flower Committee – Jenna Smith

· Meals Coordinator – Joan Gretzinger

· Sunday/Am Coffee & Lemonade – Alex & Emily Jones, Emily Seehagel

At the 1st congregational meeting, the membership will be given the opportunity to sanction these decisions.

God's Blessing to everyone

Vineland Missionary Church

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 

We want to hear from you!
As our isolation continues, we miss seeing our church family faces.  So, we've come up with what we call "Community Connection".  Take a short video (30 seconds or less) of you and your family with a quick message, greeting, and/or prayer.  We will make a video putting them all together, and post them every week with the sermon online.  Send your videos to Pastor Jake (jakub.hron@gmail.com) and he will add you to our Community Connection video each week. And in this way, we can echo the words of John in 3 John 1:14…

 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace to you. The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name.

Information Updates:

1. On-line Church Service Ministry (Jake & Mike)
   • responses to the online services has been slightly less that last couple of weeks; everyone is encouraged to “tap-in”; if you are having any difficulties with the DVD’s or accessing the zoom service, please contact Gordon or Pastor Jake.
      

1. Prayer Ministry (Gordon)
   • reminder Thursday prayer session at 10 am
   • join the Zoom Meeting by clicking this link: https://zoom.us/j/132902592 or calling this number and entering the Meeting ID when prompted:

                        1-647-558-0588; Meeting ID: 132 902 592

• please note that if you are calling in using your home phone, the number listed is in the Toronto area code and if you do not have a long-distance plan on your phone, long distance charges could apply.
   
• Children’s On-line Ministry (Heather)
  • responses continue to be very favorable with TREK on-line ministry with about 30 views per week. 
  • with the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, a decision has been made to cancel VBC for this summer; if matters or restrictions change later in the summer, we will look for opportunities to get the children together for some fun time
  • due to this cancellation, we would like to highlight that the current TREK on-line ministry will continue throughout the summer 

1. Outreach Ministry (Mike & Deacons)
   • we have been so blessed to learn that Pastor Mike finally had his much needed surgery and is very much relieved and doing well.
   • Deacons have been reaching out to the congregation to check in on everyone and so far, we are blessed to note that we still have no known cases of the corvid virus.
   • if you are not receiving a contact from a member of the Deacons or if you are struggling in any way and need support, please call Mike @ 905-980-0275
   • reminder that masks have been made available for the VMC church family, if you would like to obtain a mask(s) please contact Mike @ 905-980-0275
      

1. Financial matters
   • VMC has been extremely blessed by the generosity of its people in making donations to help support the church in its mission to outreach to the people with our on-line ministries.
   • at the end of April, we are still only $3,800 below our budget target for 2019-20
   • next week we will issue a more detailed report on finances as well as how we will operate given that June 1stmarks the start of our new fiscal year @ VMC
      

1. Church Family changes
   • Gordon, Becca and Scarlett have moved but not left us; their new contact information is:
     35 Aquador Dr.
     Welland
     L3C 5S4

VMC church family has lost some very dear friends from our midst with the moving of John and Adeline Krause to BC; we wish them all the best on their journey.

Please remember to Pray 

• for all those in our church that are impacted by work stoppages
• for those that are living alone during this time of isolation and restricted travel
• for those in need and not able to fend for themselves 
• for all those in the medical field and other essential services that are working so hard to keep us safe
• that our church family will remain healthy and free of any virus illness

God's Blessing to everyone,
Vineland Missionary Church

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 

Quick updates about what is happening at our Church:

1)  On-line Sunday service

· we are continuing to receive very positive feedback about the Sunday service videos and we encourage you to reach out to others to share this ministry. 

·  reminder to send in your 30 second video clips for “Community Connection” to Pastor Jake at jakub.hron@gmail.com

· this Sunday is Mother’s Day and the service will be led by Pastor Mike Hotson; please prepare to join together in your home to share and celebrate communion during the service.

2)  Wednesday TREK on-line videos

· TREK is also planning to celebrate Mother’s Day this week so a reminder to all families to send in your special Mother’s Day video. 

3)  Thursday Prayer Ministry

· technical issues caused a slight delay last Thursday morning but the plan is to continue this ministry every Thursday morning @ 10:00AM; Thursday evening prayer sessions have not been well attended and have been cancelled.

· if you require assistance accessing this ministry, please contact Gordon at gordon@vmchurch.comor call 519-550-9531.

4)  Outreach Ministry

· Deacons have been busy staying in contact with our church family and we are so blessed to know that none of our family has been hit with the COVID virus.

· isolation still has its impacts and if you are aware of anyone needing help, please contact Mike Hotson @ 905-980-0275.

5)  Future Programs

· Provincial Health Authorities extended all closings until May 25th

· a decision regarding the VBC program this year will be made May 24thand we will communicate those plans at that time.

6)  Financial update

· April results are in and we are $4,006 behind our budget for donations but due our savings, VMC is financially stable at this time.

· we were fortunate to be eligible for some cost relief under the Wage Subsidy program for the month of March and will continue to apply on a monthly basis as required.

· VMC is committed to continuing the operation of all our ministries and therefore will continue to fund Missionaries, staff and other essential needs during this time.

7)  Job Posting - Interim Children’s Ministry Director 

·  the deadline for submitting internal applications for the above position is May 17th; 

if necessary, external recruitment activities will commence after that date

Special note from the Eborall family:

Thank you to our church family for all your many prayers, phone calls, emails, cards, 'hugs' and acts of kindness during Clint's father's passing.  We truly felt the love of Christ through you even in this time of social distancing.  We thank God for His faithfulness and for each of you. 

With love in Him,

Clint, Denyse, Sandra and Samuel

Please remember to Pray 

· for all those in our church that are impacted family by the work stoppages

· for those that are living alone during this time of isolation and restricted travel

· for those in need and not able to fend for themselves 

· for all those in the medical field and other essential services that are working so hard keep us safe

· that our church family will remain healthy and free of any virus illness

God's Blessing to everyone

Vineland Missionary Church

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 

We want to hear from you!

As our isolation continues, we miss seeing our church family faces.  So, we've come up with what we call "Community Connection".  Take a short video (30 seconds or less) of you and your family with a quick message, greeting, and/or prayer.  We will make a video putting them all together, and post them every week with the sermon online.  Send your videos to Pastor Jake (jakub.hron@gmail.com) and he will add you to our Community Connection video each week. And in this way, we can echo the words of John in 3 John 1:14…

I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace to you. The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name.

Information Updates:

1)  On-line Church Service Ministry (Jake & Mike)

· responses to the online services has been very good, especially at Easter where there were 135 – 140 views noted which correlates to a minimum of about 250 people.

2)  Prayer Ministry (Gordon)

· the 1st Thursday prayer session was held this past week with 10-11 people signing in to spend some sharing time and lift our concerns to the Lord.

·  some of our folks have asked for an additional time slot in the evening for our prayer virtual prayer gathering for those that the morning meeting time frame doesn’t suit.

·  there will be a second evening prayer gathering via zoom and both the morning and the evening prayer gatherings will have the same prayer theme each week.  

·  here is the info for connecting together for prayer:

Time:   Thursday's at 10 am, starting April 16th, or

 Thursday's at 7:30 pm, starting April 23rd

Join the Zoom Meeting by clicking this link: https://zoom.us/j/132902592

or calling this number and entering the Meeting ID when prompted:

1-647-558-0588; 

Meeting ID: 132 902 592

· please note that if you are calling in using your home phone, the number listed is in the Toronto area code and if you do not have a long-distance plan on your phone, long distance charges could apply.

3)  TREK On-line Ministry (Heather)

· responses have been very favorable with about 50 views per week. 

·  due to the fact that kids are spending a lot of time these days on the computer with school work, efforts will be placed in looking for ways to be creative and adding a non-online element to the Wednesday program. 

4)  Outreach Ministry (Mike & Deacons)

· Deacons have been reaching out to the congregation to check in on everyone and so far, we are blessed to note that we have no pressing issues or known cases of the corvid virus.

· with so many challenges during the present time, if you are struggling in any way and need support, please call Mike @ 905-980-0275

5)  Financial matters

·  VMC has been extremely blessed by the generosity of its people in making donations to help support the church in its mission to outreach to the people with our on-line ministries.

·  please note that donations should not be dropped off at the church as no one is there to receive them and they could get lost or stolen. 

If you prefer to pay by cheque, please mail to:

Vineland Missionary Church

3874 Victoria Avenue

Vineland Ontario L0R 2C0

6)  Church closing

· Provincial Health Authorities have extended all closings until May 26th 

· VMC church will remain closed until further notice

Please remember to Pray 

· for all those in our church that are impacted by work stoppages

· for those that are living alone during this time of isolation and restricted travel

· for those in need and not able to fend for themselves 

· for all those in the medical field and other essential services that are working so hard to keep us safe

· that our church family will remain healthy and free of any virus illness

God's Blessing to everyone,

Vineland Missionary Church

At VMC we are a house of prayer. Though we cannot meet together in person to pray with one another, we thank God that we can meet virtually via technology, so that as a community we can gather to bring our requests before Him. God hears our prayers, and He is able to do abundantly more than we can ask or even think to ask! 

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 3:14-21)

Vineland Missionary Church will be hosting a Virtual Prayer Gathering, which you can join via phone call or video conference on Zoom. 

Topic: Vineland Missionary Church's Virtual Prayer Gathering

Time: This is a recurring meeting 

on Thursdays at 10 am

and Thursdays at 7:30 pm

Join the Zoom Meeting by clicking this link:

https://zoom.us/j/132902592

Or, by calling this number, and enter the Meeting ID when prompted:

1-647-558-0588

Meeting ID: 132 902 592

The information will be the same each week to simplify the process. 

During this time of separation from gathering together in fellowship and worship, we are continuing to reach out to everyone with our prayers and we hope that you are receiving benefit from the ministries we have put in place and that you remain steadfast in God’s love and know that you are loved by your church family. 
 

For the remaining time that we are closed, we will continue to communicate updates about what is happening at our Church on a weekly basis.
 

Information Updates:

1. On-line services this week
   • Good Friday service will be led by Pastor Jake Hron, please join together in your home to share and celebrate communion during the service
   • Easter Sunday service will be led by Pastor Mike Hotson
   • TREK on-line service for all kids available every Wednesday 
      

1. Church closing
   • Provincial Health Authorities have extended all closings until May 5th
   • VMC church will remain closed until further notice
   • Our church has been totally sanitized, please do not enter the church for any reason (even if you have a key). We are restricting entry to the church building at this time to ONLY the Elders, Board, Staff, and Trustees (within the guidelines set out by the province).  
      

1. Financial update
   • March results are in and we are $6,172 behind our budget for donations and are now starting to rely on our savings to support the operation of the church
   • We are eliminating all non-essential spending at this time. We are asking all Ministry Leads and Committees to stop any spending for future plans and to submit any outstanding receipts so we have a better idea of where we sit financially.
   • VMC will continue to fund Missionaries, staff, and essential needs ONLY at this time

Please remember to Pray 

• for all those in our church that are impacted families by the work stoppages
• for those that are living alone during this time of isolation and restricted travel
• for those in need and not able to fend for themselves 
• for all those in the medical field and other essential services that are working so hard keep us safe
• that our church family will remain healthy and free of any virus illness

God's Blessing to everyone,
Vineland Missionary Church

The staff have been working hard learning about posting things online this week. We have two great ministries available now to keep us connected in this time of social distancing. 

Heather has put together a weekly “TREK Online” ministry (click this link: https://vmchurch.com/trek-online), and Mike and Jake have pre-recorded a Sunday Service (along with some colouring sheets for the kiddos as they listen). You can access this service here: https://vmchurch.com/sermon-streaming-1. 

The sermons for Sunday will be posted every Thursday, so that you can access it whenever suits you best on Sunday morning. 

For those wishing to listen to the service, but do not have internet access, DVD’s are being prepared and will be distributed to those who desire them. If you would like to receive a DVD of the service, please contact Lindsey (by email: vmc@vmchurch.com or by phone: 905-562-7141). 

A note from Jake about Good Friday:

Due to the Corona Virus, we will not be meeting for a Good Friday or Easter Sunday Service at our church building. However, we will be posting a service online for both Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Both of those sermons will be posted on Thursday April 9th. On Good Friday, we will desire to have communion together. We are thinking creatively about how this will be accomplished, and we will keep you updated with what we come up with.

Here is a note from Heather about TREK:

At TREK we want to be creative on how we can stay connected to each other over the next few weeks, so to make this possible we've created an online version of TREK.  Every Wednesday you can find a new TREK online episode where we will walk through a bible lesson together, enjoy a craft or a snack idea and sing some songs together.  I hope you can join us! 

May God grant you peace and joy in the midst of the uncertainty around us!

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His love endures forever! 

(Psalm 136)

You can now stream sermons online. For the duration of the church closure, due to covid-19, sermons will be available each Sunday morning for you to watch.

 Just click on the "Sermon Streaming" tab above, or on the "church online" image in this section. 

We’d like to take this time to walk you through some practical ways we want to act in love and not fear through these very difficult days. As a  church family, we have an opportunity to practice loving one another in some very tangible ways, either coming alongside those we need to protect or keep safe to those families who are finding a new routine and schedule. 

In  John 13:34-35 we are reminded of a command we are given, “ I give you a  new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another. By this, all people will know that you are My  disciples, if you have a love for one another.”

THOSE IN OUR VMC FAMILY THAT SHOULD BE STAYING IN AND ARE AT HIGHER RISK:

For any of those in our VMC family that know it would be best for you  and your family to stay in and not make trips to the store etc. Please  let us know and we would love to help with the following (or if you are  in need of something not listed): 

• weekly grocery shop
• Prescription pick up 
• Cleaning supply shop 

If you are wanting help in this area please contact Mike Hotson 905-980-0275.

FOR FAMILIES LOOKING FOR CREATIVE IDEAS: 

We know it’s hard to think of distancing from those we love to spend time with or finding creative activities for our kids to do. Below you can find some website links for a few ideas. Pinterest is also full of ideas from baking, crafts to lessons. Also, keep your eyes open on the  Vineland Missionary Church Facebook page for any new ideas that come our way. 

Online learning ideas: 

https://classroommagazines.scholastic.com/support/learnathome.html

Online Art Lessons: 

https://www.washingtonian.com/2020/03/16/mo-willems-is-hosting-a-livestream-doodle-starting-today/

https://www.artforkidshub.com

Toddler activity ideas: 

https://www.instagram.com/busytoddler/?hl=en

Being outside is also a great way to pass the time. Here are a few family-friendly hikes in our area: 

• Saint Johns conservation area 
• Beamer Memorial Conservation area 
• Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens 
• Decew Falls 
• Ball’s Falls Conservation area 
• Woodend Conservation area 
• George Nicholson Memorial Trail