The latest official stats for our state show that coronavirus cases are slowly in decline. And with this decline, the government has set guidelines for businesses to gradually open. These guidelines also include recommendations and requirements for church gatherings.

After eighteen Sundays, the downtown (Boa Vista) congregation celebrated its first worship service at the church building last Sunday. It was a nostalgic and uplifting experience to be back, even with all the restrictions.

Each meeting is limited to only fifty people present. Everyone wearing masks and people over sixty and under ten could not attend. Hand sanitizing preceded the Lord’s Supper. We had to refrain from the warm brotherly greetings that Brazilians love.

While these restrictions remind us that we are going through some frightening times, being back together stands for something greater. It stands for the faith of brethren who persevere even when apart, it stands for the ever-enduring church of God, and it stands for a God who is forever in control watching over His flock.

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds”
(Hebrews 10:23-24)