News

EMC Family,

Our long-awaited 75th anniversary celebration has finally arrived. The festivities begin with brunch on Saturday morning and conclude with a covered dish meal Sunday after worship. Guests will be arriving in the area over the next several days and all our many months of planning and preparation are about to come to fruition. I am confident that the Lord is going to bless our time together and I am excited for it!

Last Sunday we moved the worship service to online only as a precautionary measure. My family had contracted covid along with a couple others in the leadership circle of the church. To minimize the possibility that others might contract the illness and possibility bring it to church Sunday before symptoms had time to manifest, we simply closed the building down with an eye toward ensuring our anniversary celebration would be as safe as possible. I have not heard of any additional infected households associated with our cases, for which I am grateful to the Lord.

Normal church operations resumed yesterday. Our normal Wednesday evening activities will be taking place tomorrow (with the exception of Bible study which will resume September 8). All systems are go for the anniversary this weekend. Here is the complete schedule of events:

Friday, September 3rd, 2021
Families arrive and spend time together at home

Saturday, September 4th, 2021
10:00 AM – Brunch (Tent)
11:00 AM – Music and sharing from those who have gone out in ministry from EMC (Chapel)
Afternoon – Choir & ensemble rehearsal (Worship Center), Individual family time
5:00 PM – Catered meal (Tent)
6:00 PM – Music and testimony service (Worship Center)

Sunday, September 5th, 2021
9:00 AM – Sunday School with former pastors (Worship Center)
10:15 AM – Worship celebration (Worship Center)
12:15 PM – Covered dish meal (Tent)
2:15 PM – Prayer and benediction

Please note the following items as they pertain to the weekend:

1. All meals have been moved outdoors. This includes Saturday morning brunch, Saturday evening supper, and Sunday afternoon dinner. Beginning tomorrow there will be a large tented area over the parking lot outside the church office to provide covered, yet adequately ventilated, eating and fellowship space. The weekend weather forecast looks beautiful!

2. We are strongly encouraging the wearing of masks while in close proximity of others indoors. While the efficacy of wearing masks to prevent transmission is debated, with a larger amount of people in the Worship Center than normal we want to use whatever means at our disposal to ensure the space is as safe for others as possible.

3. We ask everyone to please exercise wisdom and caution for the sake of others. If you do not feel well at all, even with mild cold symptoms, please do not come (unless you have a negative covid test and are sure you are not putting others at risk), even if you have been vaccinated.

I understand there is a lot of anxiety right now about covid and getting together with others. Like everyone, we’ve struggled the past year and a half to make wise decisions. We neither want to be rash and unwise regarding the nature of this virus or to be given over to fear. Some will not feel comfortable coming at all, while others will not agree with any of the measures we have requested above. But I am optimistic that we can enjoy this anniversary safely and in a way that is glorifying to God if we all do our part in making decisions with the best interests of others in mind. We will not let this virus control us. We will be both bold and wise, entrusting our lives to the One who holds all things together.

Out of an abundance of caution, the Sunday morning worship service for August 29th will be moved to an online only service. The doors of the church will be closed to the public and only essential AV and livestream staff will be permitted inside. Several of our members have received positive covid tests over the past week and we want to ensure our worship service does not become a venue for the illness to spread. Further updates will be posted here.

Please join us at 10:15 on Facebook live.

Join us for our 2021 summer revival with Rev. Nate Williamson, July 11-14. This is our annual event where we set time apart as the Body of Christ to allow the Holy Spirit to refresh, renew, and revive. Nursery care (0-3 yrs) will be available each evening by our wonderful volunteers! Bring your family and friends for this exciting time of seeking God together as the body of Christ!

This is the Way

So you have decided to follow Jesus. Great! But what does that really mean for a Christian in 2021? Our world seems to be spinning out of control as 2020 has left us broken from our normal patterns and grasping for control. In order to move forward, we need to look back to when the church was first established.

Please join us for a 5-message revival series entitled “This is the Way.” As we look at the book of Acts, we shall see how the early church reveals to the current church where to go. Learn how a daily walk with Jesus is the only answer to true peace, hope, joy, and purpose no matter the circumstances, political climate, or culture.

Schedule of Events

About Our Speaker

Reverend Nate Williamson was born and raised in Morgantown, West Virginia. He received his bachelors degree from Asbury University in Media Communications. He also holds a Masters of Divinity from Wesley Biblical Seminary. He is an ordained elder in the EMC. Pastor Nate was a youth pastor for seven years at Elizabeth City Evangelical Methodist Church, North Carolina before returning to West Virginia as the associate pastor at Kingdom EMC from 2009 to 2012. He became senior pastor at Covenant EMC in December, 2012. He is the son of Dr. Edward and Loretta Williamson who founded Covenant EMC and Covenant Christian School. He is married to Leah Williamson and is the father of five children: Emma, Samantha, Ava, Hannah, and Judah. He has a passion for the study of Scripture, the reality of the new life through Christ, and getting people to see things from an eternal perspective.

Register Online!

Description: We are so excited that VBS is returning to EMC this summer! Our VBS theme this year is “Rocky Railway – Jesus’ Power Pulls Us Through”. Kids will explore Jesus’ power and how we can trust Jesus to pull us through when life feels like a valley or a mountaintop.

Location: Evangelical Methodist Church, 820 Old Okisko Rd., Elizabeth City, NC 27909

Dates: July 26-29, 2021 (9:00 AM – 12:00 PM). Includes a special event on Thursday evening!

Cost: FREE

Contact: Chelsea Wortman (cwortman@ecityemc.org)

Children ages 3 (and potty trained) through rising 6th graders are welcome to attend!

EMC Family,

The ministry team has been prayerfully thinking through how to respond to the current events in our city and region. We are seeking Jesus and asking him to show us who we are to be and what we are to do as a church during what is a defining moment in our community’s history. We are compelled to play a role of some kind and not remain passive spectators. There is great opportunity to share Christ with our community here that we don’t want to miss. While we are still prayerfully seeking guidance and wisdom from the Lord, a few things have already become clear. Please take a moment to read everything below:

• Due to the combination of a county-wide curfew, increasing difficulty traveling on many of our major roadways, and the ongoing impact of COVID on key staff and volunteers, we have decided to cancel all activities held at the church this evening. You are invited to join me on Facebook Live at 7pm for a time of communal prayer. (Here is an alternative link for those without access to Facebook.)
• Due to the high likelihood that all of these factors will remain ongoing into the weekend and foreseeable future, we have decided to postpone our Spring revival to our fallback date in July. Huge kudos to Pastor Nate Williamson for his unrelenting grace and flexibility in what is now a second cancelled or postponed revival invitation. He is a picture of God’s heart to me and has pledged that his church’s intercessory team will be carrying our needs to the Lord as we navigate these difficult days.
• With this adjustment to our immediate schedule, we will as a church have the freedom to pivot and make Sunday a time of prayer emphasis. In addition, we are exploring tangible ways that we can take action as a church going forward to be salt and light that offers Jesus.

Will you join us in praying for the Lord’s wisdom and discernment in all of this? We have been through a lot as a church in recent months and it appears that a lot more lies ahead. We need the presence, power, and wisdom of God more than ever.

I will do my best to keep you posted along the way. Please know we make none of these decisions lightly and that no matter what we will seek to follow the lead of Christ, the Head of the church. I hope to see you online tonight. God bless!

In Him. With you.
Pastor Sean