Five Ways to Support Your Church During The Covid-19 Pandemic

The pews are empty. The curtains slowly sway with the breeze. A solitary pianist gets ready to play her tune and the Pastor nervously straightens his tie as he prepares to stand behind the podium. He has put the same hours of preparation into the Word of God that he usually does every Sunday morning, only this time there won’t be any Amen’s from the crowd. Instead a camera lens will be live-streaming his sermon to homes across the globe.

The Corona virus, or the Covid-19 pandemic has left the Church in an unprecedented situation. Never before have Pastors had to cancel Sunday services, more-so during Easter celebrations – one of the highlights of the global Church calendar.

Schools are being closed, flights are being cancelled and businesses are being forced to shut their doors. While thousands of people are going into isolation or quarantine, the Church cannot afford to do the same.

In the midst of panic, fear, anxiety and grief, the Church has to stand up now more than ever before to be the voice of Calm, Reassurance and Hope.

Steering the Church through the Covid-19 crisis is unchartered territory for Pastors across the globe, and as they attempt to do this, with the grace of God, there are also ways in which You can be of support both to your Pastors, and to your local Church.

1. Pray for Your Pastor and Your Church

Pray for wisdom as your Pastor navigates through this crisis. Pray for strength as he continues to be of support to all those under his care, providing counselling, edification and direction. Pray that congregants will not fear, but will continue to trust in the sovereignty of God during this challenging time.

 2. Provide Moral Support

Church leaders across the globe are trying to find innovative ways of being of strength and support to their congregation. Traditionally Pastors visit people at their homes or in hospital. They have face-to-face counselling and regular interaction with their congregants. They now have to use technological devices and online tools to fulfill their pastoral duties. There is no one shouting Amen or nodding their heads during the sermon to encourage them.

You can provide moral support by making sure you listen to the teachings, or watch them online. Send your Pastor a short text of encouragement so he or she knows they are appreciated and that their effort and sermons from the Word of God are valued (1 Thessalonians 5:12-15, Deut 3:28).

3. Provide Vocational Support

Your Vocation is your career, your job, your trade, your craft, your business or your skill. This is an integral part of support for the Church. The disciples chosen by Jesus had various skills – Logistics, Economics, Entrepreneurship and even Politics!

Ask your Pastor how you can use your skill to help the Church during this time. There may be a need for an Administrator to help with paperwork. Perhaps you can be of service to the elderly by helping to do their shopping. Doctors could provide advice to congregants who have health concerns. Journalists could be an important resource of accurate information at a time when so many people are in panic. Those who have good social skills can help your Pastor by phoning others in the church family to check up on them. If you are a social media expert or good with technology, your skills will be needed now more than ever before.

4. Provide Financial Support

Finances are an integral part of any ministry. This season of the Covid-19 pandemic will pass, but the Church will still need to sustain itself financially. Rental or mortgage bonds, utilities, staff salaries, mission funds and many other expenses will still have to be paid.

Lots of funds will have to be invested into technology at this time to meet the demand for online resources. Further to this, the Church is the first place many go to for help when they are unable to meet their personal bills during this economic crisis.

Continue to be faithful with honouring the Lord with your Tithes, First Fruit and Offerings, through the use of internet banking.

The Bible promises in Proverbs 3:9-10 that as you honour the Lord with your possessions, you will experience the plenitudes and sufficiency of God, even in a time of economic meltdown. The Book of Malachi also reminds us that the Lord Himself will rebuke the devourer when we honour Him with the Holy tithe.

We are also instructed to sow to the poor (Leviticus 19:9-10), sow to widows (1 Timothy 5:3-8), and for the building of the ministry (Exodus 36:2-5).

With so many countries on lock-down at the moment, the poor are the hardest hit. If it is within your means to help provide some financial support to them, do so.

Proverbs 19:17 “He who gives to the poor, lends to the Lord, and He will give him his reward.”

5. Be a Pillar

Pillars are support structures. They support the building and hold up the next level. If we want to see the Church move to the next level even in this time of crisis, we must be pillars.

Can you imagine a Manchester United vs Liverpool game taking place without supporters? Football fans put aside all their appointments to watch the big game. They put on their branded shirts, get the environment ready with drinks, snacks and company, and cheer on while the game is being played. A team that plays on home ground has a better chance of winning, because of the support that they receive.

Pastors and Churches also need support. They need people who are willing to put aside other appointments, who know how to get the environment prepared for the move of God, and people who are able to sacrifice their time and resource.

Exodus 17:8-13 best describes the huge impact Supportive service has….

Now Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim. And Moses said to Joshua, “Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses said to him, and fought with Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 And so it was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. So Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

Moses represents your Pastor or spiritual father and Joshua represents you as his son. Joshua was sent into the field to do battle with the Amalekites. The Word Amalek means a “dweller in the valley”. This is a picture of depression, sadness and oppression.  One of the greatest enemies facing many today is depression and anxiety. With the Corona Virus wreaking havoc globally, many have fallen into depression. In the scripture above, Aaron and Hur supported Moses as Joshua went into the field. As long as Moses’ hands were lifted up or supported by these two men, Joshua was successful in the battle against the Amalekites and the entire nation was victorious and joyful.

When we hold up our Pastor’s hands in supportive service, we are guaranteed to overcome the battles that come our way. When we lift up the hands of Church leaders whose care we are under, our entire congregation reaps the benefit.

In 1 Chronicles 12:1-2, men came to David to be of support in the war. These men were ambi-dextrous – they could use their right hand and their left hand. These were very skilled individuals. Strong pillars are people who are skilled in the world and skilled in the church. They know how to balance the sacred and the secular.

Be a strong support structure for your Pastor, and everyone in your local church. Aspire to be someone they know they can safely lean on.

Even though Christians around the globe are not able to physically gather during this pandemic, social distancing doesn’t mean social disconnection. Use all the technology at your disposal to network and make sure you don’t lose connectivity with the family of God.

Melini Moses together with her husband Justin, lead Life Community church in Johannesburg. She is a News Editor at the South African Broadcasting Corporation, a Dag Hammarskjold and World Press Institute Fellow.