We gather in person as the body of Christ at St. Matthew.  Please sign up by clicking the link for service you plan to attend:

• For Christmas Eve or Christmas Day - because this is historically a time the church is crowded, we are placing strong emphasis on signing up.  If we need to add services, we will!  Christmas Eve services will not have the Lord's Supper, but it will be made available on Christmas morning.

• For Thanksgiving Day, November 26.
• For the weekend of November 28-29.
• Sign up online by clicking the appropriate link above.  You can also sign up by calling Tamy in the church office from 8:00 - 4:30, Monday through Thursday, at 524-7068.  You may also text Pastor Otto at 816-916-4935 and he can add names.
• Signing up serves two purposes, for the office only.  We do not plan to share your information outside the congregation.  First, it helps us keep our attendance record at this time as we are not passing out the attendance cards we normally store in the pews.  And secondly, it also helps us know who we need to call should we learn that someone attended worship who had the coronavirus.

During the pandemic, we are attending worship in our Family Life Center, where we can easily practice social distancing and sanitize chairs after each service.  A few things are different during these times:

• The doors to the Family LIfe Center are the only ones open for entry and exit.
• We  offer the Lord's Supper at all services.  Many members are unable to attend regularly and are grateful to receive the Sacrament for its assurance of grace, strength, and forgiveness.  For the sake of our brothers and sisters who desire to receive the Lord's promises, we make Holy Communion available.
• Safe practices: pastors and elders wash hands just prior to distribution; wafers are placed on hand without touch; individual cups are spaced in the tray; common cup is offered using recommended practice of a silver cup, alcoholic wine, wiping inside and outside with pure grain alcohol after each use.
• Wearing a mask during the service is required by local ordinance.  Pastors wear one but remove it for clear speech while preaching and reading Scripture.  They can safely do so because the Chancel is thirty feet away from the nearest seats.

• Online sign up instructions: The sign up is simple, requiring that you type a name in the box, then check the time you will come, then click send.  That's it, you're done!  We'll see you at the time you selected.  Here's a sample of what that page will look like:

• Please sign up all people who plan to attend.  After signing up the first member of your household, you'll be taken to a "Thank You" page that has a "back to poll" link.  Click "Back to poll" to return to the sign up, where you'll then need to click on the blue "+" plus sign to open a new box and sign up the next person.  Repeat this process for each person you need to sign up.

• If you are feeling ill, please stay home.  Contact your pastor to see how he can help care for your spiritual needs at this time.
• When you come into church, please refrain from physical contact and maintain the appropriate six feet of "social distancing."
• Orders of service are fully printed out for you, and large-print copies are available.