We hope you are well and staying safe. Though 2020 hasn’t quite turned out how we imagined it, there is still so much to be thankful for. We have been especially thankful for the ability to continue holding outdoor services in San Diego. However, with recent news of the increase of COVID cases and the number of available ICU beds dipping, our staff made the decision to temporarily pause our outdoor services for 2 weeks, out of an abundance of precaution. We hope to meet again in-person outdoors by December 27, 2020 but will continue to monitor the safety to do so. As of December 11, 2020, the County of San Diego is sitting at 18% ICU Capacity (pg 9). Our policies and procedures have been updated to state that should this number dip below 15%, even though we are allowed to meet outdoors per county guidelines, we will voluntarily choose to halt outdoor worship services until the percentage increases to above 15%.
We have made some additional updates in our Kairos COVID-19 Policies and Procedures. In short, here are some updates and reminders:
Please feel free to reach out to any of our staff if you have any questions or concerns.
We hope you are doing well in the Lord. We know that this season of COVID–19 has weighed heavily on many of us. We are committed to walking through this season with each one of you and helping our church walk through this difficult season as best as possible.
We have updated our Kairos Policies and Procedures to include information regarding how our staff intends to communicate to our church family should a similar or confirmed positive case of COVID arises (see manual appendix for details). Additional information about COVID 19 can be found at the CDC Website.
As you know, we have implemented multiple professional cleaning and social-distancing measures during this outbreak of Coronavirus and are committed to keeping you up to date on any potential health risks. We remain committed to creating the safest environment for our worship services. Please continue to take social distancing seriously: avoid crowds, stay at home as necessary, and maintain at least a six-foot distance from other people. If you have been to our church services and have tested positive, please be sure to communicate this to our staff so that we can do our best to prevent further spread. We will continue to provide updates as needed.
Lastly, we realize that this may be a challenging time for many, so please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our staff if you need prayer or someone to discuss this matter with. Your physical, spiritual, and mental well-being is our number one priority and we are praying for the safety of all our members.
We hope everyone is having a good week so far! As many of you are aware, the state has updated its guidelines as California continues to experience a growing number of COVID-19 cases. As of this week, SD County is required to shut down certain industries or activities, including worship services, unless modifications can be made to operate outdoors. In response to the updated guidelines, the modifications we have made include:
As we continue to monitor the latest COVID-19 regulations, we appreciate your patience, flexibility, and constantly keeping our church in your prayers. Despite our current modifications to our church services, our hope is that we will continue to worship the Lord together as one church body. Please continue to be on the lookout for updates via email and our social media platforms. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to us.
We hope you’re doing well. While we are currently living in uncertain times, we are grateful for the opportunity to still come together both in-person and virtually as one body to worship our God. We know there are constant updates in regards to new policies put in place and it can be very overwhelming and confusing. Please know that our staff and re-entry team are doing our best through God’s guidance in navigating the church body and welcome any questions and concerns from our members.
As mentioned in this past Sunday’s Service, in light of the growing number of COVID-19 cases in California, the state has updated its guidelines that include the consideration to discontinue singing (in rehearsals, services, etc.), chanting, and other practices and performances where there is an increased likelihood for transmission from contaminated exhaled droplets. In response to the updated guidelines, we will still continue to have 2 in-person services (9:00 am & 10:30 am), and in regards to singing worship to the Lord, we have made some modification that includes:
As we make these modifications to our services, we are aware of the effects COVID-19 has had on us both individually and nationally, especially in regards to the blurred lines of separation between church and state and coming across many gray areas. As a result, it has been a challenge trying to navigate through the “radical middle” because the same Bible that calls us to worship Jesus also calls us to subject ourselves to governing authorities. There are areas within our government that are ungodly and stand against biblical values, and yet Romans 13 still tells us to subject ourselves. Of course, this does not mean we are to submit when it comes to the violation of God’s laws, which supersede human governing authorities.
So as you can imagine, for us as staff leading this congregation, it has not been easy navigating through these polarizing matters. However, at the end of the day, we still continue to strive to love others who approach these matters from different political angles, life experiences, spirituality, family and education backgrounds, etc. and we hope that you will do the same. We truly appreciate those of you who have shared your convictions during this time and hope all believers will cultivate a boldness for the Lord especially during this season. Please continue to pray for us and as always please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or needs.
It was so exciting to meet and worship together this past Sunday after not having seen most of you these past months. We hope those of you that joined us had a wonderful time reuniting with brothers and sisters and for those planning on joining us in the following weeks, we are looking forward to seeing you again.
Hopefully, the safety precautions and protocols set in place by the re-entry team allowed you to feel safe during service. We would also like to thank all the different ministries who have offered up their time to help make this a reality, including our worship/MAC team, prayer ministry, inreach ministry, and the hygiene team. We sincerely appreciate everyone’s flexibility and willingness to serve in this time!
This past Sunday, we had a total of almost 100 people join us in-person across all three services. We look forward to more of you joining us when you are ready & able! Thank you to everyone who promoted a safe environment by wearing masks and remaining socially-distanced! The hygiene team was also able to sanitize all frequently-touched surfaces in order to ensure a safe and smooth transition for the following services.
As we continue to meet together on Sundays, please remember the following:
*Please only register and check-in once so we do not have duplicates
We know these rapid changes can be overwhelming and everyone has their own level of comfort in regards to attending service. If you have any questions and concerns, do not hesitate to reach out to the staff. Looking forward to seeing everyone this Sunday, or virtually at the 10:30 am service!
This Sunday, June 14 will be our official re-entry launch date for in-person worship gatherings! The re-entry team, ministries & staff have been working very hard to prepare a safe environment for all those comfortable with joining us in-person. We hope you found the manual outlining our policies and procedures helpful and informative as we prepare to meet together once again. We have included it here again as well as on our website and social media platforms for quick reference.
As announced during service, we will be having in-person services starting again this Sunday, June 14 with three service times at 9:00 am, 10:30 am, & 12:00 pm (if necessary) with a capacity of 25%. In order to ensure that we meet city guidelines, here are some steps that we need you to take and to consider.
Assess your risk:
*If you answered yes to any of these questions, we advise you to stay home and encourage you to join us via Livestream at 10:30 AM
For those who are able and would like to join us in-person, we ask for the following things:
1. Register for a Service Time via Church Center App or at our Kairos Website BEFORE each Sunday Service.
*Registration is required each week for contact tracing purposes. Registration is also on a first come first serve basis so please make sure to register as soon as possible especially if you are scheduled to serve. The deadline to register is Saturday of each week at 11:59 PM.
2. Check-in on the Church Center App on Sunday morning. This will ensure we have an accurate record of who attends each service and so we can keep track of our capacity. Please arrive 15 minutes before service for check-in so we can start service in a timely manner.
3. Follow Safety Guidelines
Again, we do want to acknowledge everyone’s variation of comfortability and remind everyone of the importance of honor and unity during this season. We look forward to seeing you all next Sunday both in-person and virtually.
Dear Kairos Family,
I am grateful that on May 25, Governor Newsom gave churches in California the allowance to regather physically while following safety and health guidelines. Kairos Church plans to adhere to these guidelines while joyfully gathering together for worship starting on June 14. The Re-entry Team has created a detailed Kairos COVID-19 Policies & Procedures Manual on how we plan to follow these guidelines. This manual will be updated as city guidelines change.
I understand that there have been many voices that have surfaced during the shelter-in-place order and they continue to surface now that churches are resuming physical worship. In terms of re-entry, while some people may be enthusiastic to return for many good reasons, there are others who are cautious with just as many good reasons.
In light of this, I’d like to share a few things on how the staff has been prayerfully thinking through this delicate situation as we have been planning through how to safely resume in-person services in June.
Unity:
First of all, there is the importance of unity in these moments. Paul reminds us in Romans 12:16b, “Never be wise in your own sight.” In fact, the Bible has a lot to say about unity. We will uphold these passages as we think about our church family. Nevertheless, we understand that unity may not necessarily be uniformity nor unanimity. So while we navigate through this delicate season, we want to remind all of us to abide in the Spirit of unity. Therefore, we will not judge nor allow for judgment from either side of this matter of re-entry of the church.
Health:
There are many articles readily available online showing the rates of new infections, the percentage of positive tests, deaths, and recoveries in almost every nation affected by this pandemic. While the data from these other regions of the world (or even of the country) are helpful, it’s important to remember that the virus is not affecting every region identically. Furthermore, not every region of the world (or even of the country) is implementing the same physical distancing measures, masking requirements, lockdown protocols, or case-tracking technologies.
San Diego’s new positive case rate has been fairly steady (the number of new cases is holding around 100-150-ish / day since mid-April). So that curve has “flattened” thus far, which was the original goal of the social distancing measures. As testing increases, we should expect that the number of positive cases will also necessarily increase, but it’s interesting that the percentage of positive tests has gone down steadily since late April (another sign we’re flattening the curve).
The staff at Kairos understands that our governing leaders and health officials are allowing for re-opening of businesses as well as churches (with some limitations) while keeping a close eye on the data. We understand that we will need to use prudence when it comes to the current data so that we don’t become careless in our re-entry. We will continue to monitor any new information released by the officials.
Conclusion
There are other matters that the staff has considered. However, we will hold conversations about those points at another time, hopefully in person. I also understand that arguments can be brought forth from all sides on these matters. So it is with respect and humility that I’m sharing our staff’s thought process as we prepare for re-entry on June 14.
As we move forward, let us be respectful and mindful of others by adhering to safety policies and guidelines. And for a sneak peek into our sanctuary’s new set-up, I hope you will drop by on June 7. To-go lunches (from Sweet Llama) and drinks (from Camellia Rd.) will be provided as we celebrate a modified Thanksgiving-in-June with your life groups.
I want to mention again the importance of honor and unity in these matters and times. Nobody is to judge a person who feels that it is still better to stay at home; neither should one who returns for worship at church be seen as having a spiritual superiority over others. We all believe that Christ is the Head of our Church, and I am confident in Him who is both the Author and the Perfecter of our faith.
Blessings,
Pastor Peter
We hope everyone is staying healthy and safe at this time. First, we would like to thank everyone for taking the time out of your busy schedules to fill out the survey we previously sent out. Your feedback, as well as our continuation to closely monitor updates and guidelines from our local government, are instrumental as we consider how to ensure that we can provide a safe environment for when we are able to physically reopen the church and worship together again.
Some updates that we would like to share with you in regards to re-opening:
Preparation:
1. We have formed an ad-hoc Re-Opening team of people from within our congregation to focus on the steps necessary to safely return to the church facility. Moving forward, we will update you on any changes made to our building, processes, as well as other steps we are taking to provide a safe space to meet once again.
2. Upon re-opening, we have hired professional cleaners to perform a deep clean of our entire church building. Additionally, they will be coming weekly to provide regular cleaning services.
In the meantime, here are some things that you can do:
1. Stay connected and up to date with communication via email, Church Center App, and our social media platforms (we’ll be sending weekly email updates).
2. Pray for leadership that we may have wisdom and guidance as we plan.
We thank you for your continued patience and flexibility during this season. Though we are all physically distant from one another, let us continue to grow together in faith and trust in God’s sovereignty. As always, if you have questions, concerns, or need any kind of support during this time, please feel free to email us at kairoschurchsd@gmail.com.
We hope that you are all well and staying safe and healthy! As we continue to endure this season of quarantine, we are praying that the Holy Spirit is ministering to each of you in a powerful way. Our staff has been keeping watch over the local and state governments’ plans to gradually lift the shelter in place. We know that many of you are eager to return, while others are still cautious. We understand and want to be respectful and sensitive to everyone as we all deal with this pandemic differently.
That being said, we really need your feedback so that we can prepare our church and congregation beforehand for our eventual return to in-person gatherings once it is safe to do so. We have created a survey that includes several questions about your current feelings about returning to regular church activities when local government lifts its ban on public gatherings. Please take a few minutes to complete this survey (https://forms.gle/R3ehNKGbam8YDDrs9) so that our staff can better serve you at this time.
If you have any questions or need prayer, please do not hesitate to reach out to us!
We pray that you are doing well and settling into new rhythms. At this point in time, it seems as if we will be continuing on with online services and gatherings for a while. We will continue to monitor guidelines and recommendations before we make any decision about gathering back together in person. We realize that this temporary season of meeting online has not been ideal, but we want to encourage you to continue seeking the Lord, interceding for the world, and not neglecting to meet with one another.
Also, we understand that having a bunch of different Meeting ID’s can be stressful, so in order to help streamline our meeting rooms, we’ve come up with 3 categories of meetings to help you quickly find what the Meeting ID is. Please feel free to star this email or download the graphic on our Facebook or Instagram account
Kairos Gatherings | https://zoom.us/j/820921649 (Prayer Mtgs, Bible Study, Meet & Greets, Large Groups)
Kairos Online | https://zoom.us/j/900549963 (Movie Night, KairosFIT, Cooking & other fellowship activities)
Kairos Kids | https://zoom.us/j/401657763 (Promiseland Sunday Service & Promiseland Activities)
We wanted you to know that we are aware of security concerns and in order to protect user privacy and security, every meeting will now have a waiting room that will allow us to see who is joining before you actually join the room. We ask that you please use your name as you sign in as we won’t be allowing people in that we don’t recognize. This is to protect our attendees from any potential disruptions in the meetings. Please be patient as our hosts allow you to enter into the room.
Lastly, just a reminder that for Passion Week, we will be having nightly Zoom gatherings at 7:30 pm concluding with a joint livestream service with our Southern California AMI Churches on Resurrection Sunday at 11 am.
After more deliberation, we have decided to shift all meetings (including prayer meetings and Sunday Worship) online until further notice. Although we are saddened to announce this, we know that this is temporary and that it will ultimately be the best for our city. As we have been thinking of creative ways for us to navigate through these uncharted territories as a church, we’ve made a few adjustments to our regularly scheduled programs.
[WORSHIP]: SUNDAY SERVICE
We will be live-streaming ONE Sunday Service at 10 AM. Join us in the link from our website (http://kairoschurch.org/livestream).
[ENGAGE]: CORPORATE PRAYER + SCRIPTURE READING
As daily rhythms have been thrown off for many of us, what better way to re-center ourselves than by coming together each day for prayer and scripture reading? Starting next week, Monday through Friday, we will have Zoom Calls at 7:30 AM and 12 PM to engage in prayer and the Word of God. Meeting ID’s will be shared on our website each morning. We will NOT be having Tuesday night and Saturday morning prayer for the time being.
[CONNECT]: LIFE GROUPS
Even though we will not be meeting together physically, let’s continue to be faithful to one another and hold onto scriptures that teach us not to stop gathering together with other believers (Hebrews 10:25). Praise God for technology that allows us to continue in this. If you would like to join a life group, please reach out to us!
Thank you all for praying as we continue to face the rapidly changing and challenging situation in our state. After prayer, counsel with the pastors of AMI, and careful consideration, for the time being, we will be suspending all events that will take place in the homes of our members out of extra caution and consideration of people’s private space. In light of that, for the rest of this life group season (ending the first week of June), all life groups will be transitioning online. Life group leaders will be reaching out to their life group to determine what works best for the group.
As for other events, we will be monitoring recommendations and informing you of any changes or cancellations. So far, here is a list of upcoming events in March and April that have been canceled:
– Missions Cafe Night
– Kairos Basketball League
– Dinner For 8
– Parent’s Night Out
For the time being, we will continue to hold our Sunday Worship service and our Tuesday night/Saturday morning prayer meetings. We will continue to monitor and adhere to updated recommendations made by the CDC and San Diego Health Department. We understand that things can change quite quickly, so please be on the lookout for updates.
In addition, we have decided to Live Stream our Sunday service and Tuesday night prayer to serve those who will be away from San Diego due to UCSD and SDSU moving all classes online as well as those who need to or choose to stay home out of precaution. Our desire is to continue to worship our Lord as a church family.
Starting THIS Sunday, if you are planning on joining us online, please check the link to the right to join us LIVE online. We will live stream BOTH services this Sunday (9 AM, 11:15 AM).
We will also be continuing with the following precautions:
1. We will begin hiring professional cleaners to sanitize the church before Sunday Service.
2. Seating will be reduced and spread out in the sanctuary.
3. Refreshments served on Sunday mornings will only be pre-packaged ones.
4. There will be hand sanitizers in each room as well as sanitizer dispensers at the entrance.
5. During the Meet & Greet time, we will ask people to refrain from shaking hands.
6. We will no longer be passing around offering bags but will defer to online giving or an offering box in the back of the sanctuary.
As you know, though most of us are not within the at-risk demographic, we know that the heart of the Father is that we would care for the weak and the vulnerable. In this case, here are a few ways we can be salt and light in this time:
a) Take care of your own health and be vigilante about recommendations for ‘social distancing.’
b) Pray for the elderly and the most vulnerable in this time.
c) Care for those that do not have safety nets (international students, those with financial needs).
d) Share the gospel openly, as hearts can be opened to think about eternity.
Let’s be even more diligent to seek Him, to pray earnestly for one another, for our nation, and for the world!
We believe in a God who transforms lives, revives communities, and renews our world daily.